Pan Am Clippers

Sikorsky S-40

Reg	Name	Year	Region	Data
NC80V	American Clipper	1931	Pacific	The First PAA Clipper, inaugural flight 11/19/31
NC81V	Caribbean Clipper	1931	Pacific	Scrapped
NC752V	Southern Clipper	1932	Pacific	Scrapped

Sikorsky S-42

Reg	Name	Year	Region	Data
NC822M	Brazilian Clipper Colombia Clipper	1934	Latin America & Pacific	Renamed Colombia Clipper for use on Pacific Survey flights. Scrapped 1946.
NC823M	West Indies Clipper Pan American Clipper Hong Kong Clipper	1934	Latin America	Renamed Pan American Clipper. Renamed Hong Kong Clipper 1937. Sank at Antilla, Cuba, 9/7/44
NC824M	unchristened	1935	Latin America	Crashed, Port au Spain, Trinidad, 12/20/35
NC15373	Jamaica Clipper	1935	Latin America	(S-42A). Scrapped 7/15/46
NC15374	Antilles Clipper	1935	Latin America	(S-42A). Scrapped 7/15/46
NC15375	Brazilian Clipper Colombian Clipper	1936	Latin America	(S-42A). Scrapped 7/15/46
NC15376	Dominican Clipper	1936	Latin America	(S-42A). Lost in accident in San Juan Harbor 10/3/41
NC16734	Pan American Clipper II Samoan Clipper	1936	Pacific	(S-42A). Renamed Samoan Clipper, lost near Pago Pago, Samoa, 1/11/38
NC16735	Bermuda Clipper Alaska Clipper Hong Kong Clipper II	1936	Atlantic & Pacific	(S-42A). Baltimore-Bermuda route. To Alaska 1940 and renamed Alaska Clipper, to Manila-Hong Kong route 1941 and renamed Hong Kong Clipper II. Sunk by Japanese bombing, Hong Kong 12/8/41 (See note #1 below).
NC16736	Pan American Clipper III Bermuda Clipper	1937	North Atlantic & South Atlantic	(S-42A). Survey flights, to Bermuda route 1940 and renamed Bermuda Clipper. To South America 19??. Destroyed at Manaus, Brazil, on the Rio Negro 7/27/43

Martin M-130

Reg	Name	Year	Region	Data
NC14714	Hawaiian Clipper Hawaii Clipper	1936	Pacific	First scheduled transpacific passenger service 10/21/36. Rechristened Hawaii Clipper in 1937. Lost over the Pacific east of Manila 7/29/38
NC14715	Philippine Clipper	1935	Pacific	To USN as M-130 [48230] 1942. Crashed into a mountain at Boonville CA, 1/21/43
NC14716	China Clipper	1935	Pacific	First transpacific air mail 11/22/35. To USN as M-130 [48231] 1942. Crashed Port au Spain, Trinidad, 1/8/45

Boeing B-314

Reg	Name	Year	Region	Data
NC18601	Honolulu Clipper	1939	Pacific	Operated by PAA during the war. Collided with USS San Pablo taking it under tow and was sunk by cannon fire 11/14/45
NC18602	California Clipper Pacific Clipper	1939	Pacific	Renamed Pacific Clipper. To USN as B-314 [48224] 1942 but operated by PAA; to World Airways 1946, scrapped in 1950
NC18603	Yankee Clipper	1939	Atlantic	First transatlantic air mail. To USN as B-314 [48225] 1942 but operated by PAA. Crashed and sank in River Tagus near Lisbon, Portugal, 2/22/43
NC18604	Atlantic Clipper	1939	Atlantic	To USN as B-314 [48226] 1942 but operated by PAA. Salvaged for parts in 1946
NC18605	Dixie Clipper	1939	Atlantic	First transatlantic passenger service; first actual US presidential aircraft 1/11/43 (SEE Chronology). To USN as B-314 [48227] 1942 but operated by PAA; to World Airways 1946, scrapped in 1950.
NC18606	American Clipper	1939	Atlantic	To USAAF [42-88631] then USN [99083] 1942; to World Airways 1946, scrapped in 1950
NC18607 NC18608		1941	England	(B-314A) Both ordered by PAA but went to BOAC 1941 as [G-AGBZ] Bristol and [G-AGCA] Berwick; both to World Airways 1948-??
NC18609	Pacific Clipper	1941	Pacific	(B-314A) To USAAF [42-88632] then USN [99084] 1946; to Universal Airlines 1946-??, damaged in a storm and salvaged for parts
NC18610		1941	England	(B-314A) Ordered by PAA but went to BOAC 1941 as [G-AGCB] Bangor, to World Airways 1948-??
NC18611	Anzac Clipper	1941	Atlantic & Pacific	(B-314A) To USAAF [42-88630] then USN [99082] 1942; to American International Airways 1946; to World Airways 1948, sold and destroyed in Baltimore MD in late 1951
NC18612	Capetown Clipper	1941	Atlantic	(B-314A) To USAAF [42-88622] then USN [99081] 1942; to American International Airways 1946. Sunk at sea by USCG as a hazard to ships after colliding with boat in precautionary landing 10/14/47 `Data: Peter M Bowers, Andres Visser, PanAm.org, R E G Davies: Pan Am, An Airline and Its Aircraft`

There is much misinformation and speculation in data found about the Clippers, and I feel this is the most accurate representation, despite still having a few areas of contest. Several URLs on this subject, which "liberated" Aerofiles' original 1998 data verbatim long ago, still contain original errors and misinformation that was amended as more substantive data were found. Other sites have relied on unspecified sources or use mixtures of sources.

Questions still lie here — such as that second Pacific Clipper appearing on PanAm records and USN regs, and Clipper Betsy Ross, which shows as a 1952 DC-6B [N6523C] — and I welcome any documented evidence that might set these records straight, for once and for all. (— K O Eckland 7/20/04)

NOTE #1: Hong Kong Clipper II was destroyed about 8:10 a.m., Dec 8, 1941, Hong Kong local time. Because Hong Kong is west of the International Date Line, it was Dec 7 in the U.S.

Source for this is Stanley Weintraub's Long Day's Journey Into War: Dec 7, 1941 (Truman Talley-Dutton 1991), pp 419-421. On page 414 it shows that 8:00 a.m. on Dec 8 at Hong Kong was 1:30 p.m. on Dec 7 at Pearl Harbor. The book also refers to the log of British destroyer HMS Scout as noting that the air raid that got Hong Kong Clipper II took place at 8:10 a.m. I assume that the loss of an airplane is noted with the time and date at the location of loss. It is part of being a professional reference librarian, and an amateur historian. (— Richard Smyers 7/23/04)