Aircraft at the Museum of Flying in Seattle, WA, include a Boeing B29 SuperFortress, a Boeing 747, a … [+]
Are you an aviation and travel lover? Or do you know one deserving of a special holiday gift? From hats and clothing to models and keepsakes made of aircraft ‘skin’, there are many gifts available for those fascinated by the history and culture of flying.
German company Aviationtag makes commemorative metal luggage tags or key chain fobs out of scrapped classic aircraft from around the world. These include jumbo jets like the Boeing 747 and Airbus A380. At the Aviationtag facility in Cologne, old aircraft parts are manually dismantled, cut, punched, polished, and laser engraved.
Earlier this year I bought a luggage tag made from the ‘skin’ of Emirates Airlines first Airbus A380, A-6-EDA. The giant plane was recently retired after 6,319 flights, carrying over 2.1 million people. My limited-edition tag, LAX 097/380, commemorated the planes four landings at my home airport, Los Angeles International. Now I’ve got my eye on a tag made from the vanishing Boeing 747, like the Aviationtag made from one of the last El Al aircraft.
The tags are memories you can literally hold in your hand. Each come with a brief history of the historic planes, which include commercial, military and general aviation aircraft.
An Avationtag “skin tag” or luggage tag made from the aluminum skin of the first Emirates Airbus … [+]
For example, there is an Aviationtag of one of the “Raisin Bombers,” (aka “Candy Bombers”) of the Berlin Airlift. In addition to tons of coal and food, thousands of planes like this C-47 (the military version of the Douglas DC-3), brought equally necessary candy and raisins to hungry German children.
The airlift supplied the people of West Berlin when the USSR blocked land, raid and road access to the city in June of 1948. At least 78 British, American and German aviators were killed in accidents during the Blockade.
The peak day of the airlift was the “Easter Parade” of April 16, 1949. That day, 1,398 flights brought in more than 12,940 tons of cargo, with transports landing an average of 62 seconds apart. The Russians opened the roads a month later.
Typically priced from 30 to 100 euros, Aviationtag gifts won’t break the bank. Aviationtag also sells models, covers and lanyards for your luggage tag, even the original inflatable life vests from commercial aircraft. Shipping can take a while, so if you want the tags by December 24, order soon.
Other companies also sell clothing, keepsakes and memorabilia of flying and travel. If you want to wear your allegiance to air travel, Aviate makes aviation themed hats, shirts and even accessories for the drinker like flasks.
Members of the US Military Vehicle Club Frankfurt reenact the loading of care packages in front of … [+]
Aviate calls itself “The Original Airport Code Brand,” and lets you represent your home airport with hats and other items showing its three-letter code.
For example, are you from New Jersey? Show your Jersey pride with an “EWR” hat, representing New Jersey’s favorite airport, Newark Liberty International.
If you’re from the Metroplex, how about a DFW cap? I’d wear a BUR hat myself, but I don’t want to let out the secret about LA’s “second” airport, unbelievably convenient to the San Fernando Valley and Hollywood. Yes, Aviate does have LAX headgear.
How about vintage propellors, a $40 B-17 Flying Fortress Christmas sweater with a B-17 on it, or B-2 bomber, F-16, Piper Cub and Tuskegee Airmen P-51 Mustang Christmas ornaments, each $9.99? And shades of the classic comedy AIRPLANE! Sporty’s Aviation Gifts even offers Otto the Inflatable Pilot for $50 this holiday season.
The Museum of Flight and its store in Seattle has many aviation-themed gifts, from jet engine keychains and “Jet Fuel” mugs to Boeing logo items. The museum also offers a 288-page book about the days of stylish flying, “Air Travel Time Machine: 1942-1960 Kodachrome Memories.”
Air Travel Time Machine: 1942-1960 Kodachrome Memories, a book at the Museum of Flying Store in … [+]
Author Henry Tenby assembled a collection of Kodachrome images from the middle of the last century, capturing everyday air travels. From the close of World War II to 1960, air travel went from piston-powered craft like Boeing flying boats to the early airliners of the jet age.
Pan Am and its Clippers are commemorated at The Pan Am Museum, in Garden City, New York. The museum and Pan Am Museum Online Store offer a nostalgic look at Pan American World Airways, , the iconic U.S. airline that flew from 1927 through 1991.
Pan Am swag includes magnets, keychains, mini travel notebooks, a Pan Am logo throw blanket and more. You’ll also find a silver necklace with the iconic logo, ($40), a Pan Am 707 Series: Double Agent Flight Bag ($74.99), even Pan Am Pearls ($39.99.)
Certainly, gifts like these show fascination with the history of travel. But they are not just displays of nostalgia, but of appreciation for the still-young aviation industry, which continues to bring the world together.
On april 25, 1939 : christening of plane California Clipper (Boeing 314, seaplane) of Pan American … [+]