Atlantic Freight

After eight years of waiting, a small, nonscheduled U.S. airline finally came into its own last week. In Washington. President Eisenhower approved a CAB recommendation giving Seaboard & Western Airlines Inc. a five-year certificate to fly a regular transatlantic freight service from New York, Philadelphia and Baltimore to seven European nations, thus making S. & W. the first U.S.-flag, all-cargo carrier to Europe.

The CAB decision was a big victory for S. & W. and the Norden brothers--Raymond, 38, and Arthur, 41--members of the small band of World War II pilots who have made good with their airlines. Both won their wings in the Navy, later served in the Air Transport Command, where they saw a bright future for peacetime cargo flying. Starting off with two surplus C-54s in 1947, they quickly built up a fleet of twelve DC-4s and a business of more than $10 million flying across the Pacific during the Korean War (TIME, July 7, 1952).

But when the war ended, S. & W. ran into rough weather. In a single year, the line saw its gross plummet nearly 50% from the 1953 peak of $13.6 million. It returned six leased DC-4s, chopped its personnel, and hustled up private air freight, flying everything from European leather goods for the carriage trade to Indian rhesus monkeys for the Salk polio-vaccine program. It bought four new Lockheed Super Constellations to give customers faster service, expanded its service to the point where this year's revenues will top $15 million. Next step: more expansion by buying more long-range Constellations.

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