Evening star., 1927-06-02
PLANS LAUNCHED
FOR AIR WELCOME
Citizens Committee Meets
With Government Officers
to Arrange Program.

X Formally launched al the meetins
To-day of the citizens committee, ap
pointed by the Commissioners at the
asleQnest of the cabinet committee
fplans for an aerial welcome for Capt
Lindbergh. beginning far out over the
ocean and ending when the United
States steamship Memphis docks a
the navy yard, and calling for the par
ticipation Of more than half hundred
Army, Navy. Marine, Air Mail anC
commercial planes. are being worked
ont by the heads of the Government S
air forces.
At least 81 planes from the Army
and Navy will participate and severa
more are due from the Air Mail Ser
vice and the Department of Commerce
Rear Admiral William A. Moffett
chief of the Bureau of AeronauticS
who attended the session. together
with Mai. Gen. Mason NJ. Patrick
chief of the Army Air Corps, outlined
a schedule which he said the Navy
would like TO follow. Gen. Patrick
beyond stating that he would have
about 30 planes available for the vel
come, gave no details Of how they
would function. After the meeting it
was decided that the two would work
T. out a schedule of participation.
will Bring Air Pilots.
Postmaster General New announced
today that Shirley J. Short and Harry
G.. Smith. two famous transcontinen.
tal air mail night flyers. would be de.
taChed from their routes between
. Cleveland and Omaha and fly to
Washington for participation in the
aerial and ground welcome to their
close friend. Both pilots will bring to
4 Washington whatever mail has col.
lected at Cleveland or Chicago ad.
dressed to Capt. Lindbergh. Pilot
Short recently won the Harmon trophy
for the biggest contribution to avia.
stion during the past year, and Pilot
ESmith, who has flown the route since
1920, is probably one of the best known
! Eairmen in the service. Pilot Short S
lroute at present is between Cleveland
and Chicago. while Pilot Smith flies
between Chicago and Omaha.
. The Department of Commerce aero
. nautics branch also was planning on
. mastering several of its planes now
Z about the country on aerial inspection
tuors, and at least one of the planes
operated by the Potomac Flying Serv-
ice. Washington's only commercial air
: organization, planned to be in the air,
] IN order that the aerial welcome may
i be representative of every avenue of
aviation.
Will Decide Soon.
Gen. Patrick and Admiral Moffett
will reach a decision soon on how
, their planes at Hampton Roads and
/ Langley Field, and those at Boiling
iISield and the Naval Air Station here
can assist in the reception. Gen.
L Patrick, after the meeting had been
/, informed that Capt. Lindbergh would
,l1iy the Spirit of st. Louis to New
/ York and thence to st. Louis, pledged
an aerial escort of Army planes for
both flights.
of naval planes in the welcome of
Capt. Lindbergh was given by Admiral
!Moffett, as follows:
/ Torpedo Plane Squadron / of
4the Aircraft Squadrons Scouting Fleet
awould meet the Memphis at sea and
escort her TO New Point Comfort
Light, where Marine Fighting Plane
Squadron 1 of Quantico would
9pick up the escort and continue to
lDahlgren, Va. Over this point, an.
lother squadron of fighting planes
from the East Coast Marine EXpedi.
itionary Force at Quantico would have
la rendezvous with three fighting
Iplanes and three observation planes
from the Naval Air Station here and
escort the visitor to Washington.
s Will Perform Acrobatics.
Upon arrival at the Navy Yard and
before docking, the crack Marine
fighting unit, with speedy single
Seaters, would engage in format ton
tactics and acrobatics over the river
while three Navy fighters from the air
station would put on a dog fight"
The air would be filled with these
fast little ships, each one emitting a
ideafening roar as it dived at a speed
well over 250 miles an hour and then
Izoomed, rolled, looped, spun and flew
upside down-all indicative of the air
anan's enthusiasm over the l1omecom.
tng of the most famous of them ALL
All the planes will have landed be-
fore the actual reception of Capt.
Lindbergh at the Navy Yard.
James Hogg. the famous poet
shepherd of Ettrick, was born in the