The Washington times., 1923-11-19
GLOBE C|RCL|NG
TRIP PLANNED
BY A|RMEN
Secretary of War Approves
Proposal Made by Air
Service Head.
By w. #. FULLAM,
Rear Admiral, u. s. Navy Retired).
Copyright. 1928, by Cosmopolitan

rear A0mlral, u 81 Navy (kGGt1fe0)s
Copyright. 1928, by Cosmopolitan
News Service.)
Maj Gen. Mason M Patrick,
chief of the Army Air Service, re-
Gently conceived the idea of send
ing four or five airplanes on
'round-the-world flight This fas-
cinating project has just received
the approval of the Secretary OF
War, and energetic steps are now
being taken to push 1t through.
This flight will take place during
the spring and summer months Of
1924. The type of equipment to
be used has been determined upon,
and it is expected that about four
airplanes, American designed and
built throughout by the Douglas
Airplane Company at Santa Monica,
CAL, equipped with Liberty
motors, will leave the United States
about the first Of April, 1924, at
Seattle, Wash, flying northward
along the coast of Canada and
southern Alaska: across the Aletl-
tian Islands; down through the pos.
sessions of Japan; along the shore
of China, French Tndo-China, Siam,
Burma; across India, up the Per.
sian gulf; across Turkey and Eu.
rope to England: thence north
through the Farce Islands to Ice
land: thence to Greenland and
southwark along its eastern shore
to Cape Farewell, Greenland, from
which point a, direct flight will be
made to Hamilton Inlet, on the
Labrador coast; thence southwark
along the Canadian shore and up
the st. Lawrence river to Quebec
and Montreal, from which point the
flight will proceed south to Wash
ington, d. c., which will be its
original point of departure.
Trips In Six Divisions.
The proposed airway around the
world has been subdivided into six
divisions, the first division beginning
at Washington, ID. c., and ending IT
Attn Island in the Aleutian group;
the second division ending at Maya
saki, japan, the trird division ending
at Calcutta, India; fourth division
ending at Constantinople; fifth divi-
sion ending at London, England, and
sixth divis!pl ending at Washington,
d. C. An advance officer will cover
each section of this route, obtaining
detailed information on landing and
seaplane facilities, transportation,
airways, meteorology climatic con
ditions, ETC., and win make arrange
ments for the passage of the flight
| through the territory to which he Is
assigned.
i The existing airways facilities in
! the United States and other countries
will be utilized as far as possible,
The intervening sections OF the route
will be given further study by the
advance officers, who will proceed
over the route prior to the arrival
OF the flight. The Secretary of War
has already approved a pathfindils
expedition of two advance officers.
! Weather Conditions Important.
In order to assure every possible
| facility being available for the use
| Of the flight, special attention is be
| ing given to the weather conditions
| throughout the route and the per.
| sonnet selected for the flight will
make an intensive study of this mat.
| ter in connection with the use of In.
| struments for aerial navigation.
| Supplies will be shipped from the
United States to various points on
the route several months in ad.
vance of the flight.
Special attention and careful
preparations will be necessary for
the long ocean hops. In all such
cases the landing gear will be
temporarily replaced by pontoons
The acean flights from Farce
Islands to Labrador by way OF
Iceland and Greenland, and that
from Attu Island in the Aleutians
to the Kurile Islands will be par
ticularly hazardous.
Landing In Russia Not Possible.
1t is most unfortunate that con
| ditions in Russia and Siberia and
our relations with the existing gov
| eminent OF Russia forbid landing
| in Kamchatka and a flight over
| Siberia following the trans-Siberian
railway. This would shorten the
flight of $4,000 miles by several
| thousand miles
The personnel has not yet been
| definitely selected.
The people Of the United States
should take a lively interest il
the success of the venture 1t may
bmean much in national defens,
and in our future commercial de
Velopment. Several plans and at
teInpts by England, France ant
other countries to encircle the
globe by airplanes have come Il