Thanks to newsreels, dozens of photographers, and the chilling live radio coverage, for the first time Americans and people from around the world were witnesses to a great disaster. The impact was profound. On May 6, 1937 a dream died with a bang, along with 37 souls. Up until then, the future of trans-oceanic and other mega-long distant air service looked like it belonged to lighter than aircraft. Airplanes, it was thought, were too limited by fuel needs and lift capacity to economically serve this need. They were alright for military use, which had been proven, and had a place supplementing good rail service in shorter distance travel, but the great dirigibles held the promise of connecting the world with fast, reliable p...