This is a list of air cargo, airmail and airlift related events as well as a summary from the decade 1950–1959.
Overview Civil developments In this decade, air freight was transitioning from a service ancillary to passenger transport toward becoming a recognized revenue and operations stream. As reported in 1956, following a trend from 1945 onward, air cargo volumes and revenues continued to rise sharply for major carriers worldwide: according to preliminary data published by the International Civil Aviation Organization, world air freight transport—excluding the Soviet Union and Communist China—exceeded one billion freight ton-miles per year for the first time in aviation annals.
In the same 1956 publication, in Europe British European Airways reported rising freight revenues and frequency (e.g., 80 weekly cargo services with daily average tonnages around 120,000 lb), and other European carriers such as Air France, KLM, Sabena and SAS also documented double-digit growth in airfreight and mail throughput year-on-year.
Also in the United States, following the same 1956 publication, growth was double digit. Another source reports U.S. scheduled airlines handled over 1,200,000 freight shipments in that same year. But a tough competition had taken place in the post-war years. Reflecting the commercial challenges faced by early air cargo carriers in the early post-war period, of the original four airlines all-freight airlines receiving operating permission by the CAB in 1949, Airnews and U. S. Airlines did not operate a long time. Airnews went bankrupt in June 1951 after sustaining significant financial losses, followed by U. S. Airlines in 1952, after continuing operating deficits and several accidents. By this decade, in the U.S. there is now a clear separation between three types of air cargo (in order of general profitability): airmail air express air freight A commodity based air freight tariff has appeared for efficiency reasons, with related freight handling tariffs with bulk discounts based on break points. By 1957, some of the major U.S. airports are reported to have refrigerated storage rooms, special animal shelters and their own customs clearance stations.
Military developments Especially for the United States, during the Korean War, military air cargo and airlift operations expanded dramatically to support United Nations forces. Strategic airlift delivered personnel, equipment, and supplies from the United States to Japan and Korea. The U.S. Air Force’s Military Air Transport Service (MATS) moved 214,000 passengers and 80,000 tons of cargo to the theater. Civil Reserve Air Fleet partnerships during the Korean War saw commercial carriers like Flying Tiger Line place fleets under MATS contract to meet military logistic demands, indicating integration between military and civil air cargo resources.
Within the Korean War combat zone, Combat Cargo Command executed intra-theater operations including supply delivery, airdrops, troop transport, and medical evacuation. It flew over 210,000 sorties, moved nearly 392,000 tons of cargo, and transported more than 2.6 million passengers, illustrating the strategic and tactical value of air logistics in active combat. In March 1951, Operation Tomahawk saw air mobility deployment by C-119 and C-46 transport aircraft, exemplifying tactical air transport’s ability to insert troops behind enemy lines during the Korean War. Also helicopters were introduced in combat situations, with air assault missions and the first “helicopter airlift and sling load combat mission” on 13 September 1951 by the U.S. Marine Corps.
In late 1956 into 1957, the United States executed Operation Safe Haven (also called Operation Mercy) after the Soviet suppression of the Hungarian Revolution. U.S. military and naval air transports evacuated and resettled over 27,000 Hungarian refugees to the United States in a major humanitarian airlift effort — the most significant European airlift since Berlin.
Events
1950s 1950-1953 – (United States) Delta Air Lines volunteered to ship blood donated through the American Red Cross to United Nations forces during the Korean War. Undated – (United States) American Airlines designed and used the world's first pet carrier container for air travel. The pet carrier container became a standard for airlines carrying pets all over the world.
1950
April 18 – (Canada-United States) An Avro Canada C102 Jetliner carried the world's first jet airmail from Malton Airport in Toronto, to New York City's Idlewild Airport in fifty-nine minutes and fifty-six seconds–half that of commercial flights. The flight was highly publicized and the crew was greeted by a group of officials and a crowd of several hundred onlookers. So new was the concept of jet power that the Jetliner was made to park far from the terminal, and pans were placed under the engines in case they dripped any "self-igniting fuel". On the next day, the Jetliner returned to Toronto via Montreal. June 25 – (United States-Korea) Flying Tiger Line, on request of the Military Air Transport Service (MATS), makes seven aircraft available in response to logistic demands of the Korean War. During the early 1950s, Flying Tiger Line would place its full fleet under the Civil Reserve Air Fleet program and operated under the Military Air Transport Service's Pacific Division. Between 1951 and 1953, these missions represented a substantial share of the carrier's business, generating close to half of its total revenue over that period. June 29 – (United States-French Indochina) see 1950 in aviation also: Eight C-47 Skytrain cargo aircraft cross the Pacific Ocean from the United States to French Indochina to deliver the first American military aid to French forces fighting against the Vietminh in the First Indochina War.Karnow, Stanley, Vietnam: A History, New York: The Viking Press, 1983, , p. 177. July 5 – (United States-Korea) Quicktrans startup – In response to logistic demands of the Korean War, the U.S. Navy and Slick Airways launched operation Quicktrans to quickly move 96,000 lbs (about 44 tonnes) of ammunition across the United States. The operation established daily transcontinental cargo flights with Curtiss C-46s, reducing delivery times dramatically versus ground transport and formalizing one of the first major military-contract air freight programs.
1951
Undated – (Japan) Nippon Express starts domestic air cargo consolidation business. Undated – (Korea) Operation Tomahawk was an airborne military operation by the 187th Regimental Combat Team (187th RCT) on 23 March 1951 at Munsan-ni as part of Operation Courageous in the Korean War. This operation was designed to drop the 187th RCT about north of the then current front line, and then link up with Task Force Growdon, which was made up of armored elements from the US 24th Infantry Division (United States)'s 6th Medium Tank Battalion and infantry elements from the US 3rd Infantry Division. They did so, parachuting from over a 120 C-119 Flying Boxcar and C-46 transport aircraft. Undated – (United Kingdom - Iran) British Overseas Airways Corporation performs an airlift of British citizens out of Iran as part of the Abadan Crisis. May – (Bermuda) During the IATA Composite Traffic Conferences, the gathered airlines adopt the world's first Multilateral Interline Cargo Handling Agreement, establishing standardized procedures for transferring air cargo across interline (multi-airline) networks, becoming effective October 1, 1951. This was a foundational development in global air cargo logistics, allowing cargo originating on one airline to be transported seamlessly over multiple carriers under unified handling rules and documentation. August 15 – (United Kingdom) British European Airways commences the world's first turboprop freight services using a modified Douglas DC-3 fitted with two Rolls-Royce Dart engines. September 13 – (United States / Korea) The world's first helicopter airlift and helicopter sling load combat mission was conducted on September 13, 1951, during the Korean War. Operation Windmill I was conducted by the United States Marine Corps in support of a battalion clearing the enemy from a series of ridges around a basin called The Punchbowl. In total seven HRS-1 Marine helicopters made 28 flights that delivered 8,550 kg (18,848 pounds) of supplies and evacuated 74 seriously wounded men.
1952 Undated – (United States) In the U.S. airline subsidies were separated from the airmail contracts. The Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) began handling broader subsidy payments beyond airmail, signifying a shift in the commercial airline business model where passenger and freight considerations increasingly dictated network structures. January 5 – (United States) Pan Am Cargo started using a DC-6 on the subsidiary's first transatlantic all-cargo service.
1953
Undated – (United Kingdom) Silver City Airways took delivery of its first Bristol Superfreighter. Undated – (United States) Delta Air Lines' international air cargo service launched, with flights to the Caribbean and Venezuela. Undated – (United States) Although similar duties began in World War II, in 1953 the loadmaster title became official within the U.S. Air Force. Loadmaster duties were split by crew chiefs, engineers, flight traffic clerks, and "kickers" who kicked cargo out of planes for airdrops. Undated – (United States) UPS starts Blue Label Air, a 2-day delivery service on coast-to-coast packages. As before in 1929, UPS package volume was transported on commercial airline flights. Initially unprofitable, Blue Label Air became popular as its speed created enough demand to maintain a profit. November 15 – (United States) see 1953 in aviation also: The first airmail service into Death Valley National Monument begins, landing at Furnace Creek Airport (L06). This was part of airmail route AM-105.
1954 Undated – (United States) American Airlines introduced the world's first air cargo industry unit load device (ULD), a container called the Paul Bunyan Box. The box featured the legendary woodsman on the side of the box. Undated – (United States-Haiti) Delta Air Lines provided disaster relief efforts for the Haitian community after Hurricane Hazel. April 23 – (Lebanon) Beirut International Airport is inaugurated, establishing a modern Middle Eastern air hub. Airmail stamps were issued highlighting the facility.
1955
Undated – (United States) The U.S. Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) conducted an Air Freight Forwarder Investigation. CAB examiner Paul Pfeiffer recommended that air freight forwarders — companies responsible for consolidating and tendering freight to airlines — be allowed to continue operations indefinitely, despite generally poor financial performance among forwarders at the time. This investigation helped shape early regulatory frameworks for air cargo intermediaries within U.S. civil aviation. April – (United States) Following the federal licensing of the Salk polio vaccine, Emery Air Freight coordinated an accelerated nationwide air distribution effort, delivering the first consignments to nineteen cities across the United States within approximately fourteen hours of approval. May 2 – (United States) The Civil Aeronautics Board authorized the Flying Tiger Line, together with the all-cargo carriers Slick Airways and Riddle Airlines, to take part in a U.S. Post Office experimental program for the carriage of airmail on a space-available basis.
1956 Undated – (United Kingdom) British European Airways (BEA) began using Vickers Viscounts for nightfreight operations to increase cargo capacity as well as the aircraft's utilisation. Undated – (United States) New York International Airport (then known as Idlewild Airport) officially opened its International Air Cargo Center, which was widely regarded at the time as the world’s largest and most advanced purpose-built air freight facility.