The New York herald., 1921-05-14
Charges of Drunkenness
and Inefficiency Leading
to Fatal Crashes Heard
PLANES CALLED BAD
Allegations Made That Men
We're Sent Up in Leaky
German Machines.
GRAFT IS SUGGESTED
Huge Sums Said to Have Been
Paid for Cheap Aircraft and
Refitting.


CHICAGO, May 13.-From a martyred
pilot OF the air mail express charges
came to-day against the officials who
direct the aerial mail. The accusations
were those made by Pilot Christensen,
president of the Air Mail Pilots of
America, who went to his death re-
Gently in a flight between Sandusky
and Cleveland.
They came to the surface in the in
vestigation made at the instance of
Postmaster General Hays into charges
Of gross inefficiency and carelessness"
throughout the air mail service and
into charges of drunkenness among
officials and hints Of wholesale graft.
1t became known to-day that Chris
tensens disclosures had been read into
the testimony taken by Investigators
who since last Saturday had been hear
ing witnesses at the Federal Building.
G. G. Eversole, who started the in
quiry and who was then discharged.
he thinks, because of that fact, turned
these disclosures over to the Post Office
inspectors, who allowed them to go
into the record. They were In memo
randum form and were written by
Christensen just before his last flight.
He gave them to Eversole to help the
latter in missionary trip to Wash
ington to obtain aid from Congress in
an investigation OF the air service.
Sent Up in Defective Machine.
They include notations on the NJ
fated trips air mail pilots have made
throughout the United States. For ex-
ample. there Is a notation on the death
of Max Miller and Mechanic Pierson.
burned and killed In New Jersey in a
German made metal monoplane.
Christensen wrote that the German
ship had been ferried to New York the
preceding day to be overhauled and re-
paired. and the pilot who took II there
stated that 1T had bad gas leaks and
other defects
The officials had been trying 10 get
Christensen" Eversoie said to-day. He
was an active fellow and intolerant of
their inefficiency. He had a homo In
haywood, wherefore they got him trans
ferred to New York. He managed to
get back here.
christensen never would have been
killed had there been any efficiency In
the service. lie never should have left
Sandusky on the day of his death. The
weather did not permit safe flying
mo one can be charged with respon-
=
for all dodge responsibility. They
never issue flying orders. but simply I'LL
I'D the planes with mall, start the engine
and the pilot starts Off 1t makes no
difference what the weather is. No one
seems TO care. Very often officials are
drunk on the field and don't know what
is going on anyway"
Thirteen Called Victims.
Eyersoii made the definite charge that
thirteen men, whom he named, had been
killed because OF negligence. lie pre-
sented the following as the list to whlch
he attached the charges
Pilot Carl Smith. killed at Eiizaoetn-
town. N. J.: Pilot Stoner, killed at
Goshen, Ind. (: Pilot Bryan McNiuiii
killed at Batavia, Ill Pilot Sherloch'
Killed at NeWAThs ~ - AA~N
Ter and Mechanician Pierion' killed AZ
Morristown, ~. j.. Pilots stevens sha
Thomas killed In Ohio; Pilots Rowe ana
Carol and Mechanician Hih, Killed at
La Crosse, wis; Pilot Stewart klleu
near Minneapolis and Pilot Christensen,
Eversole charges that the deaths oi
Carroll and Rowe and Mechanic mn
who were burned 20 death February IN
the all metal German made Jb-o, Were
due solely to the carelessness OIL
dr,,nkan crew at Checkerboard Field
'"rhat plane left Chicago on an OK
perimental trip. Minneapolis pounu, On
a Tuesday" Eversoie added Oh sun
day II had been supposedly prepared tor
the flight BY the crew at the AIR mail
field here. That Sunday, ] have Verl-
fled before the inspectors, some OF the
crew were soused to the gills. one man
got so drunk he lay In one OF the
hangars most OF the next day with
hangover.
''I can prove that when the plane lett
Chicago there were five leaks In the
gas system-three In the pump and Two
In tho tank.
"or take tbs case OF Pilot McMuilen'
10 which Christensen refers In his mem-
orandum; McMullen was killed and
burned while driving a u. II. plane an
Illinois. lie was trying to make land
ing In a fog. He had been Injured In
Cso1 ATTAINED o5 Fourth pudc