Pan Am

**Pan American World Airways**, originally founded as **Pan American Airways** and commonly known as **Pan Am**, was an American airline that was the principal and largest international air carrier and unofficial overseas flag carrier of the United States for much of the 20th century. It was the first airline to fly worldwide and pioneered numerous innovations of the modern airline industry, such as jumbo jets and computerized reservation systems. Until its dissolution on December 4, 1991, Pan Am "epitomized the luxury and glamour of intercontinental travel", and it remains a cultural icon of the 20th century, identified by its blue globe logo ("The Blue Meatball"), the use of the word "Clipper" in its aircraft names and call signs, and the white uniform caps of its pilots.

Founded in 1927 by two U.S. Army Air Corps majors, Pan Am began as a scheduled airmail and passenger service flying between Key West, Florida, and Havana, Cuba. In the 1930s, under the leadership of American entrepreneur Juan Trippe, the airline purchased a fleet of flying boats and focused its route network on Central and South America, gradually adding transatlantic and transpacific destinations. By the mid-20th century, Pan Am enjoyed a near monopoly on international routes. It led the aircraft industry into the Jet Age by acquiring new jetliners such as the Boeing 707 and Boeing 747. Pan Am's modern fleet allowed it to fly larger numbers of passengers, at a longer range, and with fewer stops than rivals. Its primary hub and flagship terminal was the Worldport at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City.

During its peak between the late 1950s and early 1970s, Pan Am was known for its advanced fleet, highly trained staff, and amenities. In 1970, it flew 11 million passengers to 86 countries, with destinations in every continent except Antarctica. In an era dominated by flag carriers that were wholly or majority-owned by governments, Pan Am became the unofficial national carrier of the United States. It was a founding member of the International Air Transport Association (IATA), the global airline industry association.

Beginning in the mid-1970s, Pan Am began facing a series of challenges both internal and external, along with rising competition from the deregulation of the airline industry in 1978. After several attempts at financial restructuring and rebranding throughout the 1980s, Pan Am gradually sold off its assets before declaring bankruptcy in 1991. By the time it ceased operations, the airline's trademark was the second most recognized worldwide, and its loss was felt among travelers and many Americans as signifying the end of the golden age of air travel. Its brand, iconography, and contributions to the industry remain well known in the 21st century. The airline's name and imagery were purchased in 1998 by railroad holding company Guilford Transportation Industries, which changed its name to Pan Am Systems and adopted Pan Am's logo.
**Pan Galactic** was a spaceline operating in the Twelve Colonies before the Cylon attack.
Since these ships are completely without defenses, many ships like this Pan Galactic spaceliner were destroyed during the attacks.

At least one FTL-capable Pan Galactic spaceliner, named the *Caprica Clipper*, survived the attack and united with the Fleet. This liner is the last civilian ship to make its escape jump in the Battle of Ragnar Anchorage (Miniseries).

After the settlement of New Caprica, it was among the ships that chose to set down on the planet's surface. It was later held by the Cylons during the Occupation, and is among the first to escape the surface during the liberation by *Galactica*, by performing an intra-atmospheric jump (Exodus, Part II).

After offloading its passengers on *Galactica*, the Pan Galactic liner was later shepherded through the The Passage and arrived at the algae planet on the fifth and final jump (The Passage).

The vessel would later be destroyed when it was sent into Earth's sun with the rest the fleet (Daybreak, Part II).

## Notes

* Pan Galactic uses the popular spaceliner design used by other spacelines such as Gemon Liners.
* The livery and name of Pan Galactic is based on the airline Pan American (or Pan Am), which ceased operations in 1991.
* Pan Galactic's company logo, located on the ship's sides and underside tail, is nearly identical to the one of Pan Am, except for its lettering, which says "Pan Gal."
* The use of the likeness of the old Pan Am logo is likely an homage to the film *2001: A Space Odyssey*, where a Space Shuttle-like winged transport (run by a fictional version of Pan Am) is seen.
* The name, *Caprica Clipper*, can be seen clearly on its nose in promotional pictures, however it has yet to be named in any official episodes with lack of closeups on the vessel throughout the series.