It is fitting that the first blog post of Vintage Trailer Fever is about Airstream. My admiration of vintage travel trailers started with Airstream. The trailers are so well constructed that it is estimated that around 70 percent of all Airstreams ever produced are still on the road today. That is an incredible statistic! The quality of the Airstream has tremendous appeal and is so good that generally people who own them think of them as generational assets to be handed down vs. something to get use out of and dispose of or sell.
Here is an article by the Tiny House Blog “1947 CW5 Reflects America’s Trailer Pioneers” about the beginnings of the aircraft inspired design of Airstream trailers and how Wally Byam and William Hawley Bowlus started it all circa WWII times. Another interesting link on Airstreams is this Mental Floss article “11 Fun Facts about Airstream Trailers.”
Finally, if you are interested in one day owning a vintage airstream you’ll find this document about trailer weights very helpful.
Airstrem is ledgendary. The iconic aluminum travel trailer started by Wally Byam in the 1930’s is one of the top trailer brands of today. Enduring quality is something not found in many products today and it is a big reason that makes vintage Airstream trailers (as well as modern ones) so attractive.