The Washington herald., 1920-10-24
PLAN new LINES
TOUCHING COLON
Development Since War
Will Extend Service
From Coast to Coast.
WAY TO CUBA Is OPEN
Mail Plane From Key West
To Havana and Panama
To Start Soon.

Milwaukee. for the establishment OF
runs from New York TO Atlanta:
Pittsburgh 10 st. Louis and Kan
sas City, and Cleveland to Detroit.
Seaplanes will be used over the
last named route. over Lake Erie.
Though the Lawson lines will be
in operation soon, the actual install
lstion Of regular service will de-
pend upon the completion Of a spe-
cial type mail plane capable of car
rying Lice pounds OF mail One
such plane has already been built
and has successfully proved its
large load carrying power.
A fourth contract has been let to
the West Indies Airwsys Corpora
tion. for the Transporting OF mail
from Key West TO Havana, Cuba
Because of the short distance hauls
possible in the West Indies. between
the many adjacent islands. the air
mail is planning an intensive de-
velopment OF the service in the land
Of the Caribbean. The Key West
Havana line will start operations
November l.
II was in this same vicinity that
the first international air mail serv-
ice was opened last winter. when
special arrangements with the post
office Of Miami, Fla, and the De-
partment in Washington, gave 10
the Aero Limited Flying Company
the contract to carry mail from
Miami to Bimini. an island in the
Bahama CBritish) group 50 miles
Of the Florida coast In so minutes
giant seaplanes gave the temporary
! Inhabitants Of that island, many Of
them rich Americans taking refuge
from the Land Of Thirst. mail which
would otherwise reach them via bi-
weekly steamer service.
Schedule of Pay.
In the advertisement for con-
tracts over proposed routes, there
are points worthy OF notice. No
| compensation will be allowed for
trips not performed. For each such
Z failure in a month over IS per
cent Of the scheduled trips for the
month. twice the pay OF the nom
performed trip may De deducted.
And there are many other such
penalties. which. summarized. show
that a company, befoDe consider
/ ing such contracts, must be wen
armed with capital TO prevent fall
ure in performance. Extra planes
must be at hand to carry on" In
case trouble develops. or the great
est enemy Of the air game, the
] crash" overtakes the engineers OF
these air locomotives. motor trucks
must form part OF the lines equip
ment. for the contractor must guar
antee mail will leave the flying
field for the Dostofice within five
minutes OF landing. and be not more
than 80 minutes in transit 70 the
l postofice.
Economically. the air mail has
been justified as signally as Il has
, been justified as a flying PROPOSE
tion. Not only has the cost Of op-
erstions been kept down far below
what the original friends and sup
porters Of the air mail had anticl-
pated, but by reason OF the opera
tion Of the service between Wash
inEton and New York there has
/ been a saving TO the government
at the rate Of S425OO a year and
a saving between New York and
| Chicago at the rate OF more than
500. 900 a year. This means that
/ in carrying first-class mail matter
which requires distribution on the
trains the air mail operates more
Cheaply than do the distributing
cars on trains. wherever there is
large quantity Of mail 70 dispatch
One positive lesson learned from
the operation OF the aerial mail is
that the element Of danger that
existed in training avistors in mill
tary flying and exhibition flying is
almost entirely absent from com
mercial flying. The record OF the
service, covering the first year Of
its operation, throws an interesting
light on the dangers OF aviation.
In the year period, covering a travel
Of l2S.255 miles. there was not a
case Of an airplane carrying mail
falling out Of the sky and there was
not a single death OF an aviator
carrying mails. There were two
deaths. one aviator falling during
an exhibition flight when he was
not engaged in mail transportation,
and one being crushed by a whirlinE
propeller OF a machine on the
ground.
Better known in Europe.
Two years Of the closest attention
20 every detail in the operation and
development Of the air mail has
demonstrated that Il will supple
ment every present mode OF trans
portation, but IL will not for some
years supplant them nor even cut
into their operations sufficiently to
be felt as a financial factor.
! Whether or not the air mail will
ever become Affair mail is some
thing only time will disclose, but IN
the meantime AMERICANS should un-
derstand that the United States air
mail is a going" concern-thst IL
can no longer rightly be consider-d
a government stunt"