Pan Am pioneered the first regular transatlantic passenger service using flying boats in 1939.
Pan American Airways began scheduled transatlantic service on 28 June 1939, linking New York and Southampton with Boeing 314 flying boats. The aircraft operated from water terminals and carried passengers in a small, luxurious cabin with sleeping berths and dining facilities.
The service depended on a chain of bases and maritime navigation because long-range land airports were not yet available for many ocean routes. Flying boats could use sheltered harbors, but they were vulnerable to weather and required extensive ground support.
Pan Am’s achievement is separate from the first nonstop transatlantic flight and from later landplane services. The Boeing 314 made regular passenger travel possible, but World War II soon disrupted civilian operations. After the war, faster land-based aircraft and expanding airport networks made flying boats commercially obsolete.