Life Magazine 75 years ago, December 11, 1939, shows this photo of an aircraft being exported from the United States en route to its new owner, the British Royal Air Force. American neutrality prevented either American or Canadian pilots from flying military aircraft across the border. To remedy this difficulty, the planes were flown from the factory in California to Sweetgrass, Montana. From the airstrip near the border, the planes were towed by automobile over the border. The line running up the picture is the international boundary. The plane’s nose is in Canada, and its tail is in the United States.

The airport in question is truly an international airport. Coutts/Ross Sweetgrass International Airport‘s current runway, 07-26, is a 2900 foot grass strip that runs East-West along the international border. It can currently be used to clear customs entering either the United States or Canada.

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