With the secession of the Empire State in early 1930 and the formation of the Maritime Provinces in May 1931, Massachusetts, Conneticut and Rhode Island had a choice - join one of their two powerful neighbors, or form their own country. The Coalition's primary asset is its fleet of airships and surface cargo vessels - the highest person-to-ship ratio in North America. Other nations run their zeppelins in a hub-and-spoke system, but the Coalition airships run direct routes to London, Paris, Madrid, Barcelona, and Rome, nonstop. It's slightly more expensive, but hours or days faster.