January 24, 2024
Airline Manuals
Airline Manuals - Description
Early airline manuals date to the 1920s and cover topics such as airplane safety procedures, maintenance, emergency protocols, and operations. Because most manuals and handbooks include publication dates, they are easily identified. Airline manuals are popular with collectors of airline memorabilia.
Airline Manuals - History
Airlines have created many types of manuals for various employees. Manuals include instructions for flight crew members in the cockpit as well as operating procedures for flight attendants and ground crews. Common manual topics include maintenance, operations, and personnel policy.
Airlines and aircraft manufacturers have created manuals for informational purposes since the beginning of the commercial airline industry. However, in the 1950s, the United States created the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to oversee the airline industry. For safety and procedural purposes, the FAA must approve airline manuals.
In 2012, Delta Air Lines was one of the first airlines to approve the use of computers or tablets to access information formerly found in paper manuals. The FAA approved this transition and has estimated considerable cost savings as a result of this change.
What is the Value of your Airline Manuals? View more in our Airline Manuals Price Guide.
Airline Manuals In Price Guide
Airline Manuals - Identification & Value
Fans of historical aviation may choose to categorize manuals by airline. For example, Pan Am manuals are highly prized. Founded in 1927, the airline was one of the first commercial air carriers. It was known as an early innovator of jet technology and international routes. In 1991, Pan Am was acquired by Delta.
Collectors may choose to focus on a specific type of airplane. For example, a 747 jet and a DC-10 jet are two popular and sought-after manuals.
Manuals from the Concorde supersonic jet are also highly collectible. The Concorde was a joint venture between Britain and France and was operated by British Airways and Air France. The plane was built in the 1960s, and only fourteen were in operation. The last Concorde flight took place in 2003.
Many manuals were the personal property of pilots or other crew members and were signed. Researchers can connect stories and personalities to these manuals. For example, a manual signed by Captain Harvey “Hoot” Gibson carries the lore of a flight crew that lost control of a passenger plane and was fired from Trans World Airlines (TWA) following an investigation. The crew maintained its innocence and blamed the incident on the auto-pilot systems. Collectors may more highly value manuals that are signed or contain pilot notes.
Because manuals were used during flights and were also studied by employees at home, some manuals contain food and drink stains or loose pages. Therefore, the condition of the manual should be considered when collecting.
Manuals from the early days of aviation tend to be more valuable than recent manuals. The age of a manual is easily identifiable by the publication date found on the initial pages of the guide.
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Airline Manuals - Symbols
Airline manuals are usually marked with the carrier name and logo on the cover and often appear on the introductory pages of the manual.
Identify your Airline Manuals Symbols.
Relevant Transportation and Vehicles Articles
Further Reading on Airline Manuals
Books and Periodicals
Airline Cabin Crew Training Manual by Emmy Arsonval Maniriho.
Airlines of the Jet Age: A History by R.E.G. Davies.
Web Resources
American Aviation Historical Society www.aahs-online.org.
Development of Aircraft Operating Manuals www.skybrary.aero.
University of Miami Digital Collections www.digitalcollections.library.miami.edu.
Related Dictionary Pages: Airline Advertising, Air Sickness Bags, Luggage Labels.