Evening star., 1926-05-30
PLANES USE RADIO
!. CONSTANTLY NOW
Safety in Flying Increased
GreatIy-Navy Extend
ing Its Facilities.
BY CARL III. BCTMIAN.

BY CARL III. BCTMAN.
Progress, it has been said, depends
upon transportation and communica
ton; a more modern version Of this
rruism would be that progress depends
upon safe and rapid transportation
and constant, instantaneous com
lnunication. This, Of course, unites
the two greatest developments Of this
age-aviaticn and radio. Laterly they
are being combined in military and
commercial endeavor to insure the
greatest speed possible commensurate
with efficiency and safety to life and
property.
In this connection both commercial
and governmental airlines are equip.
ping their planes and flying fields with
the latest radio apparatus, establish
ing standard airplanes paralleled with
radio communication channels. Ef-
forts along this line have been made
by the United States air mail, the
Army Model Airways and several
commercial aerial transportation COM
panies. among them the Anyways
ltadio Service of Los Angeles. The
recently enacted commercial aero
uautic law requires modern radio IA
dlOHS IldIiOIldi INdSS
The latest move toward thor
oughly standardized system with
established radio channels for both
planes and stations on the east coast
was inaugurated recently BY the chief
OF naval operations, Admiral u. W.
t;berle. His letter to the comman-
'iants of all naval ships and stations
points out the necessity for co-ordi-
mated and standardized system of
l,nHv n{x ac
we'll as with ships and stations.
Wants Facilities Extended.
The handling Of communications
with and regarding aircraft in flight
is one of constant concern and one
which ultimately devolves upon the
organization and administration Of the
stations handling dispatches" he
points out. Without establishing a
separate radio communication system
for aircraft, he directs that present
facilities be extended and developed so
SIS to make for efficient communica-
ion between aircraft in flight and
with ships and coastal stations. He
therefore has ordered all radio
equipped planes-and it IS understood
every naval plane is so equipped
communicate with other planes, ships
or stations whenever practicable dur
ing every flight.
In the Navy movement reports
f-~n aircraft are now required just
as vessels. and radio telegraph
weather reports for them are pre-
pared and broadcast. Means of call
ing all aircraft, surface craft and
xhore stations have also been estab-
lished by the use of general calls.
The use Of regular marine radio COM
pass stations is also urged on air
n nv ~
licenses radio transmitters in COM
rnercial airplanes and airships. as has
been done for ships and stations for
some IA years, and has assigned spe-
cial channels for this use.
The Navy has probably gone
farther than any other service in
seeking to make air travel as safe as
possible; it's aircraft has orders to
report movements; all stations an
nouncing their departures and ar
rivals, forced landings, accidents, etc,
with dispatch. Detailed plans for
hroadcasting by radio-telegraph the
state of the wind and weather, land
ing field conditions and other data
have been drawn up for use at six
naval air stations along the routes
connecting Norfolk, Washington and
New York.
Stations Now Cooperating.
The cooperating stations are as
follows: Hampton Roads. NAM-1:
Dahlgren, Va. NDY; Quantico, Va,
NFV; Anacostia, y. c.. NSF; Phila-
delphia. Pa, MAI, and Iakehurst,
Y. J., MEL. These radio stations, in
cooperation with the air and aerologi-
al officers, transmit data regarding
flying conditions and messages for
planes, whether governmental, COM
merciaI or private, which use the
fields or routes.
Commencing at Z each morn
ing weather reports are broadcast
by each station every two hours
throughout the day. first on $50
kilocycles, or 545.1 meters for air.
craft and then on 3,475 kilocycles, or
So meters, for the high-frequency
field stations. Later on it is prob
able that the messages can be sent
simultaneously. AS flights become
more frequent along other routes the
system will be extended to include
other naval fields and stations on
both coasts, and probably expanded
so as to connect with the Army,
commercial and mail routes if these
departments cooperate as is ex-
pected.
A brief and simple code method is
employed; for example. this mes
sage: Hampton clear NV ten ex-
cellent solid good 1045," would be
Interpreted: Hampton Roads: sky
clear, surface wind from northwest
10 knots, visibility excellent, condi-
lion of landing field solid and flying
Conditions good at 10:45 am" All
reports are made by the naval field
aerologitsi officers.
The USE of the channel 545 meters
may become the regular chdnnel FOR
airships, just as 800 meters is the
general wave used by all surface |
craft. 1t is on the 600-meter wave
that sos signals are sent by ships.
Incidentally. the 545-meter channel
can be used by SO naval radio sta
lions on both coasts and in Alaska