Air World Map

Celebrating the Air Age at a time of war.

This intriguing world map was published by American Airlines, Inc. in 1944. A heavily distorted projection is used to highlight the approximate distances, by air, of various places across the globe. The named points are connected to the United States with a line of unbroken airplanes, each representing approximately 250 miles of distance or 1 hour flight time. Destinations like the North Pole, South Pole, and Berlin show the exercise is mostly illustrative (what about refueling?) but still instructional for a general public acclimating to the new form of transportation.

Illustrations show the ‘vital Air Age materials’ sourced from around the world; including asbestos, vanadium, kapok, and basswood. Boxes of text in the lower corners explain further the map projection and the incredible fuel consumption of contemporary aircraft. Only 1 mile per gallon for the B-17 and B-24!