On April 15 1926, Charles A. Lindbergh stowed a bag of mail in his DH-4 biplane and took off from Chicago to St. Louis.

Later that day, he and two other pilots flew three plane loads of mail from St. Louis to Chicago. At the time, Lindbergh, who made aviation history one year later by flying solo across the Atlantic, was the chief pilot for the Robertson Aircraft Corporation of Missouri.

Organised in 1921, Robertson Aircraft was the holder of the second airmail contract the US government awarded to private operators under the Kelly Air Mail Act of 1925. Robertson was one of many companies that were eventually consolidated into American Airlines. The consolidation began early in 1929 when a holding company, the Aviation Corporation, was formed and began acquiring young aviation companies.

With some of the airlines came bus lines, radio stations and airport construction companies. The principal acquisitions of the Aviation Corporation were Colonial Airways, the Embry-Riddle Company, Interstate Air Lines, Inc., Southern Air Transport and Universal Air Lines System.

The Aviation Corporation also had an operating subsidiary named Alaskan Airways, which operated the first scheduled air service in Alaska. That airline was later sold to Pan American World Airways.

Through its many acquisitions, the Aviation Corporation inherited a vast system of routes that often did not quite fit together, a fleet that included nearly every type of transport airplane in existence at the time, and local managements who were reluctant to give up their control.

To put together an airline system from this conglomeration, all airline subsidiaries were incorporated in 1930 into American Airways, Inc.

Routes were redrawn and managements reorganised. In 1933, American ordered the Curtiss Condor. And with its introduction, flight attendants (then called stewardesses) made their first appearance on American.

But the first chapter of commercial airline history ended abruptly in February 1934 with the cancellation by the government of the air mail contracts.

A new era opened a couple of months later, however, when new contracts were let.

Cyrus Rowlett Smith became president of American Airlines in 1934, at the age of 35. In the 34 years he led the airline, "Mr. C.R.'' helped shape the airline industry and influenced the world of aviation. He was a true aviation pioneer, entering the airline business in the day of open-cockpit biplanes, and built American from a small and unprofitable carrier into one of the largest airlines in the world.

Born on September 9, 1899, in Minerva, Texas, C.R. was the eldest of seven children. At nine years old, he secured his first job: office boy to cattleman C.T. Herring. Young C.R. Smith also worked as a cotton picker, store clerk, bookkeeper and bank teller.

Before he had even finished school, C.R. Smith received permission to enter the University of Texas at Austin, where he studied business administration, economics and law. In 1924, he became an accountant with Peat, Marwick, Mitchell and Company in Dallas. One of the firm's clients, A.P. Barrett, owned the Texas-Louisiana Power Company. He noticed the young accountant and hired Smith as assistant treasurer for the utility company.

Barrett purchased Texas Air Transport in 1928 and appointed C.R. Smith secretary and treasurer. The next year, Barrett launched Southern Air Transport (SAT), which absorbed Texas Air Transport, and retained Smith as vice president and treasurer.

Later that year, SAT became part of the Aviation Corporation (AVCO). In January 1930, AVCO's directors created American Airways and appointed C.R.

Smith vice president for the Southern Division. In April 1934, American Airways became American Airlines. C.R. Smith was elected president of American Airlines on October 25, 1934.

The new company emerged with a more integrated route system. The airline quickly pioneered the development of an air traffic control system later adopted by all airlines and administered by the US government. Although dependent on air mail during the early 1930s, American Airlines realised that the future of air transport lay in the development of passenger service.

Over the next five years, C.R. consolidated American's crazy-quilt routes into a smooth, sensible network and standardised the company's collection of various airplanes with a fleet of new DC-3 aircraft. Smith was influential in the design of the DC-3, which would become the "workhorse'' of passenger planes in the 1930s and 1940s.

Breakthroughs in aircraft development ranked high among the important innovations of the mid-1930s. American bought a few Douglas DC-2s that were good airplanes but still did not satisfy the industry's need for aircrafts that could make money carrying passengers. American's engineers decided that if they could increase the Douglas DC-2s capacity from 14 to 21 seats, the company would have an economical airplane for passenger service.

The changes required turned out to be far more extensive than expected, and when the Douglas Aircraft Company and American finished, they had a new airplane - the Douglas DC-3, destined to become one of the most famous commercial planes in history.

American inaugurated commercial flights with the Douglas DC-3 between Chicago and New York on June 25, 1936. The Douglas DC-3, along with American's aggressive salesmanship, made the airline profitable and by the end of the decade, American was the nation's number one domestic air carrier in terms of revenue passenger miles.

In 1944, American pioneered scheduled domestic freighter service. The airline's early marketing ideas brought air travel to the general public with ideas like the Air Travel Plan, which allowed passengers to fly on credit, and the first Family Fare, which introduced coach class travel and gave the first reduced rates for family members flying together.

In 1953, American flew the first nonstop trip from coast to coast. In 1957, they opened the first training academy for flight attendants. In 1959, Smith led American Airlines into the jet age with the introduction of the first transcontinental jet service. In 1964, American introduced the first computerised reservations system - the forerunner of today's sophisticated SABRE Travel Information Network.

During the 1970s, American introduced such conveniences as one-stop check-in, SuperSaver advance-purchase discount fares and advance boarding passes. They also launched the first jet freighter service. And in 1975, American started serving Bermuda.

In 1979, American moved its corporate headquarters to Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas. With the 1980s came airline deregulation, and American adjusted to the new, more competitive environment.

The aircraft fleet was modernised and American developed an extensive US and international route system. In 1989, American put its first Boeing 757, which is now used for Bermuda flights, into service.

And today, American has one of the largest, most modern aircraft fleets in the world.