PANAMAC Agent Set
date: label: Date made
content: 1961 -1965
name: label: maker
content: IBM
label: maker
content: IBM
notes: label: Description
content: The PANAMAC was Pan American's first worldwide airline reservation management system. Installed in 1964, it used the IBM 7080 Data Processing System. PANAMAC linked hundreds of agent sets throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, and the Caribbean with the Pan American computing center in New York City. The Desk Agent's set was part of the networked system shown in a graphic from the PANAMAC manual. Using teleprocessors networked to the computing center, agents could access Pan Am flight information and book reservations almost instantly. While this is now commonplace, at the time it was an innovative and successful system.
label: Description
content: PANAMAC was based on computer networks developed for the United States military where "real-time" information was necessary to calculate projected trajectories for missiles. The IBM-designed network was only the second real-time network to be installed for high-speed computing and communication in the airline industry. The first networked system developed for real-time airline reservations was American Airline's SABRE (Semi-Automatic Business-Related Environment), developed by IBM and implemented in 1961 on an IBM 7090 system. Delta's Deltamatic flight reservation system, installed in 1964, was also designed by IBM and used an IBM 7074 system. Prior to these systems, reservation information was available but quickly outdated. A few early computer systems, such as American Airlines' Reservisor, designed by Teleregister Corp., provided quick access to flight information but were not set up to receive information so reservations still had to be taken by hand and calls placed to airlines to confirm availability.
setName: label: See more items in
content: Medicine and Science: Computers
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Gift of Pan American World Airways, Inc.
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: CI.335515
label: accession number
content: 321704
label: catalog number
content: 335515
objectType: label: Object Name
content: mainframe peripheral
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: metal (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: plastic (overall material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 17 in x 18 in x 7 in; 43.18 cm x 45.72 cm x 17.78 cm
label: Measurements
content: ibm i/o typewriter: 11 in x 17 1/2 in x 16 1/2 in; 27.94 cm x 44.45 cm x 41.91 cm
label: Measurements
content: 3 push button set: 5 1/2 in x 9 3/4 in x 7 1/4 in; 13.97 cm x 24.765 cm x 18.415 cm
label: Measurements
content: ibm 1003 tele-processor terminal: 7 in x 18 in x 16 3/4 in; 17.78 cm x 45.72 cm x 42.545 cm