1926 - Northwest Airways takes to the sky, carrying air mail from the Twin Cities to Chicago with a "fleet" of two rented, open-cockpit biplanes-a Thomas Morse Scout and a Curtiss Oriole.1938 - Northwest develops the first practical aviation oxygen mask, making possible high-altitude flying over the Rocky Mountains.
1948 - The "Red Tail" is painted on all Northwest aircraft for the first time, creating a trademark that becomes known world-wide and that continues in use almost 50 years later.
1955 - Northwest voluntarily becomes the first airline to operate without government subsidy on Trans-Pacific and United States-Alaska routes.
1960 - Northwest begins "fastest U.S. jet service to Asia" with Douglas DC8 aircraft, the airline\'s first "pure jet."
1971 - Northwest is honored for noise abatement leadership by National Organization to Ensure a Sound-Controlled Environment.
1976 - Northwest is the first airline approved by FAA to install coordinated flight crew training.
1988 - Northwest bans smoking on all North American flights, the first major U.S. airline to do so.
1991 - Northwest and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines launch their first joint service, twice-weekly flights between Minneapolis/St. Paul and Amsterdam.
