Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-03-27
NEW FIRM PLANS TO SHOW
NEED FOR MUNICIPAL AIRPORT
Henry A. BerIiner. Son of In
ventor, Seeks Lease of
Hoover Field.
Service to Be Started With
Planes Built by Himself
and Warner.

Henry A. Berliner, son of Emile
Berliner, the noted inventor ana
child health advocate, has taken a
step to develop civil and commercial
aeronautics for the District OF
, Columbia by negotiating for lease
of Hoover Field, near the South END
of Highway Bridge, where he plans
to operate a flying service, manu-
facture airplanes and seek to demon
strate the need for and adaptibihty
of a municipal airport to the city OF
Washington.
AS president of the District of
Columbia Chapter National Aero
nautic Association, Mr.. Berliner has
been working for several months TO
obtain legislation which would autho-
rize the District Commissioners 10
acquire a tract of land on when
would be erected a municipal air
terminal. His efforts have been
centered about the Hunter Gravelly
Point site, lying on the Virginia side
of the Potomac and opposite Hams
Point. which would be filled in, as
it now lies under water.
Has Plane With Warner.
Mr.. Berliner, who is 81 years old and
has had several years experience both
in the practical and theoretical field OF
aeronautics, plans to begin operation
as soon as the lease is signed. Ills
"plant" at College Park, Md, now
located in two hangers built in 1911,
will be moved over to Hoover F1eld'
together with the big monoplane
which he and Edward P. Warner, as
sistant secretary of the Navy for aero
nautics, designed and built with the
assistance of several aeronautical me-
chanics and constructors in Mr.. Der
liners employ.
The big monoplane, powered with
six-cylinder 240.horespower b. M.
W." German aircraft engine, and car
rying four passengers and the pilot.
was laid down about a year ago, and
has been flying at intervals from COL
lege Park for the past few months.
Although it is Mr. Berliners hope
that he can build all the planes he
will put in use. the necessity OF nav
ing one in reserve Immediately at
Hoover Field, has forced him to nego-
tiate for the purchase of Waco
two-passenger-and pilot airplane.
A small instruction airplane, with
the seating arrangement side by side,
now is under construction in one OF
the old College Park hangers, and as
soon as it is completed Mr.. Berliner
will offer instruction in flying from
the field.
Stone Hangar Already Built.
The lease will be obtained from the
Philadelphia Rapid Transit Co., which
last year operated an aerial passen-
ger and mail service between Phila-
delphia. Washington and Norfolk, and
which company put the small tract
of land in condition for use as an air
terminal. The company erected
large stone hangar, which rivals any
~ <IA ~
modern design and construction, and
also built a waiting room for passen-
gers, likewise Of stone.
Mr.. Berliner will operate his aerial
activities under the name of the ''Po-
tomac Flying Service, Inc" of which
he is president, and the plane con-
struction feature of his undertakings
will be under the name of the Der
liner Aircraft Co." The hangar space
is large enough to permit the storage
of several planes, and likewise accom-
modate the workmen in the construc-
ton of additional ships.
Accommodations for Mr.. Berliner's
activities in the field of aeronautics
at College Park now are extremely
limited. The big monoplane barely
fits into the hangar in which it is
housed and the co-designer of the
plane said it was built to fit the
hangar" He added that several
inches of the wings were cut off in
order that it could be rolled in out of
the rain.
Father Tried Helicopter.
Mr.. Berliner, with his father, has
been interested in theoretical and
practical aeronautics for number of
years and he has been placed in the
advantageous position of being able
to experiment and build aircraft and
at the same time finance the hobby"