One of the first ideas of uses for planes, way back at the start of the last century, was to allow them to carry freight. History was made in November of 1910, when a department store shipped a bolt of silk by plane from Dayton to Columbus, Ohio. This was considered the first demonstration of pilot air freight.
The advent of pilot air freight was great for American business, not only did it allow them to get parts and merchandise quicker, but the speed of the process meant that businesses didn't have to keep as much inventory on hand.
As it is with any great idea, the early stages of the pilot air freight industry saw tremendous growth. In 1927 for example, only 45,000 pounds were shipped, but by 1931, that number had grown to over one million pounds a year. Although there were some attempts at organizing the pilot air freight industry early on, the first commercial airlines that were all about transporting cargo did not happen until after World War II.
Near the end of the war, many of the airlines, including TWA and United, decided to start their own independent pilot air freight services.
Many small plane operators wanted to join the pilot air freight industry, but they weren't welcomed. The big airlines made it clear that they didn't want the small plane operators in the business of pilot air freight. The big airlines believed that the small plane operators would make the industry unstable and besides, they really didn't want any competition
Despite great hopes, especially after its tremendous start, the pilot air freight industry wasn't growing as expected. It wasn't until the 1980s that someone tried to put a new spin on pilot air freight and that person was Fred Smith. He opened up his own pilot air freight business called Federal Express and within ten years of operation, Federal Express reported revenues of one billion dollars.