Development of the DC-1 can be traced back to the
1931 crash of a
TWA airliner, a
Fokker F-10 trimotor in which a wing failed, likely because water had seeped between the layers of the wood laminate and dissolved the glue holding the layers together. Following the accident, the
Aeronautics Branch of the U.S. Department of Commerce placed stringent restrictions on the use of wooden wings on passenger airliners.
Boeing developed an answer, the
247, a twin-engined all-metal
monoplane with a retractable undercarriage, but their production capacity was reserved to meet the needs of
United Airlines, part of
United Aircraft and Transport Corporation which also owned Boeing. TWA needed a similar aircraft to respond to competition from the Boeing 247 and they asked five manufacturers to bid for construction of a three-engined, 12-seat aircraft of all-metal construction, capable of flying at . The most demanding part of the specification was that the airliner would have to be capable of safely taking off from any airport on TWA's main routes (and in particular
Albuquerque, at high altitude and with severe summer temperatures) with one engine non-functioning.
Donald Douglas was initially reluctant to participate in the invitation from TWA. He doubted that there would be a market for 100 aircraft, the number of sales necessary to cover development costs. Nevertheless, he submitted a design consisting of an
all-metal, low-wing, twin-engined aircraft seating 12 passengers, a crew of two and a flight attendant. The aircraft exceeded the specifications of TWA even with only two engines, principally through the use of
controllable pitch propellers. It was insulated against noise, heated, and fully capable of both flying and performing a controlled takeoff or landing on one engine. Donald Douglas stated in 1935 that the first DC-1 cost $325,000 to design and build. ==Operational history==