2,000,000 Now "Fly Through the
Air With the Greatest of Ease
ii
Recent Celebration of National Air Travel Week Dramatized the Amazing Development of
Airplane Transportation of Passengers, Mail and Express During the 10 Years Since a
Famous Author Paid $400 for a 33-Hour Flight from Los Angeles to New York.
C Western Newspaper Union.
By ELMO SCOTT WATSON
EVERAL thousand Amer
icans recently enjoyed,
for the first time, the
realization of an ancient
dream of mankind. They
"flew through the air with the
greatest of ease" ? not on the
flying trapeze, nor yet on
Aladdin's magic carpet, but
in swift, multi-engined air
planes that are the ultimate
in comfort and safety.
This "mass flight" of at
least 50,000 people was a part
of the observance of National
Air Travel Week, sponsored
by the aviation industry of
the country, including the 21
domestic air transport lines
and Pan-American, to cele
brate the tenth year jubilee
of air transportation and call
to the attention of the nation
the spectacular growth of a
service which has risen in 10
years from an extremely
small industry, chiefly de
pendent on air mail, to one
which now carries more than
2,000,000 passengers every
year plus millions of pounds
of air mail and express.
To anyone who knows anything
about the history of aviation in
this country, the question imme
diately arises, "Why call it the
tenth anniversary of air transpor
tation? If I remember rightly,
they were flying the mail 20 years
ago, in 1918, and the first trans
continental service was begun in
1924 and within two years passen
ger* were being carried. Why
didn't w* celebrate this tenth an
niversary two years ago, in
1934?" The answer is this:
It's true that passengers were
being carried by airplane in 1926
but in that year air transport
was still an experiment. The air
lines then in existence were using
small single-engined planes and
they definitely did not encourage
passenger traffic. These lines ex
isted mainly to transport the mail
and when they did take passen
gers, these passengers rode on
the mail sacks or crouched down
in small, cramped cockpits. The
pilots of these ships weren't any
too happy to have a passenger
along and be made to feel the
extra responsibility for his safety.
"Lindy" Points the Way.
Then came the year 1927.
"Lucky Lindy," otherwise
Charles A. Lindbergh, a former
air mail pilot, made the flight
across the Atlantic and the whole
world "flung his name against the
stars." The impetus given to avi
ation was immediate. By the
end of that year air transporta
tion was emerging from the ex
perimental stage. One factor
which hastened it was the devel
opment of the larger multi-en
gined flight equipment. These
powerful motors meant a larger
margin of safety in carrying pas
sengers.
Then came another historic
event, but one not so widely
known, although it was widely re
called during the recent celebra
tion of National Air Travel Week.
John Monk Saunders, a well
known American author, paid
$400 for a one-way ticket be
tween Los Angeles and New York
and became the first pay passen
ger aboard the first regular
scheduled flight in a multi-engined
transport plane. That marked the
real beginning of modern passen
ger air transport.
as a matter 01 fact, Saunders
was only one of 47,840 Americans
who traveled by air that year.
But qot all of these were flown
in multi-engined ships. Most of
the small operators were still fly
ing small single-engined ships
since the only foundation needed
for starting an airline in those
days was to have a few pilots, a
plane or two and a place to fly to.
In 1KB the air lines had a total
of 319 single and multi-engined
transports in service and flew a
total of 10,673,450 miles. In 1938.
Just 10 years later, the air lines
have about 388 transports (all
multi-engined) and during 1937
flew the astonishing total of 76,
998,183 miles, carrying 1,267,580
passengers. In fact, one of the
most amazing of all of air trans
port's accomplishments has been
its steady expansion during a
decade that has been marked by
the contraction and retrenchment
of other lines of industry.
Ptoaeer Passengers.
But it is in the "human ele
ment," the how-does-this-affect
you-and-me side of the business,
that the most interesting example
of progress is noted. The first
The remarkable advance in air transportation is visualised by the
pictures of the various types of airplanes that have been Sown in coast
to-coast service since 1928. The first coast-to-coast mail-passenger serv
ice requiring 33 hours, was flown with a single-engined 90-miie-an-hour
biplane shown at the top. Next came the tri-motored plane with a cruising
speed of 105 miles an hour. In 1933 air transportation was revolutionized
with the introduction of the world's first ' 'three-mile * -minute ' ' twin
engined, all-metal, low-wing monoplane. The bottom picture shows the
latest refinement of the twin-engined type with a top speed of 212 miles
an hour.
adventurers. They paid $400 for
a transcontinental ticket, sat up
right in a small metal chair with
little upholstery; their plane
landed every few hundred miles
for fuel; little food, if any, was
served; and the coast-to-coast
journey took 33 hours. In 193$,
at the beginning of the second
decade the flight between New
York and Los Angeles or San
Francisco has been reduced to an
overnight journey in a large,
comfortable berth aboard a
sound-proofed transport. The
coast-to-coast air fare has been
reduced to less than $150. The
passenger enjoys a hot full-course
meal that is served without any
extra cost. The business man
journeying from his New York
office to the Pacific coast does
not lose a single business hour
in spanning the continent.
Fares Cat in Half. .
In a decade air fares in the
United States have been reduced
from an average of 12 cents a
mile to 5'? cents, while speed has
been more than doubled and com
forts not even thought of in those
days have made air travel a lux
ury form of transportation. Si
Col. Charles A. Liadbcrfh when
he wmi aa air mail pilot and Sew
the first mall plane am the St.
Louis -Chicago Uoe la 1?L
multaneously, with decrease In
(are, faster schedules and great
er comfort, the industry has
written a record of safe, dependa
ble operation in view of the tre
mendous increase in flying, which
is a standard for the world.
With the inception of this vast
air line system the number of
seats available for passenger coo
sumption have increased from
800 in 1938 to 3,000 in 1038. In
1938 a total of 447,716,419 seat
miles were flown by the nation's
? iiri, -I- - -li-iw.. .
air lines. Ten years ago an av
erage of 131 passengers per day
rode on air line planes. Today
sees 3,200 persons board United
States airline ships daily.
Safer Than Automobiles.
Safety has, of course increased
tremendously in recent years, the
best example being that in 1928,
the air lines flew only 945,476
miles per fatal accident as com
pared with 13,214,301 miles per
fatal accident in 1937. Safety has
reached the point that on a mile
age travel basis, a person is
safer on a modern transport
plane than he is driving his own
automobile between the same cit
ies today.
The air line plane of 1928 had
an average speed of 90 miles an
hour. This was an exceptionally
swift pace, but not the zenith by
any means. Manufacturers set
to work to build faster equip
ment. By 1933 some of the air
lines were operating planes with
cruising speeds of three miles a
minute. At the turn of the first
decade the average air line plane
cruises at 200 miles an hour.
Little or nothing was known
about the supercharging of en
gines in 1928 ? (or that reason air
line planes flew low, between one
and two thousand feet. A flight
above 4,000 feet was really high
flyings . -Rough air was usually
the rule at these low altitudes
and approximately 10 per cent of
the air travelers were troubled by
air sickness. Little or nothing
was known about the scientific
ventilation of airplane cabins and
it was not uncommon foi a cabin
to be filled with motor fumes.
Heating of cabins was accom
plished directly from engine ex
hausts. The ship* of 1928 car
ried a limited amount of fuel and
had t* land every few hundred
miles for gas.
The modern plane today has a
cruising range of 1,000 to 1,500
miles flying at 10,000 feet, where
smooth air prevails. The roar
ing, booming noise of the throb
bing motors of 1928 has been
eliminated by soundproofing and
the cabins are ventilated by the
constant flow of fresh, filtered air.
Steamheating is automatically
controlled and the cabin of the
modern transport has the atmos
phere of a well-appointed living
room. Long-range flying came in
vogue a few years ago and today
some of the domestic routes are
operating non-stop flights of 900
miles. But even this is not the
epitome. The Douglas planes of
today have bona fide cruising
ranges of 1,500 miles and test
flights of nearly 2,000 miles with
out even stopping for fuel have
been made.
A~~> i i "AVtlr ii . . .
In air transport, a* in any oth
er, the safety of the passenger*
depends ultimately, of course,
upon the men operating it. The
physical fitness, mental alertness
and practiced skill of the man
behind the wheel In an automo
bile, in the pilot house of a ship
or in the cab of a locomotive
determines pretty much whether
or not you'll reach your desti
nation safely if you travel by land
or water. The .same thing is true
if you travel by air.
But if you have an idea that
you are entrusting your life to a
"knight of the air," a dashing,
devil-may-care fellow, given to
doing spectacular stunts and tak
ing chances ? forget it) That may
have been true in the post-war
period of aviation but it isn't true
now.
The average pilot of 1928 was
a man who, if he had 2,000 hours
of experience, was regarded as a
veteran airman. He knew little
about night flying and had no
faith in theories that some day air- '
planes could be controlled entire
ly by instruments in his cockpit.
The average pilot in command
of a big 12-ton airliner today is a
highly professional man who has
journeyed a million miles or more
in the sky aboard transport
planes. He is a technical man,
too, understanding that he has
been provided with an airplane in
perfect condition, every proven
aid to the science of air naviga
tion, and with corps of ground
workers who are studying weath
er reports, communicating with
him by radio and generally di
recting the orderly procedure of
his flight with marked efficiency.
Frequent Examinations.
Today's pilot is a perfect physi
cal specimen. He undergoes a
thorough physical examination on
an average of every three
months. He leads a normal, re
tiring life when he's not putting
in his maximum of 85 hours in
the air each month. The av
erage air line captain has his
own home and flower garden,
plays a good game of golf, is a
camera enthusiast and spends as
much time as possible with his
wife and children. He is a solid
citizen in his community and is
a great student, always seeking
to improve and strengthen his
knowledge of air line flying. Often
you can find him at his terminal
flying a training device that sim
ulates every conceivable flight
characteristic of an airplane,
even to the guidance of airplanes
by directive radio beams.
The cockpit of an air liner has
grown to a scientific office where
the pilot has been provided with
proper tools to accomplish his
work. The cockpit of 1928 boast
ed of sparse instruments and a
few controls. Today's air line
has an automatic "robot" pilot,
for example, that is capable of
guiding the airplane in the same
precise manner that the human
pilot does. Hence, the human pi
lot can turn over command of the
plane to the "robot" pilot at any
Pilot W. L. Smith ready to start
on the Irst flight of the trans
continental air mail service in
augurated July 1, 1924.
time. All instruments are in du
plicate and the pilot can guide
his airplane by looking at his in
struments.
Motors have reached such a
high degree of perfection that
emergency landings because of
motor difficulties are virtually
unknown. Today's transports . re
capable of taking off and flying
with only one engine operating.
New type propellers have been
perfected that greatly reduce mo
tor noise.
Weather has long been an ac
knowledged factor in air trans
portation and was an early handi
cap to schedule efficiency. The
system of weather reporting in
1928 was far from satisfactory
and pilots were not provided with
two-way radio communication so
that, like today, they could re
ceive up-to-the-minute weather
trends. Because nothing was
known about instrument flying,
schedule after schedule had to be
cancelled. Weather is today still
a factor in schedule efficiency, but
not the great problem it was 10
years ago because much has been
learned about the science of me
teorology as applied to aviation.
The airline* still have complete
safety as its goal and when weath
er conditions of extreme propor
tions arise, flights are cancelled.
U. S. Subs to Be
Air-Conditioned
New Equipment Expected to
Keep Crew Fit; Extends
Cruising Range.
WASHINGTON .?Air-conditioning
for submarines will make America's
undersea fighting force a much
more potent weapon in any future
war.
The efficiency of submarines de
pends primarily on the fitness of the
men who man them and their com
fort during long cruises at sea, says
Lieut. Albert B. Behnke-of the Unit
ed States navy medical corps, ex
plaining the latest submarine equip
ment.
Only the fittest officers and enlist
ed men are chosen for submarine
duty, he adds in a report to the mili
tary surgeon, and only about half of
the navy's personnel measures up
to the stiff medical requirements.
These requirements are as rigid as
the qualifications for aviation duty.
Air-conaiuonmc viol
Few persons realize the difficul
ties under which submarine crews
work and the necessity for such ad
vances as air-conditioning. The men
must re-breathe the same air for pe
riods of from 3 to 24 hours ? perhaps
longer under war conditions.
They must live In very cramped
quarters, in which all that a sailor
owns must be stored in a space
about the size of his own body. A
bath is something almost unheard of
on a submarine at sea. When the
vessel is submerged, particularly to
tropical waters or during the sum
mer, the temperature may rise to
100 or above and the humidity in
crease to the dewpoint, so that
sweating (which cools the body) is
impossible.
Unhygienic Conditions.
"Submarine duty exposes men to
crowded, unhygienic conditions of
living, particularly to varying cli
matic factors, and to increased res
piratory tract infection resulting
from rapid climatic changes and
from re-breathed air," Dr. Behnke
points out.
Air-conditioning promises to make
possible operation at sea for to
creased periods of time, he adds.
This will extend the crafts' range
and, accordingly, their effectiveness
to meeting an enemy vessel at a
distance from American shores.
The use of cooling and dehumidl
fying equipment and the provision
of oxygen from tanks to replace ex
haled carbon dioxide will enable
submarines to run submerged prob
ably for periods of days, thus add
ing another factor to their effective
ness to attack or defense.
Even with these aids, the men
who operate submarines must be
trained and "conditioned" for a pe
riod of at least 10 days between
cruises, says Dr. Behnke.
'Pep' Refuses to Leave
Crippled Mistress' Side
CADIZ, OHIO. ? This Is the story
of "Pep," a dog of no particular
breed.
Mrs. Jack Huston, who lives near
Free port, picked up "Pep" in New
Philadelphia, Ohio, when he was
only a puppy.
He learned the usual puppy tricks,
became a part of the Huston house
hold.
Then, two years ago, Mrs. Hus
ton fell and broke her hip.
"Pep" was denied admission to
her room. He tore a small hole in
the screen backed away, plunged
through the door and scrambled to
his crippled mistress' side. He has
seldom been away since, except to
fetch articles which she might want.
When she was able to travel about
in a wheel chair, "Pep" stood on
his hind feet, put his paws on the
pusher and pushed with all his
might to propel the chair around
the house.
Today, he still counts this a reg
ular task, works at it faithfully.
Circus Man Says Movie*
Wrong on Wild Animals
ORANGE PARK, FLA? Dramat
ic scenes depicted by the movies of
hunting wild animals are highly ex
aggerated and quite often impossi
ble, according to Col. P. J. Mundy,
former owner and manager of Mun
dy's circus.
"Seldom are lions hunted in for
ests but in flat, open country where
the brush is chinAiigh and the chief
danger to the hunter is in wounding
! a lion," Mundy said.
"Hunting tigers is far more in
teresting and exciting, but the real
test is in training wild anim?i?
"A lion is never tamed, but by
repetition of acts is well trained.
Dope is never used In training, as
the audience often suspects."
Grease Puts Skids on
Grunter and Groaner
KINGSTON, N. C.? Albert Si
mon, a slightly-built bicycle
salesman, was interested when
the professional wrestler with a
circus offered local talent $15 il
anyone could last 15 minutes.
Simon was on his feet 15 min
utes later despite the (act he was
outweighed many pounds.
He had greased his body and
repeatedly slipped from his op
ponent's grasp like a bar of wet
soap.
Br U L STEVENSON
City Life: Each evening at twi
lighC'two gray-haired women come
out of one of those old-law tene
ments away down on the lower East
Side and sit on the shabby stoop
with their backs turned to each oth
er. Both widows and living across
the hall from each other on the third
floor, for years they were the clos
est friends, sharing everything from
a batch of cookies to gossip picked
up on the sidewalks, the grocer's or
the butcher's. But in the house was
a young man who was a practical
joker. He would go to one with tales
the other supposedly had told and
then go back to the other with more
stories. At first, neither would be
lieve the slanders. But the poison
took effect and they stopped speak
ing. That was 'five years ag%> The
joker has long since moved away.
But the two former friends still sit
silently on the stoop evening after
evening.
Start: Frank Black, music direc
tor of the NBC, appeared with the
Philadelphia Symphony orchestra
when he was only 10 years old. But
not as an instrumentalist. Though
he had never sting a note before, he
applied for an audition as a boy so
prano with St. Clement's choir in
Philadelphia. His enterprising dis
position as well as his love for mu
sic won him a place and for the next
two years he was a member of the
organization which was often heard
with the symphony orchestra. And
while in a white surplice, little did
he dream that some day he would
stand on a podium and conduct a
symphony orchestra as large as the
one with which he was singing.
? ?
Slips: lit one of Nadine Conner's
scrapbooks is an account of her ap
pearance at a church festival. The
editor of the weekly paper wrote,
"Miss Conner, in our opinion, today
is one of the best singers." But, when
it came out in print, ihe "g" in
singers had changed to asL*^." Then
there is one that A1 Donahue prizes.
He had entertained at a prison bene
fit and the notice was written, "He
is one of radio's outstanding sing
ers and players." But a typo made
players, "slayers." Genevieve Ross
keeps one which a reporter wrote:
"Genevieve Ross stands out among
Wooster folks who have made good.
Some say she is the best." Of course
the "b" in best became "p." Alice
Cornetfs prize tells of an amateur
contest which she reached late. One
comment was, "The amateurs were
swell but Judge Alice Cornett was
missing for half an hour." And in
some manner, "missing" became
"hissing."
? ? ?
Noise: A New Yorker, who sought
to get away from it all by buying a
place up in Connecticut, is back in
his mid town apartment. The few
rocky acres at first seemed like the
fulfillment of a dream. That was
while be was still living in the city
and a somewhat costly house was
taking shape. But after he moved
out to the quiet countryside he main
tains that he found it anything but
that A swampy place not far away
was the home of a large colony of
frogs that kept him awake just
about all night. Then when he final
ly did drop off, the birds started in
and he popped up wide-eyed. One
month was enough. So he sold out
at a loss and came back to where
there are only taxi collisions, night
clubs turning out singing patrons
early in the morning, fire sirens and
other night sound to which his ears
long since became dulled.
? ? ?
Pnszle: Writes C. C. C. from Dal
las: "During a recent visit in New
York, I was craning my neck try
ing to see the top of the Empire
State building when I accidentally
bumped into a sawed -off stranger.
He glared at me and told me to go
back to Brooklyn where I belonged.
As I was born and raised down here,
ever since then I've been wondering
if be was trying to kid me. As I
left my .45 at home, it really didn't
make much difference."
? ? ?
Bang: Allen Prescott claims he
knows a Broadwaite who's such ?
bore that sheep when they want to
go to sleep count him. ?
? Bell Syndicate.? Wmj Seme*.
Soldier for 31 Years
Now Becomes a Citizen
COVINGTON, KY.? For 31 yean
Frank Frank has served in the Unit
ed States army, but only recently
did he become an American citizen.
Frank, a warrant officer and band
leader at Fort Thomas, appeared
before Federal Judge John H. D ruf
fe] last month, renounced his alle
giance to his native Rumania and
pledged it to the United States.
Frank, who served with the army
of occupation in Germany, had
failed to take advantage of a privi
lege accorded foreigners that en
listed in the army whereby he could
have appeared before immigration
authorities in company with a su
perior officer and won citizenship.
With that channel closed, Frank
went through the regular prescribed
routine.
kii*.
CLASSIFIED
DEPARTMENT
CHICKS
ROCKS. REDS. * RR. CROSSES hatched
from selected Blood-Tested Breeders.
M 1LFORD HATCHER T
MUferd Read sr. Liberty Rd.a Plkesvillc.
P. O. ROCKDALE. MD. PthesTllle td-R.
MALE HELP WANTED
Cheeks fer Illegal Blet Machines, pin ta
bles. NouBainetie. 233% profits tor re
tailers. Bay 8 tamp lag. West Depere, Wks.
Give Kitchen Towels
'Wee Bit o' Scotch'
Towels that are a wee bit dif
ferent make kitchen chores a joy!
"What fun to embroider these your
self in simple stitches and bright
colors. Make a set for a friend.
They're welcome gifts! Pattern
6113 contains a transfer pattern of
6 motifs averaging 7Vi by 9%
inches ; materials needed ; illustra
tions of stitches; color schemes.
" To obtain this pattern, send IS
cents in stamps or coins (coins
preferred) to The Sewing Circle,
Household Arts Dept., 259 W. 14th
St., New York, N. Y.
Please write your name, ad
dress and pattern number plainly.
Smiles
One of Money
"Stubbs, my dear fellow, isn't
it about time you repaid me that
little loan?"
"My dear boy, it isn't a question
of time."
Practical Minded
"Ah!" sighed the tourist, soul
fully, "what a view! So magnif
icent ? so grand! Makes a man
feel like a little grub."
"Good idea," replied his girl
companion. "I could put away a
nice big sandwich."
Answer to a correspondent: Al
ways help your wife. When she
mops the floor, mop the floor with
her.
Or Else ?
The man's conduct was suspi
cious, and the watchman asked
why he kept hanging about the
gunpowder factory.
"I want to make myself give
up smoking," replied the man.
A Three Days' Cough
Is Your Danger Signal
Wo matter how many medlrtnea
you nave tried for your wvmmnn
cough, chert cold, or bronchial lrri
tetlon, you may get relief dot with
vreomulsloiL Serious trouble may
be brewing and you cannot afford
to take a chance with any r
vtwHiiHinnni, WIUCU
goes right to the seat of the trouble
and aids nature to soothe and heal
the In named mucous membranes
?2Lt2>.,,008ea ^ ex"el eerm
Era If other remedies haw failed.
dont be discouraged, try Creoinul
stan. Your druggist Is authorized to
refund your money If you are not
gorradiJratWed with the bene
fits obtained. Creomulslon Is one
wwd, ask for It plainly, see that the
name on the bottle Is Creomulslon,
?"J y?u'n get the genuine product
and the relief you want ( Ado
valtrje
The BUdofcm h world- *
fanotu as sb addiaaa of 4
distinction fa Chicago
H?r? graceful living U
anjoyad by 8? diacrijai
sating frarafet
' A S. Kttfeb..
M?B.?9in9 Director
IkJjjathstgy