The Guthrie daily leader. [volume] (Guthrie, Okla.) 1893-1996, 1919-02-22
FOURTH POSTAL AIR LINE
WILL Be READY soon
Route Between Paris and Nice
Win Be Put In Operation;
Great Time Saver For
All the People

Paris. Fsb -i-The fourth civilian
postal air line in France viii be in
operation soon between Paris and
/ Nice with landings al LYONS ana
Narseillss. The most recently estab-
lish.-i service that between Paris
and Lille. a. more than four times
faster than the present train service,
taking one hour ana forty minutes
instead Of eight hours while the two
hours and a quarter mail service be-
tween Paris and Brussels is proving
great time saver. railway trains
sometimes requiring - hours FOR the
trip, The Paris-St Nazaire line,
which has been in operation since
August Il on an average Of n days
ont OF every 30. Is expected. a. IS the
case of other seryices. 10 run about
~ per cent Of the time with better
weather conditions Ia March and 80
cer cent ar better in April and the
succeeding summer months.
The French civil aviation auihori-
ties who are operating these lines Tor
the postoffice expect before the sum
mer Is over 10 have sufficient data
concerning the cost and system ~
operations. including the chances OF
letters bsaring postage. 20 receive the
benefit Of air transmission for IOst-
age rate proporiionately minimls,-i.
because the chances of a letter. owing
- bad weather. may cause 81 10 be-
sent by train and not By airplane.
Plan 10 Let Mail Contracts.
No air mail is now accepted spec.
fically. the system being devoted 10
gslning experience Letters for air
transmission are arbitrarily chosen By
the 7ostoffce. The knowledge 50 Tar
gained show thar the letter rate will
not exceed one franc l2o centsl II
Is estimated that possibly less than
300 letters az one franc each Will
cover tho cost q the BOO nile service
between Paris ani Bordeaux win
three landings On the way An arr
plane suitable for thif use can trans
fort from Sooo 20 10000 l-'ters Six
packs arr now carried between Paris
and Lille
The interm.nisterlal air commission
Will not advise the eovernment itself
% undertake carrying air mail ~
viii rather lei the contrac, 90 CON-
siruciors owning ami employing afr
planes just as private companies
wh'ch operate ships and railroads re-
ceive mail confnccs. Government
ownership is unpopular in France Iti
is found that compe'ition improves
the services and promotes lroeress
| learn that 3N-m.le route with I
daily service in both directions re- I
oe.r,s three airplanes from each ter
minus. besides three motors in re-
serve or 81 Il twin motor airplanes 4
ara used. one az each n0'nt. The I
service VIII also require three regular
Cllots and one in reserve at each i
terminus and The same number OF me- 4
chanics together with from three 10
six automobile drivers who when not
required by an emergency can be
utilized in transporting the mails TO
and from the aerirome al the REGULAR
halts or 10 the railways az emergency
stations along the route
Weather hinders Operations.
Commandant D'Aieuillon OF the ci-
villain aeronauucs committee. states
that meteorological statistics show that
flying should BE- forbidden on an av-
erage of ~ days in the year on ac-
count q temPesis and extreme fogs
whsle on from - 10 80 dsys flying
al nght is risky on account of ground
misfs. Dirsciional wireless outnts
and suitable landing Arrangements
would eventually become the obsta-
cle of flying on these days. reducing
10 - or thereabouts the maximum
number of days when any air mail
route might ha fnosaa-afsx.s