New-York tribune., 1921-02-24
Three Planes Used Main
tain lO3-Mile Speed; 8
Stops Made; Time in
Air, 25 Hrs. So Minis.
Fly All Night to
Establish Record
Highest Altitude Reached
$4,000 Ft.; Hundreds
See Its Arrival Here

The United States Air Mail Service
yesterday. shattered all transcontinen-
tai speed records by transporting mail
from San Francisco to New York in
thirty-three hours and twenty-one min
utes elapsed. time
The phenomenal record was com
pleted when Pilot E. M. Allison let his
DH-4 biplane gracefully down upon
Hazelhurst Field, Mineola, l.. l., at
1850 o'clock yesterday afternoon, with
its load Of 800 pounds of mail from the
Pacific Coast.
In making the record the air mail
pilots who took part in the test. not
only beat all army records, but also
made thrilling flight through the
night between Cheyenne, Wyo., and
Chicago--the first flight of its kind
in the annals of the air in this coun-
try. They flew through the wintry
skies at an average speed of 103 miles
an hour over the 1900 miles. The ac-
tual time that the 800 pounds Of mail
was in the air was officially computed
to be % hours and SO minutes.
Fifteen minutes after the wheels of
Allison's machine had come to rest on
the snow covered turf OF Hazelhurst
Field, William c. Hopson, plotting the
regular mail plane. came to earth with
another pouch OF the transcontinentaI
mail that had been left over at one OF
the relaV stations
Beats Maynard's Flight
The achievement supersedes the rec
ord made by Lieutenant Belvin w.
Maynard in his fight across the CONT
nent in the United States Army race of
October, 1919. On that occasion May
nard covered the 2,7O0 miles in 8 days
s hours and 48 minutes elapsed time,
but his actual flying time was only 20
hours is minutes and Al seconds.
> Unfortunately tbs Air Mail Service
paid dearly for the establishment of
its record in the death Of Captain Will
liam E. Lewis at Elko, New, on Tues
day. The mail carried by Captain
Lewis is proceeding to this city over
the regular air mail service.
The fight completed by Allison yes
terday began at San Francisco at 4:3O
o'clock, Pacific time, Tuesday morning.
After the dangerous. course over the
Sierra Nevadas stops were made at
Reno, New and Salt Lake City for
fuel, and then the Pacific machine
came to earth on the lofty field in the
plateau of the Rockies at Cheyenne,
Wyo.
At that place mechanics hurriedly
transferred the eight sacks from one
machine to another, and at 6:10 o'clock
in the evening, just after darkness had
settled over the icc-covered field, Pilot
Jack knight took off in the glare of
night flares.
Already more than 5000 feet above
the sea level, the piiot, who had never
flown the course before, even in day
light, experienced some difficulty in
getting up flying speed to take off. All
about him, shrouded in the darkness of
the night, were the high peaks of the
Rocky Mountains.
Biazes New Trail
Without hesitation he plunged off
into the night on the 1,200-mile flight
to Chicago, blazing a new trail over
the route already famous in the pioneer
history of the country. For thirteen
hours and thirty minutes he sat at his
controls while his machine sped stead
ily forward at more than 100 miles an
hour. Three times in this fight he
came to earth for fuel and refresh
ment. In each of these cases landings
we're made in the light of specially
prepared flares that marked the limits.
of safety at the fields located in North
Platte and Omaha, Neb., and Iowa City,
Iowa
About Des Moines this plucky flyer
ran into a dense mist, which added it's
terrors TO those of the night, but he
pushed forward. Later he ran into
series of snow flurries which at his
speed appeared as solid blotch of
gray in the night atmosphere. By
dogged perseverance be overcame all
obstacles, and just as the dawn was
breaking in the Eastern sky the tall
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