A Traveling Icon

A Traveling Icon

It all began back in the 1920s with publication of a magazine article containing do-it-yourself plans for building a travel trailer—plans that didn’t work. Wally Byam was the publisher of that do-it-yourself magazine, and after receiving numerous complaints from readers about the flawed plans, Byam set out to design a better travel trailer. By the mid-1930s, Byam’s unique design had become so popular that he had given up the publishing business and was devoting himself full-time to building travel trailers.

Due largely to Byam’s initial vision for building a better product, the basic construction of the trailer hasn’t changed much over the years, though Airstream has produced some 140,000 travel trailers and motor homes since the company’s inception in 1930.

"Over 65 percent of all Airstreams ever built are still on the road today," says Dicky Riegel, the company’s president and CEO. "Very few other companies can make that kind of claim."

This year, Airstream will produce about 2,000 travel trailers and 600 motor homes. But owning an American icon is more costly than it used to be.

In the 1920s, do-it-yourselfers could build a travel trailer for less than $100 using Byam’s original plans. By 1936, when Airstream introduced its popular Airstream Clipper, the price tag was $1,200. Today, Airstream travel trailers sell for $30,000 to $80,000, and motor homes range from $80,000 to $250,000.

Still, most Airstream owners wouldn’t travel in anything else.

Jim Haddaway, who has owned three different Airstreams in the last 27 years, spends so much time in his trailer that it’s rare to find him at home in Hillsboro, Texas (pop. 8,232). Instead, Haddaway can be found traveling the open road in his 34-foot Airstream at least six months a year.

In fact, Haddaway is so enthusiastic about his Airstream that in 2004 he moved into the North Texas Airstream Community—one of several housing developments around the country exclusively for Airstream owners and members of the Wally Byam Caravan Club International. The Caravan Club, of which Haddaway is the international president, is the oldest RV club in the United States, with 18,000 members worldwide. "We’re a community of like souls," says Haddaway, 71. "We just love the Airstream and have so much in common."

Owners aren’t the only people loyal to the company. Some of Airstream’s 450 employees have spent decades on the job. "All of those people have really made an investment of their soul in this company, and we are a family here," Riegel says.

Tom Edwards, who has worked for the company for 41 years, spends much of his day inside newly built trailers making sure that travelers stay dry even in a driving rain. Edwards pulls each finished trailer into a bay similar to an oversized car wash, which blasts the outside with water while he carefully inspects each inside seam.

"You can look at this product and feel satisfaction and pride in what you’ve done," says Edwards, 60. "We hand build the quality in."

Quality is among the reasons that demand for Airstream recreational vehicles shows no signs of abating, especially among devoted owners, who put the vehicles through their own rigorous testing.

Haddaway, whose extensive travels have taken him throughout North America, has hauled his Airstream more than 113,000 miles in less than three years. But after a quick stop to replace all 10 tires on his trailer and towing vehicle, he’s eager to hit the road again.

For more information, call (937) 596-6111 or log on to www.airstream.com.

Jo Ann Judy is a freelance writer in Columbus, Ohio.

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