San Francisco California-1939: United Air Lines DC-3 Mainliner Taxiing

$149 · Editorial onlyDirect license: editorial use only. $149 flat from Stockfilm for documentary, news and educational use, plus internal and organic social use. Not permitted in advertising, sponsored or branded content, broadcast promotion or any paid commercial placement.

Year1939
Decade1930s
LocationSan Francisco, California, United States
Duration6s
Price$149 USD
Collection1939 California

$149 · Editorial onlyDirect license: editorial use only

$149 USD flat · royalty-free worldwide · 4K restored master (MP4)

Before you add to cart: Editorial use only: documentary, news, educational, internal and organic social use. Not permitted in advertising, sponsored or branded content, broadcast promotion or any paid commercial placement. Checkout will only offer editorial, educational, internal and social/web scopes.

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Stockfilm licenses the rights identified in the applicable agreement. Additional use-specific review may be required. See the Licensing Guide and Archive Integrity.

United Air Lines DC-3 Mainliner Taxiing — Clip Details

Shot on 8mm film in 1939, this vintage footage captures a United Air Lines DC-3, branded as "The Mainliner," taxiing at an airport in San Francisco, California. The black-and-white clip shows the classic propeller-driven airliner moving along the tarmac, its polished fuselage reflecting the overcast sky. A metal railing is visible in the foreground, suggesting the view is from a terminal or observation point. The film exhibits natural grain and slight motion blur, characteristic of home movie footage from the era. This archival clip offers a nostalgic glimpse into early commercial aviation.

Licensing & Technical Details

Original Format: 8mm / Super 8 Home Movie
Shot details: Black & white
Resolution: 4K restored master (MP4)
License: Direct license: editorial use only Editorial use only: documentary, news, educational, internal and organic social use. Not permitted in advertising, sponsored or branded content, broadcast promotion or any paid commercial placement.
Delivery: Instant Digital Download
Duration: 6s
Price: $149 USD
Clip ID: 127270502

Rights & Clearance

$149 · Editorial only Direct license: editorial use only. Editorial use only: documentary, news, educational, internal and organic social use. Not permitted in advertising, sponsored or branded content, broadcast promotion or any paid commercial placement.

Editorial use only; commercial use is not offered for this clip. Review the flags below for your editorial context.

People visible: Yes
Minors visible: No
Logos / trademarks: Yes
Audible music: No

Flags come from automated catalog metadata, not a legal opinion. The source is an original 8mm / Super 8 Home Movie reel. For high-stakes commercial use, request a full rights review.

Source & Documentation

Source reel: Reel 1166 · 8mm · 5″ reel
Original reel label: may
Reel-level year note: 1939
Reel-level location note: california
Date: 1939 Estimated (Catalog estimate from the footage and file metadata; not independently confirmed.)
Date evidence: Catalog estimate. A reel-level note shows the same year, but the clip-to-reel link is itself a catalog match, so this is not counted as independent confirmation.
Location: San Francisco, California, United States Estimated (Catalog estimate from the footage and file metadata; not independently confirmed.)
Location evidence: Catalog estimate. A reel-level location note is linked, but the clip-to-reel link is itself a catalog match, so this is not counted as independent confirmation.
Licensing route: Direct license available from Stockfilm

Confidence labels are defined on Archive Integrity. Fields without a recorded value are shown as not recorded rather than assumed.

View source reel context Open Clip Documentation Record Request source information

Topics & Keywords

airplane
jetliner
taxiing
united
cloudy
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hangar
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SAN francisco california
1939
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vintage 8mm film
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classic airliner footage
propeller plane taxiing
historical aviation
retro airline branding
black and white home movie
United Mainliner
1930s commercial flight
archival airplane footage
old film grain
vintage travel
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classic American aviation
period airline livery
nostalgic travel footage
early commercial aviation
vintage film archive

Archive Intelligence

Archive brief fit: Useful for 1930s commercial aviation requests needing brief editorial footage of a United Air Lines DC-3 Mainliner taxiing at a San Francisco airport.
Period detail: The United Air Lines shield, The Mainliner name, polished propeller airliner body, and terminal railing support a late-1930s airline travel setting.
Home-movie behavior: The framing suggests a traveler or airport visitor filming from an observation area as the aircraft passes close by on the tarmac.
What appears in frame: Visible elements include the DC-3 fuselage, United Air Lines logo, The Mainliner lettering, cabin windows, wing edge, metal railing, tarmac, and a partly visible airport worker or passenger.
Film character: The black-and-white 8mm scan has soft focus, visible grain, gate edges, slight weave, and exposure shifts that retain the home-movie character of the original film.
Edit role: Editors could use this as a short insert, travel transition, aviation cutaway, or memory beat for prewar airline travel and airport sequences.
Historical context: The clip shows commercial air travel as seen from a public airport vantage point, with airline branding and aircraft details visible rather than interior passenger activity.
Research note: Human review should note visible airline marks and at least one partly visible person; copyright, trademark, and likeness considerations are separate clearance questions.
Research search match: Likely matches searches for 1939 San Francisco airport footage, United Air Lines DC-3 Mainliner, 1930s commercial aviation, and 8mm home-movie airplane taxiing.
Archive pairing path: Pair first with adjacent shots from the same reel, then other 1939 San Francisco airport material, then broader 1930s airline and propeller-aircraft travel footage.

Still Frames From This Clip

1939 San Francisco airport footage showing a United Air Lines DC-3 Mainliner taxiing past a railing in black-and-white 8mm. — United Air Lines DC-3 Mainliner passes close to the camera, with the fuselage lettering visible.

The DC-3 Mainliner moves past the observation area as a person appears near the edge of the frame.

Airline branding and cabin windows remain visible as the aircraft continues taxiing past the camera.

United Air Lines DC-3 Mainliner taxiing in 1939 San Francisco airport footage, seen in soft black-and-white 8mm detail. — The aircraft slides farther across frame, showing the United logo, windows, wing, and foreground railing.

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