The Ford Tri-Motor, as the first luxury airliner, transformed global travel, heralding the era of commercial flight. Today, as I dream of piloting cutting-edge aircraft across continents, I owe a debt of gratitude to these vintage wonders and the visionaries behind them as well as to the organizations that maintain them. My love at first sight evolved into some research and deep thoughts (at least as deep as a teenage girl can go) and some unanswered questions.