Evening star., 1928-12-31
BY OWEN L. SCOTT.
WALTON. at 25, really came of
age this year with a flourish

4 A try to fathom what It's Iortn-
coming period of maturity holds
in store
Orville Wright, the first man in the
worlds history to fly an airplane, now
sees the future of flying ''limitleSS in
Its possibilities Even the development
of the past year strikes the National
Advisory Committee for AeronauticS as
amazing"
And now we have the word of Dan
iel Guggenheim of the Guggenhelm
Fund for the Promotion of Aeronautics
that the interesting and highly diver
sified research that is continuing in
aviation will produce results that today
We might term fantastic
President Coolidge, speaking OF the
recent progress, declares that mo
achievement of man in the progress of
civilization has had a more rapid eX-
pansion than aviation" Yet Henry
Ford is convinced that 1--WE can expect
greater progress in the next 10 years
than we have seen in the past %" in
the development of flying.
To Herbert Hoover, the President
elect, lit is impossible to estimate the
important consequences of this evolu-
ton of communication and transporta-
tion."
Growing Public "Airmindedness."
These enthusiastic estimates are based
on the almost startling progress made
by aviation during the past year. Col.
Charles A. Lindbergh and other noted
flyers saw their accomplishments bear
fruit in growing public "airminded-
ness" The Government was quick to
capitalize this interest, and furnished
the spark for remarkable commercial
development by slashing postal rates.
AS result, 10000 miles of airways
are in operation. Manufacturers cam
not turn out planes fast enough to sup
ply the demand for equipment to ham
die available business. Civil aviators
flew 100000 miles during the year
with a constantly diminishing proper
ton of accidents. Military and naval
aviatorS covered another 100000
miles. Capital has flowed into the in
duStry in great amounts, a strange con-
traSt to the situation only 25 years ago
when the WrigktS were unable to in
terest any American in even a modest
backing for their airplane.
This picture, however, is common
place compared with that which may
be drawn of the immediate future.
Train al Air Service.
Early next Spring. distance will almost
he halved when regular combination
train and air service lops 48 hours from
the time it takes to travel between New
York and Los Angeles. And before the
year is out another II hours is expected
to be cut from this schedule.
Giant, tri-Inotored. luxurious air
liners, equipped with all of the comforts
Gnd knick-nacliS of the de luxe train,
ere to do the trick. Until now, the
crush of air mail business and the in
ability of obtaining needed equipment
has retarded development of passenger
lines. The coming year is to mark the
end Of that handicap.
New thrills will keep pace with the
progress in modern travel modes. The
ships now being built accommodate
IL, II, Is. 18 and 80 passengers. They
are roon1y, equipped with the most COM
Portable of seats and providing plenty
Of room to walk about. There is run
ming hot and cold water, two-way radio
communication and sightseeing posi-
bilities plus loud speaker hook-up with
the pilot. The largest of the new planes
is to provide sleeping accommodations
for 16. Its completion will inaugurate
the air Pullman.
Regular passenger routes, with service
to start during the year, include lines
from New York to Los Angeles, New
York to Chicago, Chicago to San Fran
cisco, Kansas City to Los Angeles and
New York to Atlanta.
Air Mail for Nearly Every, City.
At the same time virtually every city
of $4,000 and over will be placed or
regular air mail route Speclally-built
mail planes, carrying over ton, will go
into service manned by postal clerks
sorting mail just as they now do on
mail cars.
Then continents are to be brought
into neighborly nearneSs by the projects
already outlined. within another IL
months" President-elect Hoover de-
clares, North and South America will
be connected with air lines. Even now
air mail goes from Montreal all the way
to Mexico City and to Havana.
"An nations are looking forward to
the day of extensive, regular and rea-
sonably safe inter- continental and inter-
oceanic transportation by airplane and
airShip," says President Coolidge. What
the future holds even the imagination
may be inadequate to grasp
This growing industry even though
just emerging into the big business class
contributes materially to the Nations
prosperity. The Aeronautical Chamber
Of Commerce advises that in its manu-
featuring end alone, S100,000,000 will
be spent next year to build from 10000
10 10000 planes.
Important Problems Remain.
But there remain important problems.
The Guggenheim Foundation asserts
that 'the development of more and
more economically sound air transpor-
tation routes is dependent upon two
Ninh GSyi,a i,9
creased commercial speed"
Lighted air routes now total 5000
miles. They are being extended. Speed
Is another matter.
The Italia Tragedy.
A month later the groundwork was
laid for one of the great air tragedies
On May % the airShip Italia left Spitz-
bergen on flight across the North Pole
Gen. Umberto Mobile commanded the
ship with its Is men. They reached the
Pole and cruised about for some hours,
but on May 25, when returning. the ship
was wrecked. After weeks of terrible
privations. Gen. Mobile was rescued and
later the few remaining survivors of his
party we're taken from the ice. late in
June.
While this disaster was holding pub
lie attention, one of the most impressive
Of aicplane achievements was being ac-
complished by the Southern Gross, pi-
loted by Capt. Charles Kingsford- Smith
and Capt G. T. P. Ulm. This ship con-
cluded a ?,o00-mile flight in approxi-
nlately 88i2 hours, flying from our Pa
cific Coast to Honolulu, the FIJI Islands
and Brisbane and Sidney, New South
Wales, to Australia.
On the same day-June 17-that Miss
Amelia Earhart set out on her success
full attempt to be the first woman TO
fly the Atlantic, Roald Amundsen took
off from Tromsoe, Norway. in search of
the survivors of the airship Italia. This
most noted of Arctic adventures, who
had explored the mysteries of the Far
North both by dog sled and airship,
never returned.
CircIing of the Globe.