1974 - the interior of the National Airlines widebody hangar at Miami International Airport during an Open House event photo


1974	Don Boyd

My buddy Bob Zimmerman and my first wife Judy, who worked for National in the Purchasing department, are in the foreground.

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Unless otherwise noted under the right bottom of the photo, all images are copyrighted by Don Boyd

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Don Boyd		08-Nov-2016 03:24
I've been using an Epson v700 flatbed for years and I'm very happy with it. The problem with a lot of old photos is that I got the "silk" finish instead of "glossy" finish on my prints for years which turned out to be a dumb decision now because they are hell to scan. Every raised spot and valley shows up on the scan and I have to smooth out the dark spots using the lighten blur feature in Photoshop. Obviously I'll never be using a drum scanner but a gent sent me a drum scan of one of my slides and the file was so huge my PC choked on it until I rebooted it and started fresh with all the RAM. I don't need that for simple website displays. Don .

Mark Lincoln		07-Nov-2016 22:56
Don what type of scanner do you use? In the 1990s I used to do a lot of scanning, clean-up and color correction for advertising agencies using a Howtek D-4000 photo-multiplier drum scanner.

Ray		12-Jun-2009 02:02
Thanks Don. After passing that hanger so many times, I never noticed that space on top. I guess the impressive doors and design distracted me. Let us know if you ever hear of a tour or something. In a pre-9/11 world, behind the scenes tours of airports would be possible. Today I might get arrested for even suggesting it ;) True story, before 9/11, I was stopped for questioning at O'hare for walking around inside the terminal. I guess I was caught looking up a the architecture a little too much. I just thought it was cool to see the same spaces that were used in the 'Airport' movies of the 1970s. Like the indoor office balcony that overlooked the public areas of the terminal. I never entered any controlled spaces, but I guess not being in a rush looked strange to them. My fault for having a couple hour layover. Good thing I didn't have a camera with me that day. Thanks again for knowing so many details about our airport. Let us know if you think of any other long-abandoned spaces there. I'm sure it will be like a true historical time capsule.

Don Boyd		10-Jun-2009 02:41
Ray, there are at least two elevators that go to that top floor as I recall though the floor may be locked out to keep the tenant (American Airlines) of lower floors in the building out of there. I always thought it was make for a unique nightclub/bar because of the spectacular view from up there with landing or departing aircraft often at eye level to the north. I have a distant image of what is up there athttp://www.pbase.com/airlinerphotos/image/53501308 - the offices are on the other side of the half circular white wall. That's like a patio area for the offices that have the dark glass walls to the south of the circular wall. There is a several story parking garage on the south side of that building and the top floor of that garage is only a few floors below the offices on the roof. Don

Ray		09-Jun-2009 23:47
So there is something up there. Very cool. Is there elevator access? If not, I bet that's why no one wants it. Might be a good place for web cam if nothing else. The idea of time capsule like that is really interesting to me. I found the second floor of the Hialeah Richard'sDept. store in the 1980s... it was a blast from the past. Another one I found in the late 90s... roof of the hotel on I95 at NW 79 St. Used to be at Day's in at the peak of its history. Not easy to go down hill from there but it did. This apartment at the top had been left empty for years. Looked like something out of a bad 1970's porno movie. lol. Thanks for the info on the hanger roof. Very cool to know something is up there.

Don Boyd		08-Jun-2009 03:32
Sorry, Ray, I don't believe it's true because I've been up there and it was nothing but offices for execs and secretaries and a conference room or two, along with a kitchen for preparing lunch as I recall. In addition, I've never heard anyone from National Airlines ever say anything about it and you know that is something they would talk about. The top executive offices for National were up there and there were wooden trellises around the perimeter on the north, east and west sides where they had plants growing. I was up there several times in the 90's after Pan Am died and it was like a trip back in time because of the wood paneling, carpet colors, etc. It has been unleased since Pan Am died (12/4/91). I recently ran across some photos of the top floor from the 90's and will post them after I scan them. There is a great view of the airport from up there, particularly to the west and north but views to the southwest are obstructed by the parking garages and main terminal. Don

Ray		08-Jun-2009 02:43
I just heard an interesting story about this hanger that hopefully Don can shed some light on... The then owner of National Airlines (Maytag?) had an exclusive apartment built on the roof of this hanger. It had a wonderful view of the whole airport. If this is true, is it still there and is it being used? I'm guessing there was no elevator access, so I don't think it could be open to the public with today's ADA requirements. But still cool to find out about little known parts of the airport. I told the guy that told me about about this apartment about this site. Hopefully he will find this message and add more memories. Thanks, Ray

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