When aircraft extended the railway
This journey recreates a 1930 American service designed as a complete travel chain: night train, daytime aircraft, then another train or a final air leg toward the Pacific coast. The heart of the route is Mamer Air Transport's service between St Paul, Minnesota, and Spokane, Washington.
Nicholas B. Mamer, a record-setting pilot and instructor, founded Mamer Air Transport in 1928. In 1930, his company provided the daytime flying segment between two overnight railway sections on a route linking Chicago with Seattle or Portland. The company lasted only two years, probably weakened by the Great Depression, but the itinerary remains a superb simulation scenario.
How the journey worked
Passengers left Chicago in the evening on the Chicago & Northwestern Railway, or chose a Northwest Airways air service known as the Grey Eagle. The next morning at St Paul, Mamer Air Transport took over for an eleven-hour daytime flight to Spokane, with several stopovers for passengers, mail, fuel and navigation.
From Spokane, two endings were possible. Toward Seattle, travellers could continue by air with Mamer Air Transport or take the Great Northern Railway to King Street Station. Toward Portland, the journey continued on the Spokane Portland & Seattle Railway.
Suggested route
Positioning toward St Paul
Keep the Chicago departure as a historical prologue, even if the main air journey really starts at St Paul.
KDPA → KSTP
Long day to Spokane
The core journey crosses plains and western terrain with a genuine sense of aerial endurance.
KSTP → KLVN → KABR → KMLS → KBIL → KLVM → KBTM → KMSO → KSFF
Possible finales
Choose an aerial finish toward Seattle or a more multimodal continuation toward Portland depending on the mood you want.
KSFF → KEAT → KBFI
What you will fly over
The main St Paul - Spokane leg crosses a varied landscape: Minnesota cities, South Dakota plains, Montana, Billings, Livingston, Butte, Missoula, then the approach to Spokane. It feels like a proper old-style endurance flight, with frequent references, short stops and a real sense of westbound progress.
The optional Spokane - Seattle branch is shorter but dramatic. It leaves Spokane for Wenatchee, then crosses the terrain toward Boeing Field. It gives the trip a more aviation-focused finish than the railway option.
Recommended aircraft
The route was flown by a Ford Trimotor. The default FS2004 model can be used, but the lack of in-flight stabilisation makes the longer legs more demanding. A very coherent alternative is Jens B. Kristensen's Fokker VIIb/3m, available from FlightSim.com as f7b_klm2.zip and compatible with FS2004 / FSX.
GPS is recommended alongside VOR/DME and ADF/NDB navigation. To keep the 1930 atmosphere, use the GPS mainly between stopovers, then fly approaches with visual and radio references where possible.
How to stage it
This plan works beautifully in three acts: the symbolic departure from Chicago, the long St Paul - Spokane flying day, then your chosen finish toward Seattle or Portland. Train Simulator users can even complete the railway sections for the full period experience.
© Michel Lagneau 2021