why could planes not do overseas flights before the 2nd world war?

Question

i'm thinking something to do with air pressure but can't find any info...

Answer 1

They were doing overseas before WW2. Planes left Shannon in Ireland regularly for Newfoundland in the late 30's and possibly throughout the war.

British Overseas Airways Corporation, or as it then was Imperial Airways was founded in the late '20's I believe and flew to India and Africa from Southhampton

Answer 2

You said you were thinking it had something to do with air pressure...Like what? The air pressure was the same then as it is now. The reason was that most of the planes back then just didn't have the range. The engines back then weren't as powerful and efficient as they later became and they just couldn't carry enough fuel to make the trip. What is a sky hook, marty_mcmad?

Answer 3

In what context? Commercial flights?
Planes could do overseas flights before WWII (take Charles Lindbergh, New York to Paris 1927) but propellor driven planes were not fuel efficient enough to make it a commercially viable proposition to fly long haul (except for the rich) and before the war no-one had a reason to fly overseas. The advent of the jet engine made overseas travel possible

Answer 4

I know for a fact that B-17 bombers were flown directly over the atlantic to britain from the US. Do you think they could pack those on a ship?
Transatlantic flights were more common than you think. there were regular passenger carrying flights since the 1930's.

And to whoever said that props are less efficient than jets was wrong. A learjet consumes nearly 500 gallons an hour, whereas the much larger prop powered b-29 uses the same amount, but weighs several times what the lear jet does, and carries several times as much, several times further.

Answer 5

Range and safety were the two major concerns.

The first crossing of the Atlaintic was done in 1919 by Alcock and Brown in a Vickers Vimy.

Charles Lindberg crossed in 1927 after many had crossed before him and his flight's success was more a matter of luck than good flying skill and wisdom.

Just before WW2, Pan Am and Imperial Airways used flying boats to cross the Atlantic and Pacific for limited scheduled services. Radio navigation aids were just being perfected to ensure accurate navigation and the flying boat configuration allowed for fueling stops at small islands and emergency let-downs in calm seas.

World War 2 necessitated crossing of oceans by aircraft for ferrying supplies and the aircraft themselves. More airfields were made for stopovers and navigation was greatly improved.

By the end of WW2, the basic infrastructure was in place for routine overseas landplane flights. Improvements in the speed, range, and the introdution of cabin pressurization allowed the aircraft to travel above the weather, non-stop, across the Atlantic ocean by the mid 1950s.

Answer 6

Like everything else there was no money to be made :). Planes could make the flight but could carry nothing but the pilot. There was not enough space for fuel and the engines were low powered and inefficient. With the technological advances during the war planes were lighter, faster and safer. Thus someone realized that there would be a demand for faster transportation.

Answer 7

Some planes could do overseas flights prior to the second world war: the first transatlantic crossing was Alcock & Brown in 1919 in a converted Vickers Vimy bomber.

Answer 8

Fuel and speed. And they did to Trans Atlantic flights before WWII. They just make frequent stops not many people flew because it was more cost effective to take a boat. The older prop air craft used a lot more fuel to fly. The weight versus power of the plane caused the motors to run at a higher RPM and use more fuel. But they did do it.

Answer 9

They did used to make long haul flights before the second world war. The planes though had to make frequent refuelling stops due to only having fuel tanks with a low fuel capacity. It used to take about two and a half days to get from London to Khartoum.

Answer 10

They could. Lindbergh flew across solo in 1927. Planes got better from there, but World War 2 aviation introduced vast new improvements in aircraft. Even before WWII, transatlantic flights were fairly common.