Evening star., 1928-12-16
AVIATION
BY JOSEPH S. EDGERTON.

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panies into the field of aerial ex-
press service; the combination OF
railroads and air lines on an i'm
preSsive scale; an increase of more
than 100 per cent in the produc-
ton of airplaneS for private
ownership and operation; the ex-
tension of national airwayS by the
Department of Commerce; extern
sion Of the air mail service; reduc-
ton of air mail postage rates by
more than so per cent and a
splendid improvement in the per-
formance, efficiency and safety
of airplanes. Five-year aircraft
building programs for the Army
and Navy are serving further to
stabilize the industry. The note
worthy efforts of the Department
of Commerce and the Weather
Bureau have been important fac
tors in aeronautical advance and
the tests of the national advisory
committee for aeronauticS and
the Bureau of Standards are lead
ing to material improvements in
airplane design and construction
Elements Main Problem.
In fact, on the silver annivers-
ary of the first fight, the press
ing problems of aviation deal not
with airplane engineering so much
as with mans battle with the ele-
mentS, chiefly fog, and with the
uncertainties of navigation. So
safe have airplanes themselves be-
come that during the past year
97.75 per cent of licensed airplanes
flew without a single fatality, the
Department of Commerce reports,
and the air mail flew 1,414,00O
miles to each fatality to pilots
and passengers, which means that
airplaneS few a distance equal
to go times around the globe for
each fatality.
Today there are 81 air mail, pas
senger and express air line COM
panies operating in the United
States, operating over 21,765 miles
of airway each day and flying a
daily average of 41,480 miles.
There are 9.341 miles of airways
equipped for night, flying with
1,474 beacons. 274 lighted inter-
mediate fields and 10 radio
weather reporting and communi-
cation stations. There are 41
upper air meteorological stations,
chiefly at airportS.
On this. the twenty-fifth ami
verSary of the first airplane flight,
there are 1923 miles of airways
operating. as compared with 9,021
miles of railways on the twenty
fifth anniversary of the railroad.
There are 800 air service oner-
atorS in this country alone. it is
estimated by the Department Of
Commerce and there are 6.02S
pilots licensed or with license aD-
nlications pending and 8.791 STU
dent pilots to whom licenses hove
been issued or for whom licenses
are pending.
81 Types New Produced.
twenty-five years ago there was
in existence one airplane, which
nobody approved, for the reason
that there was no one who knew
anything very definite about it or
its capabilities. Today there are
81 approved types of airplanes
being produced with governmental
sanction in this country alone.
There are in actual flying con-
dition in this country nearly 1000
airplanes which have either been
licensed or identified by the De-
partment of Commerce or for
which license or Identification
applications are pending.
To satisfy the demands of the
aeronautical trade and the gem
eral public for aviation news there
are 20 aeronautical journals pub
lished in this country, in addition
to the special aviation depart
ments conducted by newspapers
and magazines.
The airport forms the point of
contact between the public and
the airline, and to handle the
growing volume of air business
this country has established 386
municipal airportS, $40 private
and commercial airDorts, 304 in
termediate landing fields, So Army
flying fields, including the Ma
tional Guard and Reserve; II
Navy fields, including the Marine
CorDS, and 32S marked auxiliary
fields. or a total of 1,435 airports
and landing fields of all types. In
addition the Department of Com
merce has been notified of 800
nroposed airports under construc-
ton or soon to be established.
Three New Combines.
And, to demonstrate the hold
which this aviation business of Is
years growth has obtained on the
conservative financial men of our
country, we have today three re-
Gently organized commercial air
combines with a financial rating
of more than $10,000,000 each,
each of which will put planes on
the airwayS next Spring-and
then more airplanes. Surprising
as has been the development of
commercial flying this year, the
development outlined for next
year threatens to make the cur
rent accomplishments seem weak
by comparison.
The Wright plane at it's best
few less than 40 miles per hour,
the f1r"t military plane could do
little better and the fighting
planes in the World War were
wonderfully fast at 125 miles per
hour. Yet tod~y we have the an
nouncemcnt of a reliable manu-
facturer that he is working on a
siX-nassenger commercial and
neil plane which will have a top
Gneed of 1876 miles an hour and
which will appear on the market
next Soring. Another equally re-