Texto y fotos enviado especial. David Astorga González.
The legendary Pan American World Airways, which revolutionized travel during the last century and which we all know and love, is back, this time with a Boeing 757-200, with capacity for fifty passengers on board and every luxury possible inside: lie-flat seats, gourmet food, premium service, etc.; with its modern amenities and a retro touch. It was first seen this June at Terminal 7 of New York City Airport (JFK). This customized 757, dubbed the “Yankee Clipper II,” bears the iconic blue “globe” emblem on its tail and is leased to Icelandair (TF-FIC).
RETURNING TO PAN AM’S LEGENDARY ROUTES:
Pan American World Airways was acquired in February of last year by former luxury travel company CEO Craig Carter, along with four other investors in the events and hospitality sectors. This brand is returning today as a luxury experience for a more select audience, with tickets priced at $59,950 per person for double occupancy; and passengers flying individually will pay an additional $5,600, also staying in the finest luxury hotels in each location along the route.
The companies that made this exclusive trip a reality were Bartelings, experts in luxury private jet travel, and Criterion Travel, experts in high-end travel. The itinerary revives the original destinations of Pan Am’s first transatlantic routes, which operated from 1939 until the company’s closure in 1991, with Bermuda as the first destination, followed by Lisbon, Marseille, London, and finally Shannon, before returning to New York. As a curious fact, the stop includes a visit to the Foynes Flying Boat Museum, with a life-size replica of the famous Boeing 314 “Yankee Clipper.” The route, with flight identification ICE1331, has a duration of twelve days, and no leg of the journey exceeds seven hours of flight time.
NOSTALGIA ON BOARD:
For the curious and nostalgic, several passengers have personal ties to Pan Am. In this case, Debbi Fuller, a former flight attendant from 1980 to 1989, was one of the passengers who wore her old uniform and planned to show it off in Bermuda, commemorating the nostalgia many people felt for flights that featured the famous aesthetic of the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s, during the era known as “vintage aviation.” An aesthetic that wasn’t lost on the crew, provided by Icelandair.
Wendy Knecht, a former flight attendant and now a contributor to the Pan Am Museum Foundation (an organization that raises funds to preserve Pan Am’s legacy), participated in the first leg of the trip. “Even though we haven’t worked together for over 30 years, we feel like family,” he says.
A SECOND EXOTIC JOURNEY WITH HIGH-END PAN AM EXPERIENCES:
A second voyage is already planned for April 2026. This time, it will involve a twenty-one-day transpacific route that includes incredible stops in Tokyo, Siem Reap (Cambodia), Singapore, Darwin and Sydney (Australia), Auckland (New Zealand), and Nadi (Fiji). This time, the price will be even higher than the current price, at around $94,495 per person for double occupancy and $9,500 more if the passenger travels individually.
And for those who cannot afford such luxury or these exuberant trips, Pan Am has more options on the horizon: a themed hotel in Los Angeles (in the style of the TWA Hotel in New York), and a new version of the “Pan Am experience” on the ground, serving an exquisite dinner with a show in the background, inside a fixed plane decorated like in the seventies, a real satisfaction for lovers of vintage and, above all, for those of us who love this wonderful world of aviation.
A SYMBOL THAT LIVES IN OUR AERONAUTICAL HEARTS:
Pan Am, at least in spirit, never left. But today, with renewed wings, it takes off again to conquer not only the skies, but also the memories and hearts of travelers, just as its famous slogan, “The World’s Most Experienced Airline,” would say.
Ultimately, Carter and his executive team believe that Pan Am’s glamour has an appeal that extends beyond former employees. They’re not just banking on nostalgia; what they acquired was more than a license: it was a symbol, it’s aviation history. And although the Pan Am brand was already present in watches, alcoholic beverages, clothing, and other products, its vision was clear: to bring the Pan Am experience back to the top.
Right photo: Bryan Aitouaret, founder and President of PAN AM World, with Craig Carter, CEO of PAN AM.
