Around 1991 I was at opa-locka airport and spotted a Lockheed 1011(not a -500) painted in Pan Am colors.Looked to have
the Pan Am titles painted over and the blue ball on the tail missing the white stripes and titles.Plane had a Eastern Airlines registration. Did Pan Am lease this plane for a brief period? Can someone fill me in?

You are probably speaking about the L-1011 that was used in the 1990 movie Last Flight Out - story about last flight out of Saigon carrying refugees.

Quoting LAXintl (Reply 1): You are probably speaking about the L-1011 that was used in the 1990 movie Last Flight Out - story about last flight out of Saigon carrying refugees.

I remember this film. Suffice it to say, PA was not flying the L1011 in '75, Of course PA used the mainstay of their long haul fleet, the 747 for that flight. I really wish film makers would do their research first, surely they could have found a 747 somewhere.

this is the one.

I remember that L-1011. I was working in HNL at the time for a contract company. It was being used by Air America for the flights to HNL. It flew in painted as a simi Clipper, with Air America titles, and we wondered What the heck is that? I got a picture somewhere. If I can find it, I'll post it. HTH

this one

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Photo © Frank C. Duarte Jr.

Quoting thomasphoto60 (Reply 2): I remember this film. Suffice it to say, PA was not flying the L1011 in '75, Of course PA used the mainstay of their long haul fleet, the 747 for that flight. I really wish film makers would do their research first, surely they could have found a 747 somewhere.

They may have not had the permission to use Pan Am on the film so they make up an airline to fill in. Just because we A.Nutters want accuracy, the general public really could not care if they even see the aircraft for a second or so. Look at the movie Airplane, that is the extent of what the general population would even care about when it comes to airplanes in the movies and how accurately they depict flying.

I remember watching that movie when it first aired. The aircraft when it was filmed had Pan Am titles. There was a also an opening scene of someone in a hanger, standing in front of a 747, talking about the story and mentioned that the actual aircraft Pan Am flew out of Saigon was actually a 747.

As for why an L1011 was used for the movie I'm sure it solely had to do with cost.

Quoting thomasphoto60 (Reply 2): I remember this film. Suffice it to say, PA was not flying the L1011 in '75, Of course PA used the mainstay of their long haul fleet, the 747 for that flight. I really wish film makers would do their research first, surely they could have found a 747 somewhere.

Somewhere, on a film industry internet discussion forum, someone has likely commented, "I really wish airline enthusiasts would do their research first, surely they could figure out how scheduling and cost trump most everything else on a film set."

-Rampart

Quoting rutankrd (Reply 5): this one Us old timers remember Air America as the CIA "airline" that flew around South East Asia and all over Viet Nam during the war over there, performing all types of covert operations. But I didn't know they were a legitimate operation in the States. The photo shows the L-1011 landing in Las Vegas. Any explaination as to why Air America was arriving in Vegas? Were they ever a legit airline? View Large View Medium

This Air America had nothing to do with the CIA sponsored Air America from the '60s-'70s. It was a charted airline that flew L-1011s in the '80s and actually was the renamed Total Air. It shared the name in coincidence only.

Quoting B737900 (Reply 9): Us old timers remember Air America as the CIA "airline" that flew around South East Asia and all over Viet Nam during the war over there, performing all types of covert operations. But I didn't know they were a legitimate operation in the States. The photo shows the L-1011 landing in Las Vegas. Any explaination as to why Air America was arriving in Vegas? Were they ever a legit airline?

Before being acquired by Air America, the airline started as Total Air.

http://www.geocities.com/aeromoe/fleets/total.html

http://articles.latimes.com/1986-05-08/business/fi-4464_1_air-america