'Seaboard World Airlines', an international all-cargo
airline based in the
United States, was founded on
September 16,
1946 as 'Seaboard & Western Airlines'. It adopted the name Seaboard World Airlines in April
1961. Jet cargo service started in
1964 with the introduction of the
Douglas DC-8.
The airline played a prominent role in the
Vietnam War during the late
1960s, using
Douglas DC-8 Super 63 jets to connect
McChord Air Force Base,
Washington with
Cam Ranh Bay,
Vietnam, fairly close to the front lines with
North Vietnam. In
1968, one of these flights operating as
Seaboard World Airlines Flight 253 was forced to land in the
Soviet Union with 214 American troops on board. One infamous incident was the
Seaboard World Airlines landing at Marble Mountain, where a DC-8 Super 63 accidentally landed at a helicopter airstrip in Vietnam.
The airline merged with
Flying Tiger Line on
October 1,
1980 resulting in the loss of its corporate identity.
A short history of Seaboard, written by three Seaboard pilots, can be found
here.