On February 1, 1928, overnight air mail service was inaugurated between Dallas and Chicago. Herbert Kindred, a veteran National Air Transport captain and native of Mexia, Texas, took the first northbound route. The 12-hour overnight service was projected to save 24 hours on delivery time compared to the previous day-only flights. From the Dallas terminus, southbound mail continued on two separate routes, arriving later in the morning in either Houston and Galveston or Austin and San Antonio.
The route followed the same path as the daytime service but faced the challenges of nighttime navigation. The 995-mile route was marked with winking gas lights spaced every few miles and large rotating beacons set at greater distances apart. The northbound route included six stops between Dallas and Chicago, covering Oklahoma, Kansas, and Missouri. Meanwhile, the southbound route between Chicago and Kansas City retained its day service alongside the night flights, though the Dallas to Kansas City portion was now served exclusively by night flights.
National Air Transport (NAT) was an early and significant airline specializing in air mail delivery contracts. It was founded by Clement M. Keys. Following its contract for the Chicago-to-Dallas route, NAT had ten Carrier Pigeon biplanes built by Curtiss to launch its service. NAT officially opened its airmail service on May 12, 1926, with the route Chicago-Moline-St. Joseph-Kansas City-Wichita-Ponca City-Oklahoma City-Dallas. Later, NAT also included the iconic Ford Trimotor aircraft in its fleet.
More Information
Learn more about pilot Herbert Kindred
The Curtiss Carrier Pigeon used by NAT – By SDASM – Public Domain, Link
The route maps for airmail in 1927. The Chicago-Dallas route is essentially as served in the 1928 overnight route.