Northwest was impressed by the reliability and handling of its fleet of Model 10A Electras, but with growing traffic in the late 1930s came the need for larger capacity aircraft to handle the load. Boeing’s Model 247 and Douglas’ DC-2 had shown the flying public and airline accountants what newer technology could do – and Lockheed wanted to stay competitive.
A sales pitch to Northwest brought a quick order for the Model 14H Super Electra, with passenger seating increased from 10 to 14 as well as increased baggage and freight capacity (though NWA would only fit 12 seats). A pair of Pratt & Whitney’s reliable Hornet engines gave ample power for flying in the Rocky Mountains, and innovations like a single-spar all-metal wing with integrated fuel tank, and Fowler flaps, were incorporated. Advertising from Northwest in the August 1937 Official Airline Guide also noted the aircraft “…will also be equipped with robot pilots, a mechanical device which will fly the ship without human aid under ordinary conditions, and will stabilize its flight at all times.”
Northwest was proud to be the launch customer, and would market these aircraft as the “Sky Zephyr, the world’s fastest transports.” The first of 11 aircraft ordered arrived in September 1937, and the last was delivered in July 1939. The Model 14H quickly took over mainline duties, starting on the Chicago-Twin Cities run in October 1937, and by summer 1938 was running three round trips daily from the Twin Cities to Seattle.
However, the aircraft’s introduction was plagued with three crashes: a high speed structural flutter failure in January 1938 at Bozeman, Montana, killing all 10 passengers and crew; in May 1938, where an aircraft being delivered from the factory hit Stroh Peak in California, killing 9; and in July 1938 at Billings, Montana, where a takeoff stall killed one passenger. While the latter two crashes were unrelated, faith in the aircraft was shaken despite Lockheed’s corrections and recertification. An order for new Douglas DC-3s was placed in late 1938, but one more fatal crash at Miles City, Montana in January 1939 due to a cockpit fire, caused NWA to lease in DC-3s from American to cover the fleet gap. All the Sky Zephyrs were pulled off the line by summer 1939, replaced with leased and new DC-3s and some of the older Electra 10s still on hand. The Model 14H served less than two years with Northwest.
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Final assembly of Northwest’s first Model 14 at the Lockheed plant in Burbank, California, August 1937. Lockheed photo from the Smithsonian Institution, via the James Borden Photography Collection.Lockheed photo of the first Model 14 bound for Northwest, still in X-classification (to become NC17382). The aircraft is showing its substantial flap extension in front of the manufacturer’s Burbank, California factory in Fall 1937.X17382 at Burbank, Aug. 1937. Photographer unattributed, via the James Borden Photography Collection.X17382 at Burbank, August 1937. K.M. Brommer picture, via the James Borden Photography Collection.X17382 on the Lockheed ramp, August 1937. Lockheed photo from Carl Griffin, via the James Borden Photography Collection.X17382 just before handover to Northwest, at the Lockheed Burbank factory, August 1937. Photo from G. Williams at Boeing, via the James Borden Photography Collection.X17382 just before handover to Northwest, at the Lockheed Burbank factory, August 1937. Photo from G. Williams at Boeing, via the James Borden Photography Collection.Sky Zephyr interior shot from Dick Palen shows a few differences from the earlier Model 10 Electra: a slightly taller roofline featuring noticeable bracing, and a rear starboard-side window. The extra two seat rows are behind the photographer in this view. Headrest “wings” are also new compared to the Electra (who says those are a 21st-Century innovation?) From the James Borden Photography Collection.X17382 at the Lockheed Burbank factory, August 1937, with tire fairings being evaluated. This equipment was ultimately not included in the craft delivered to NWA. Photo from G. Williams at Boeing, via the James Borden Photography Collection.X17382 preparing for departure from Burbank, August 1937. Photo from G. Williams at Boeing, via the James Borden Photography Collection.Second aircraft in the Zephyr fleet to be delivered was NC17383, here using an “R” designator. Shot by William Bull for NWA, via Carl Griffin, and housed in the James Borden Photography Collection. “Dot” just above the cockpit is a photo printing artifact.Croil Hunter himself notated this photo, “Lockheed 14 taking off Billings Airport Sept. 25, 1937” – from the James Borden Photography Collection.17383 in Fall 1937 with a good view of its flap tracks. Carl Griffin photo from the James Borden Photography Collection.Loading mail at St. Paul, 1937. From the James Borden Photography Collection.Loading mail at St. Paul, 1937. From the James Borden Photography Collection.NC17392 at Minneapolis in 1937. Logan Coombs photo via the James Borden Photography Collection.Carl Griffin study of the Sky Zephyr’s massive wing flap and tracks, St. Paul, 1937. From the James Borden Photography Collection.The Sky Zephyr shared the general arrangement of the earlier Type 10 Electra, but this photo emphasizes how much bigger and more powerful this aircraft had become. 1937 photo at St. Paul from Carl Griffin, via the James Borden Photography Collection.1937 photo from Carl Griffin, contrasting the power of spinning props against the placid vista of St. Paul’s Holman Field. From the James Borden Photography Collection.A glimpse inside the St. Paul hangars behind this Type 14H reveals one of the company’s Fairchild F-24s. 1937 photo from Carl Griffin, via the James Borden Photography Collection.Fred Whittimore with NC17383 (R17383 at the time) at St. Paul in Fall 1937. Whittimore would perish in the crash of sister ship NC17394 on its delivery run from California in May 1938. Mike Myers photo via the James Borden Photography Collection.NC17383 (still in its R- registration, so we can date this Fall 1937) at St. Paul getting loaded for its next flight. The forward cargo compartment is large enough for a person to crouch in, and in fact the military ground-attack version of this aircraft had a bombardier sitting there looking through the Plexiglas nose. Photographer unattributed. From the James Borden Photography Collection.NC17383 at Minneapolis, November 7, 1937. Carl Griffin photo via the James Borden Photography Collection.Between-flights maintenance examination in January 1938 at Boeing Field, Seattle. Photo from G. Williams at Boeing, from the James Borden Photography Collection.Between-flights maintenance examination in January 1938 at Boeing Field, Seattle, showing off the type’s clear nose housing its ADF radio antenna. Photo from G. Williams at Boeing, from the James Borden Photography Collection.Between-flights maintenance examination in January 1938 at Boeing Field, Seattle. Photo from G. Williams at Boeing, from the James Borden Photography Collection.N17388 preparing to receive passengers, January 1938 at Boeing Field, Seattle. Photo from G. Williams at Boeing, from the James Borden Photography Collection.Another shot of N17388 at Boeing Field, January 1938. G. Williams / Boeing photo, from the James Borden Photography Collection.James LaVake photo of NC17382 at snowy MSP, winter 1938. From the James Borden Photography Collection.Final ship in the fleet, NC18994 at Boeing Field in January 1938. G. Williams / Boeing photo via the James Borden Photography Collection.NC18994 at Boeing Field in January 1938. G. Williams / Boeing photo via the James Borden Photography Collection.NC18994 at Boeing Field in January 1938. G. Williams / Boeing photo via the James Borden Photography Collection.Both 1930s Lockheed types are waiting on the Minneapolis ramp in this Spring 1938 shot from K.M. Brommer. Electra 10A at left is NC14936, Ship 72. Zephyr at right is unidentified. From the James Borden Photography Collection.Spring 1938 snap of NC17383 at Chicago. Photographer unattributed, from the James Borden Photography Collection.Spring 1938 photo of NC17385 climbing out over South Minneapolis, with Lake Nokomis behind its tails and the grain elevators along Hiawatha Avenue along the top of the frame. Vince Doyle photo from the James Borden Photography Collection.April 1938 shot of NC17383 at Chicago by Sid Davies, via Noel Allard, through the James Borden Photography Collection.NC17383 at MSP, spring 1938. Photographer unknown, from the James Borden Photography Collection.June 1938 photo of NC17392 at St. Paul, from Mrs. Harold Kittelson. From the James Borden Photography Collection.On July 8, 1938, shortly before 3:00 am, NC17383 crashed shortly after takeoff from Billings, Montana enroute to Fargo, North Dakota. One passenger died out of ten; both crew survived. This photo was taken by the Captain on that flight, Walter Bullock, later that day. From the James Borden Photography Collection.Los Angeles Times headline from Friday morning, July 29, 1938. A Zephyr flew the MSP-BUR run nonstop at high altitude using bottled oxygen with experimental breathers as shown in the photo.While the photo isn’t identified in the James Borden Photography Collection, by process of elimination we can deduce this is NC17389, which crashed in Miles City, Montana on January 13, 1939. Both flight crew and both passengers died on impact when the aircraft experienced a cockpit fire after takeoff at Miles City, headed for Billings. James LaVake photo.NC17389, crashed at Miles City, MT, Jan. 13, 1939. The aircraft was declared too damaged to repair, so it was disassembled on site and scrapped. The relatively-intact fuselage tells us the occupants would have died of blunt force trauma. James LaVake photo from the James Borden Photography Collection.NC17389, crashed at Miles City, MT, Jan. 13, 1939. James LaVake photo from the James Borden Photography Collection.NC17389, crashed at Miles City, MT, Jan. 13, 1939. In this photo we learn that the “NORTHWEST” titling paint was semi-reflective from the photo flash. James LaVake photo from the James Borden Photography Collection.NC17392 at Minneapolis in 1938, photographer unattributed. From the James Borden Photography Collection.Well-composed shot from snow-packed Chicago Municipal Airport in February 1939 compares the Type 14H Sky Zephyr against the Type 10A Electra in the background. Sid Davies photo, through Noel Allard, from the James Borden Photography Collection.Oxygen canisters being loaded at Minneapolis, March 10, 1939, for a high altitude test flight, nonstop to Boston. NWA file photo.Northwest and Mayo Foundation staff on board a high altitude test flight between Minneapolis and Boston, March 10, 1939, using prototype oxygen masks. H.H. McKee photo via the James Borden Photography Collection.Spring 1939 shot of NC17386 at Minneapolis from John Vars. From the James Borden Photography Collection.Spring 1939 snap of NC17384 at Boeing Field. G. Williams / Boeing photo from the James Borden Photography Collection.Spring 1939 snap of NC17384 at Boeing Field. G. Williams / Boeing photo from the James Borden Photography Collection.Arrival at Chicago Municipal Airport, July 1939. Sid Davies photo, through Noel Allard, from the James Borden Photography Collection.
