The Washington herald., 1918-05-24
PLANE MAIL
SUCCESSFUL
BELIEF now
Service to Be Continued to
Philadelphia and New !,
.:!aS York. )

1he deriai mail service mas 1usIineo
its establishment, In the opinion of
the Postofiice. Department oficials.
The results achieved thus far have
been entirely satisfactory, It was said
last night, and continuation Of the
service between Washington, Phila-
delphia and New York is assured.
|, Extensions Of the service now are
being planned. but no additional
routes will be established, until after
difficulties experienced in the initial
venture have been smoothed out. The
department now expects to start mail
carrying airplanes between New York
and Boston next fall. Later on the
third route will be established be-
tween Chicago and st. Louis,
Six planes already have been pur-
chased for the New York Boston
route, and a study Of the weather
conditions in New England now Is
being made. 1t is estimated that by
arranging schedules SO that planes
from Washington will connect at New
York with the Boston planes, mail
from Washington could be delivered
In Boston four hours earlier than by
the railroads. The longer the route.
the greater the saving in time as COM
pared with the train schedules.
Unfayorable weather conditions
have presented the most serious OBJ
stacles for the mail fiiers to combat
Experts have been detailed to work
out methods Of overcoming dificuI-
ties encountered on foggy days. This
obstruction to visibility is believed
to be In a fair way to be completely
offset.
Many Landing Places.
The mail machines will be equipped
with instruments for calculating wind
velocity. driftage and other hampers
TO navigation. 1t also Is planned
to locate emergency landing fields
every two or three miles over the
entire postal Ioutes. The advantage Of
these numerous landing sites will be
that the f1iers can sail along close
to the ground.
Emergency landing fields between
Washington and Philadelphia are be-
ing located this week. Next week
this work will be continued between
Philadelphia and New York. These
stations are to be marked with a big
white arrow. formed on the ground
by putting down lime. A fiier from
Mineola, y. T., to Washington this
week picked out and made safe land
ings on eight spots available for
emergency fields.
The powerful Liberty motors with
which the mail planes are being
equipped are expected to overcome
most OF the difficulties resulting from
weather conditions. to reduce the fly
ing time.
The first mail machines equipped with
Liberty motors made the trip from
New York to Philadelphia yesterday.
Two Of these planes driven by Lieuts.
Bonsal and Kilgore Travelled from
New York to Philadelphia in fifty
seven minutes. The best previous
time for this night was an hour and
fifteen minutes.
liberty Motors Powerful
The best time Of flight between
Washington and Philadelphia made
thus far is an hour and twenty-nine
minutes. This can be cut down con-
sideraoly with a Liberty motor, it is
said. But figuring on an hour and
twenty-nine minutes between Wash
lpgton and Philadelphia, the trip be-
tween this city and New York can tie
made in less than two hours and
thirty minutes. which is half the time
required for the trip by train.
Postoffice officials are confident the
aerial service will be self-sustain:ng.
Under the present arrangements
whereby tho War Department fur
nishes the fliers and machines and
defrays the cost Of upkeep, a profit is
being turned in. The Postoffice De-
partment merely supplies the landing
fields and sasoline. But when the en-
tire cost is put upon the department,
Is asserted. the service will more
than pay for itself.
To date an average Of 600 letters
have been carried northbound be-
tween Washington and New York.
Southbound aerial mail has been
lighter. At the rate Of /
twenty-four cents an ounce, the
mail brings in about $50
a day. which would aggregate approx
imately $4,000 annually. The south
bound receipts would not fall far
short of this amount. 1t Is believed.