The Deadly Air Race
<p>Aviation in the 1920s could be a lethal business, as proven on 16th August 1927, when only 2 of the 15 planes that entered The Dole Derby - a $35,000 contest to fly from California to Hawaii - successfully reached their destination.&nbsp;</p><br><p>The brainchild of pineapple magnate James D. Dole, the competition inspired the public imagination - and a crowd of 100,000 people - but claimed the lives of TEN participants.</p><br><p>In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly consider the inefficient and dangerous aeronautics of the time; explain how winning team Woolaroc were able to distinguish themselves ahead of the pack; and reveal how the modern-day Dole company have distanced themselves from such provocative promotions…&nbsp;</p><br><p><strong>Further Reading:</strong></p><p>• ‘Fifteen Planes Enter, Two Planes Leave - The Deadly Dole Air Race’ (Atlas Obscura, 2011): <a href="https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/morbid-monday-deadly-dole-air-race" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/morbid-monday-deadly-dole-air-race</a></p><p>• ‘Dole Air Race: The Daring and Pioneering Conquest Across the Pacific’ (STSTW, 2018): <a href="https://www.ststworld.com/dole-air-race/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.ststworld.com/dole-air-race/</a></p><p>• ‘Army Officers Hop Off For Hawaii’ (1927): <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CW1brsdc_fM" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CW1brsdc_fM</a></p><br><p>Image courtesy of <em>San Diego Air & Space Museum</em></p><br><p><strong>For bonus material and to support the show, visit</strong><a href="https://create.acast.com/episodes/ca1f94a1-0921-446a-ae00-4d4bfd2ba3ef/Patreon.com/Retrospectors" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>&nbsp;</strong></a><a href="http://patreon.com/Retrospectors" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>Patreon.com/Retrospectors</strong></a></p><p><strong>We'll be back tomorrow! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts:</strong><a href="https://create.acast.com/episodes/ca1f94a1-0921-446a-ae00-4d4bfd2ba3ef/podfollow.com/Retrospectors" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>&nbsp;</strong></a><a href="http://podfollow.com/Retrospectors" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>podfollow.com/Retrospectors</strong></a></p><br><p><em>The Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.</em></p><p><em>Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Sophie King.</em></p><p><em>Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2022.</em></p><br /><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>
Today In History with The Retrospectors
Audio is streamed directly from the publisher (pdst.fm) as published in their RSS feed. Play Podcasts does not host this file. Rights-holders can request removal through the copyright & takedown page.
Show Notes
Aviation in the 1920s could be a lethal business, as proven on 16th August 1927, when only 2 of the 15 planes that entered The Dole Derby - a $35,000 contest to fly from California to Hawaii - successfully reached their destination.
The brainchild of pineapple magnate James D. Dole, the competition inspired the public imagination - and a crowd of 100,000 people - but claimed the lives of TEN participants.
In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly consider the inefficient and dangerous aeronautics of the time; explain how winning team Woolaroc were able to distinguish themselves ahead of the pack; and reveal how the modern-day Dole company have distanced themselves from such provocative promotions…
Further Reading:
• ‘Fifteen Planes Enter, Two Planes Leave - The Deadly Dole Air Race’ (Atlas Obscura, 2011): https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/morbid-monday-deadly-dole-air-race
• ‘Dole Air Race: The Daring and Pioneering Conquest Across the Pacific’ (STSTW, 2018): https://www.ststworld.com/dole-air-race/
• ‘Army Officers Hop Off For Hawaii’ (1927): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CW1brsdc_fM
Image courtesy of San Diego Air & Space Museum
For bonus material and to support the show, visit Patreon.com/Retrospectors
We'll be back tomorrow! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts: podfollow.com/Retrospectors
The Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.
Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Sophie King.
Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2022.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices