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<a href="https://cdn.kahimyang.com/resources/model-130-china-clipper.webp" rel="lightbox">
<img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.kahimyang.com/resources/model-130-china-clipper-t.webp"  alt="China Clipper was the first of three Martin M-130  built for Pan American Airways used to inaugurate the first commercial transpacific air service from San Francisco to Manila." />
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(China Clipper was the first of three Martin M-130  built for Pan American Airways used to inaugurate the first commercial transpacific air service from San Francisco to Manila)
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Commanded by Captain Edwin C. Musick, the China Clipper soared over the Golden Gate and after 59 hours, 48 minutes flying-time landed on the waters of Manila Bay, establishing the first air-link between the Philippines and the United States.
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The arrival of the China Clipper was an epochal event for the people of the Philippines. Until then, the only link with the Western world had been time-consuming surface travel. Via ship, it had taken passengers, mail, and express,  weeks to reach the United States. The coming of the flying Clippers slashed that travel time to a matter of days! 
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November 22, 1935: the first air link between the US and Manila was established