Roden 339 Boeing 307 Stratoliner 1:144

The first customer for the new aircraft was the famous Pan American Airways, which received three machines. Six more were ordered by another well-known airline of the time, Transcontinental and Western Air (TWA), but due to financial disagreements, the transfer of already built airframes was the subject of litigation. The famous aviation enthusiast and billionaire Howard Hughes, who became interested in the promising new airplane, devised an original and easy way out of the situation for himself and others - he bought a controlling stake in Boeing. Five units were completed and handed over to the new owner, while another aircraft was privately owned by Hughes, and named The Flying Penthouse. The type was also named Stratoliner for the first time in the history of American civil aviation. The aircraft was comfortable enough and could carry 33 passengers in a seated position, or 16 in folding comfortable berths during long transcontinental night flights. In addition to the forced ventilation system and the maintenance of normal pressure, the Stratoliner had many other interesting innovations. Considerable attention was paid to the issue of flight comfort, so that even a spacious women's lavatory was installed, with a separate toilet located in it.

The commercial operation of TWA's Stratoliners began in June 1940 (Pan American had started earlier, operating flights from Florida to the Caribbean as well to Mexico and Brazil) from New York to California. Their commercial use continued until the end of 1941, when after the entry of the United States into World War II, all Stratoliners were requisitioned and transferred to the Air Force, designated the C-75. For military service, the pressurized cabin system was dismantled as unnecessary, and the aircraft no longer had such high altitude capabilities as before. But it allowed for the installation of additional fuel tanks, which increased the flight range by 1,600 km. Its combat service was marked by some interesting episodes - for example, the C-75 carried the surviving Doolittle Raid pilots (including James Doolittle himself) from deep continental China to the United States.