China National Aviation Corporation
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China National Aviation Corporation
(中國航空公司 or CNAC) was an airline in the Republic of China. It was established in 1929 as China Airways by Curtiss-Wright, under the leadership of U.S. airline magnate Clement Keys. In 1933, after a series of disastrous accidents and disagreements with Chiang Kai-shek, Keys sold the company to Pan American World Airways, under the control of Keys' arch-rival Juan Trippe. Pan Am placed CNAC under the control of banker and aviator Harold Bixby. CNAC eventually operated routes from Shanghai to Peiping, Chungking, and Canton, using Douglas DC-2 and DC-3 aircraft. It was forced to cease operations following the Chinese revolution of 1949.