Fifty years ago, 11 years after the end of World War II, airlines were in a state of flux. The sky still belonged to such piston-powered airliners as the Douglas DC-3, DC-4, DC-6, and DC-7, Lockheed 1049 Super Constellation, and Boeing Model 377 Stratocruiser. A much-vaunted 'DC-3 replacement' market had produced the Convair-Liner, and the Martin 202 and 404. Although the world's first jet airliner, the Comet 1, had been grounded in 1954 (Airways, May 2002), the Vickers Viscount four-engine turboprop was making inroads in the USA on the way to becoming Britain's most successful airliner {Airways, June 2000). Meanwhile, in 1955 the French had flown the world's first short-range pure-jet, the Sud Aviation SE 210 Caravelle (Airways, May 2005), but it would not enter service until spring 1959— six months after the first scheduled de Havilland Comet 4 and Boeing 707 flights across the North Atlantic.
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机译：50年前，即第二次世界大战结束后的11年，航空公司处于不断变化的状态。天空仍然属于诸如道格拉斯DC-3，DC-4，DC-6和DC-7，洛克希德1049超级星座和波音377型Stratocruiser等活塞驱动的客机。广受赞誉的“ DC-3替代品”市场生产了Convair-Liner以及Martin 202和404。尽管世界上第一架喷气客机Comet 1于1954年停飞（Airways，2002年5月），但威格士子爵号四引擎涡轮螺旋桨飞机正在美国成为英国最成功的客机（Airways，2000年6月）。同时，法国人于1955年驾驶了世界上第一架短程纯喷气机Sud Aviation SE 210 Caravelle（航空公司，2005年5月），但直到1959年春季，即第一架预定的哈维兰彗星下半年后，该机才开始服役。 4架和波音707横跨北大西洋的航班。
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