Gyro Air Lines, Inc. Map [and] Stock Certificate

Rare pair of ephemera – map and stock certificate – of an airline that never got off the ground.

Complete inauguration of the proposed GYRO AIR LINES system will cover over 30,000 miles of air lines with a total of more than 140,000 air miles flown daily, or an average of over 5,800 air miles every hour. [back cover].

This fascinating pair of items was published in 1934 and relate to the production of the American Gyro AG-4 Crusader, a futuristic twin-engine aircraft with a teardrop-shaped fuselage. It only ever saw flight as a prototype, but apparently, the hype was enough to prompt the organization of an entirely new Denver-based airline around the plane’s revolutionary capabilities.

The Air Line Routes and Schedules features a ludicrously stylized image of the aircraft on the front cover and opens to a three-panel map of the United States. Proposed routes of Gyro Air Lines, Inc. run from coast to coast and between Mexico and Canada, far surpassing the network of any contemporary competitors. Lists of timetables offer a convincing, if impossible, operating schedule. The accompanying stock certificate was issued in May of 1934 and offers the bearer, Joseph Cooper, fifty shares. Unfortunately, Mr. Cooper likely wasn’t able to cash in, as the company filed for bankruptcy in 1938 while under investigation for securities fraud.