Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1918-12-03
Put Your Town
On an Air Route
BY Frederic ]. HMsdn


In this development, the United States
Government asks the cooperation oil
every American city and town oil any
commercial importance. For 1t expects
within the next few years, To have we'll
equipped landing field in every such town,
and two or three hundred landing fields
are urgently and Immediately needed
The towns which establish them will
naturally gnin prestige, pioneerss IN the
development Of this industry OF the future
And il will not be long before a landing
field will be almost as indispensable TO
an up-to-date town as a railroad station,
in the opinion of the government airmen
A landing must be level, free from OBJ
str,lctions, and about the size of the
eclipse enclosed by mile race track. tt
must be provided with shed, open at
one end, and there should be caretaker,
and gas md oil supplies near at hand. The
equipment of such a field need not cost
more than 81 500, and waste land can
generally be used.
The permanent plan for maintaining
such landing fields has not yet been de
terrnned upon; but the present plan Is Tor
live municipal organizations ~ cooper
ate with the government. Chambers OF
commerce, rotary clubs and like crvTc
bodies are requested to como forward
With DftefS Of AsSPtoNff w OtLalfi hht
use Of suitable fields and raise the funds
whcrewith to equip and MAINTAIN them
Any such organization which wishes To
cooperate with the government ln this
undertaking should address the Director
OF Military Aeronautics. Training Sectlon,
Navigation Branch. Washington, -. &.
ro PROMOTE AIR ROUTES.
II is n fact not generally recognized
that tho government now has in it's hands
tho legal powers, the men and the ma
chimes 70 promote D great development
Of the airplane rs a means Of travel and
communication Nav that the war r.
over, and planes and fiers are coming
home. il is 20 Just such a development
that the Division If Military Acronautics
Is devoting it's energies. The present
government control Of flying is Of oonTse
n war measure. Congress will doubtless
be called upon tn pass some legislation
providing for the development of flying
IN time Of peace
At present, hnwrver. the government
has absolute control both of the manu-
facture and Of the flving of aIrplanes
Furthermore, the army has nnw IN this
country, ~ 900 combat planes and $500
training planes. BESIDES these there arc
thousands of American planes in Europe,
the German planes This does not include
the planes attached to the navy and - the
Marine Corps
In the uav Of personnel, there arc 1893
reserve military aviators trained IN this
country. md 2,835 cadet hiers now IN
schools. The total number OF those who
have been admitted 10 schools uas ~ 300.
In to October o, !, 800 avlators had been
trained abroad The army alone has
about Is 900 airpiane mechanics
This aggregation Of men and equip
mcnf. combined with the broad powers
which the government has over the use and
manufacture OF planes, affords perhaps
the greatest opportunity for a unified
development Of flying on peace basis
that has ever existed.
European nations, Of course, also have
fliers and machines; but they are ez-
hausted both as TO finance and as 10 man
power The United States, therefore, Is IN
position TO lead the world IN the develop
ment Of the alrpiane industry.
MAPPING OCT THE COUNTRY.
This establishment Of air routes, and
landing fields, which Is the purpose OF
the present series of cross country flights,
Is the most immediate and pressing need.
1t will go further than anything else 70
aero-experts.
At present a fiier IN the air Is oompar-
able to q pioneer plunging into an unex-
pIored country with a compass and an
idea where he wants TO go, but without
a map OF a trail He Is still more ike a.
mariner sailing a sea which has never
been eharted, and without any knowledge
of where he could make 4 port In case oI i
storm
Travel in the air, like travel on earth
and on water, must have recognized
routes and stopping places before II can
be made safe. The birds have instlnctlyely
recognized this fact, and In their mIgra-
tons always follow the same general lines
OF travel and stop at the same places.
The airplane has already become
stable and dependable machine. Ii Is no
more liable to mechanical trouble than
the automobile, and Is IN much less
danger of collision The risk IN fylng
comes chiefly from two sources. In the
first place. unexpected changes OF weather
NAV cause disaster, and in the second place
If the aviator has TO land on account OF
! engine trouble or other mechanical
tr ..uble, and has no good place TO land ne
Is up against It
The knowledge of meteorology, which
viii enable the aIrman 10 avoid storms
and unfavorable atmospheric conditions,
Is matter of scientific research which
will take wears. and which IS now being
carried on by our Weather Bureau and by
our military fiiers 1t will be greatly aided
and systematized by the establishment OF
recognized routes of air travel
The provision of abundant landing
fields, properly equipped, will constl-
tlte a factor Of safety in flying which will
make the airplane no more dangerous
rs a means of cross country travel than
the automobile When an aviator has
mechanical trouble or meets With danger
Gus conditions now, his only expedient Is
Ia select the most favorable landing spot
he can see and dceend lie may have the
good fortune to - / IN open field; but it
is Just as likely d5 hc Will have to land
III forest or on = steep mountamslde.
Then, too, there Is always the menace OF
telephone or telegraph wires, which are
Invisible from above \ large percentage
OF all the accidents III aviation are land
! ing accidents.
Enr thase rcasnn. AmerIe.m AL.les.