1. Lockheed Vega

Eagle Airways, also known as Eagle, is a major U.S. airline headquartered in Washington, D.C. It is the world’s seventh largest airline by revenue and fourth largest by fleet. Eagle operates a large domestic and international route network with a large presence in Europe. Eagle is a member of Venture Alliance. Regional service is provided by five independent regional carriers under the brand Eagle Express. Its main competitors are Vanguard Airlines, Cardinal Airlines, Oceanic Airlines, Columbia Airlines, Midamerican Airlines, Quantum Airlines, and North American Airlines.
Eagle operates flights from ten airline hubs located in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Phoenix, and Washington, D.C. Eagle’s largest hub is in Atlanta, surpassing first Washington in 1993, then losing out to Chicago in 1995, then regaining its status in 2006. Atlanta has the most passengers carried, although Washington holds the title of most departures. Eagle operates maintenance bases in all of its hubs, as well as in Charles De Gaulle Airport in France, Incheon Airport in South Korea, and Honolulu Airport in Hawaii.

Eagle Airways was founded in 1916 as Eagle Air Transport. It was government subsidized to fly military personnel across the United States during World War I. President Woodrow Wilson believed that the proposed transport airline should have a strong connection to an American symbol. This is what prompted the name Eagle Air Transport. In 1922, Eagle Air Transport was let off government subsidy, allowing the current secretary of Commerce, Herbert Hoover, to name a new head of the airline. Hoover chose aviator Paul Baer to run the airline in its early years. Baer decided to rename Eagle Air Transport into Eagle Air Ways, believing it had a better sound. In June of 1920, Eagle Air Ways operated its first commercial flight, from Washington to Philadelphia carrying mail in a Curtiss JN-4. In 1928, Eagle’s first scheduled passenger flight was operated from Washington to New York City with a Boeing Model 40. In 1930, upon Baer’s untimely death and the beginning of the Great Depression, the United States took over Eagle Air Ways again to prevent it from becoming bankrupt. Since Eagle was one of the only airlines serving passengers and mail, it was deemed critical to the infrastructure of the United States. In 1935 Eagle was returned to the private sector.

The Lockheed Vega is an American six-passenger high-wing monoplane airliner built by the Lockheed Corporation starting in 1927. Eagle Air Ways ordered the Vega starting in 1928. N55 was the fifth Vega delivered to Eagle and is currently preserved in the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center as a static display. The Vega was one of Eagle Air Ways' original mail and passenger carriers.

Thanks to Jean-Paul, Melodique, and 0M4R for all the help during this series!