The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1918-05-13
MAIL VIA A|RPLANE
Be EARLY REALIZED

Washington, May i2.-(By the Asso-
ciated Press. with the establishment
of a regular airplane mail service be-
tween Washington and New York the
postoffice considers that the project Is
experimental only in the sense that
now familiar means of locomotion Is
to be put practically to new use. The
war has demonstrated effectively that
the airplane as a conveyance is almost
as dependable and safe as an automo-
bile, so the only real obstacle in the
way of successfully operating the new
air lines in maintaining service under
all kinds of weather conditions.
The war department has rurnlsne1
twelve large training planes for use in
the new service. Aviators have been
detailed from the ranks of fighting air
men, as war department officials feel
that the newly commissioned filler Will
acquire valuable training in plotting
the big mail carriers over long cross
country flights.
The planes, each capable Of a mini
mum speed of ninety miles an hour,
are built along the lines of the regula-
tion bombing machine. They are one
seaters as maximum OF space is de-
sired in the fuselage for the storing
of mail bags.
The schedule provides for the depar
ture of one plane each day from both
Washington and New York. The ma
chimes leave promptly at fl 30 in the
morning, and it is hoped to have the
mail deposited at the terminals not
more than three hours later. Starting |
from the Mall in Washington, near the
Washington monument, the trip to |
Philadelphia, about i3o miles, is ex-
pected to be made in about and hour
and twenty minutes. At the hangers in
North Philadelphia another machine |
will be waiting. ready to start the
flight to New York as soon as the in |
coming plane lands and the tranfer of
mail bags is made The second leg of |
the journey from Philadelphia to Bell
mont field, in the Long Island Suburbs !
of New York, should be made in about
an hour. She larger planes carrying |
about 600 pounds of mail. or apTroxi- !
mately $4,000 letters. The smaller ma I
chimes will carry about half that
amount.
Emergency landing fields Will be es-l
tablished at Baltimore and Havre de |
Grace, Md; Wilmington, Del, and at
either Princeton or New Brunswick, !
New Jersey. In the case of a machine
breaking down at some interurban /
point in its journey, the mail sacks |
will be rushed by motor trucks to the
nearest railroad station where they will
be sent forward in the care of cou-
rier.
The rate of postage has been estab /
lished by law at "a cents an ounce or |
fraction thereof. However this entities
the sender to have the letter forwarded
to the addresses by special delivery /
in he OIL m
late for the regular city deliveries.
Letters mailed at Washington, Phil
adelphia or New York for delivery in
any part of the country may have
their delivery facilitated by sending
them on the first part of the journey /
by airplane. In each city postmasters /
have designated the stations and the i
hours at which letters for airplane dis
patch may be mailed.
special stamp has been designed!
for the new service. 1t has a red bor-
der, and shows an airplane in flight on
a blue field.
The first stamp was sold to Postmas- |
ter-General Burleson who addressed a |
letter to Postmaster Patten, of New
York. After cancellation of the stamp
the letter was autographed by President
Wilson. and placed in the first consign-
ment of mail directed to New York. The |
letter will be sold at auction, the pro-
ceedS to be devoted to war relief.
During the first months of the SER
vice no flights will be made when
storm conditions make the journey /
very precarious. On those days the |
sacks will be forwarded by rail and de-
livered by special delivery service. otto
Praeger, second assistant postmaster |
general, who has charge of the new SER
vice, believes that sufficient experience /
will be gained during the summer to /
make possible an effective maintenance
of the service during the winter. The
great difficulty is in landing successfully
in heavy fog, rain or snowstorm.
AS the present routes prove success
full, plans will be made for expanding
the service next spring to -other parts
of the country. The first extension, Mr..
Pager says, probably will be from
New York to Boston. To eliminate de-
lay arrangements are being worked out
for the construction Of large nets on the
roofs of the central postoffices so that
che bags may be dropped while the
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