FUTURLINER

THE AIRSTREAM YEARS
In 1939, Harley Earl, the father of the famous Corvette, oversaw the design of an avant-garde bus for General Motors, intended to promote American technology through a traveling exhibition: the GM Futurliner. This vehicle is “powered” by a 400-horsepower engine, with a top speed of 65 km/h (40 mph). Indeed, measuring 10 meters long and 3.5 meters high, it weighs 15 tons. The exterior of each Futurliner was designed by the talented Robert E. Bingman, to whom I hope to pay tribute here through this concept realized on a Bombardier Global 7000. The body of these trucks is streamlined, following in the tradition of the first Airstream trailers from the 1930s, and painted red and white to be instantly eye-catching. The white and red sidewall tires add to their striking appearance. The designers were also inspired by the Boeing Flying Fortress bomber, launched in 1935, incorporating a plexiglass dome for the cabin. Despite the vehicle’s enormous size, it only seats three people. The driver accesses the top of the cockpit via a staircase located behind a door. General Motors used these vehicles to parade in a traveling exhibition called the “Parade of Progress,” where innovative objects such as televisions, atomic energy, jet engines, household appliances, and more were showcased. The public could discover these innovations when the vehicle opened its electrically controlled side doors, much like a fair booth. Of the 12 Futurliners originally built, 9 still exist today. The surviving ones are valued between 3 and 5 million dollars each!