 In 1936, DNL and Balchen—who had a wide range of contacts in the US—started negotiations with Pan American Airways (Pan Am) about cooperation on a transatlantic route between Norway and the United States.DNL argued that Norway's location made it an ideal base for the European flights to North America.Pan Am would operate from New York to Reykjavík, while DNL would operate the service from Reykjavík to Bergen and onwards to various destinations in Europe.