WORLD’S FIRST AIRLINE MONUMENT PROJECT
After the World’s First Airline Centennial in 2014, Flight 2014, Inc. undertook the creation of a monument telling the story of the First Airline on the historic takeoff site in St. Petersburg, Florida. A fund-raising campaign was initiated and plans formulated. After six years of effort the monument was completed in early 2021.
The monument includes the Benoist Centennial Plaza and a sculpture of the first airliner, the Benoist Airboat. The Benoist Airboat sculpture is composed of stainless steel and is a full-size replica of the first airliner. It weighs 6,000 pounds, has a wingspan of approximately 44 feet, and is approximately 25 feet from nose to tail. Included are such features as the pennants and American flags flown on the first flight in 1914, and Roberts Motor Company 1913 Model 6-X engine. Bronze busts of pioneer pilot Tony Jannus and first passenger St. Petersburg Mayor Abe Pheil hail from the cockpit. The sculpture is poised approximately 12 feet off the Plaza floor on a wave-like pedestal. The sculpture, entitled “Benoist in Flight,” is additionally striking when reflecting the sunrise and sunset.
After the World’s First Airline Centennial in 2014, Flight 2014, Inc. undertook the creation of a monument telling the story of the First Airline on the historic takeoff site in St. Petersburg, Florida. A fund-raising campaign was initiated and plans formulated. After six years of effort the monument was completed in early 2021.
The monument includes the Benoist Centennial Plaza and a sculpture of the first airliner, the Benoist Airboat. The Benoist Airboat sculpture is composed of stainless steel and is a full-size replica of the first airliner. It weighs 6,000 pounds, has a wingspan of approximately 44 feet, and is approximately 25 feet from nose to tail. Included are such features as the pennants and American flags flown on the first flight in 1914, and Roberts Motor Company 1913 Model 6-X engine. Bronze busts of pioneer pilot Tony Jannus and first passenger St. Petersburg Mayor Abe Pheil hail from the cockpit. The sculpture is poised approximately 12 feet off the Plaza floor on a wave-like pedestal. The sculpture, entitled “Benoist in Flight,” is additionally striking when reflecting the sunrise and sunset.
The sculpture takes center stage within the Benoist Centennial Plaza. The 5,000 square-foot plaza commemorates the First Airline with representations of local building materials of the period, including Rocersa ceramic hex block sidewalk pavers, granite street curb edging and tabby shell wall stucco. Rare bluestone imported from Pennsylvania with a wave-like texture rests atop the sculpture's plinth to suggest the airboat's movement over the waters of Tampa Bay. Commemorative medallions within the pavers welcome visitors to the plaza. Six colorful story board panels geometrically interupt seven sandstone seatwalls, describing the airboat’s history with facts, famous quotes and archival photography. Font used in the storyboards mimics that used by the St. Petersburg Daily Times, now the Tampa Bay Times, in 1914. A dedicated wall at the south end of the plaza showcases bronze placards, acknowledging those that participated in making airline history in 1914, as well as those that participated in commemmorating the world’s first commercial airline in 2021. Also included are two large historic plaques dating from an earlier modest monument erected in 1938, an American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics plaque desgnating the St. Petersburg Central Yacht Basin as an Historic Aerospace Site—the location of the first commercial airline flight, and a plaque commemorating recipients of the coveted Tony Janus Award for outstanding achievement in commercial aviation.
Over $1 million was raised for the project from a wide-range of donors including the aviation industry, area businesses, and aviation enthusiasts. It is fitting that our Airboat Sculpture Presenting Sponsor is the William and Katherine McMannis Charitable Trust. Bill and Kay McMannis were both local pilots who flew out of St. Petersburg’s Albert Whitted Airport. Our Legacy Sponsor is the late Betsy Pheil, granddaughter of Mayor Abe Pheil, the first passenger of the First Airline.
We are also deeply grateful to Phil Graham Landscape Architecture which offered their design services pro bono for the Benoist Centennial Plaza surrounding the Airboat First Flight Sculpture. We are proud to have selected St. Petersburg sculptor Mark Aeling to accomplish our dream of a full-size sculpture of the Benoist Airboat. Also very significantly contributing their services were Karins Engineering, Hennessy Construction, and Cimco Tile.
Over $1 million was raised for the project from a wide-range of donors including the aviation industry, area businesses, and aviation enthusiasts. It is fitting that our Airboat Sculpture Presenting Sponsor is the William and Katherine McMannis Charitable Trust. Bill and Kay McMannis were both local pilots who flew out of St. Petersburg’s Albert Whitted Airport. Our Legacy Sponsor is the late Betsy Pheil, granddaughter of Mayor Abe Pheil, the first passenger of the First Airline.
We are also deeply grateful to Phil Graham Landscape Architecture which offered their design services pro bono for the Benoist Centennial Plaza surrounding the Airboat First Flight Sculpture. We are proud to have selected St. Petersburg sculptor Mark Aeling to accomplish our dream of a full-size sculpture of the Benoist Airboat. Also very significantly contributing their services were Karins Engineering, Hennessy Construction, and Cimco Tile.
