Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1928-11-11
WORK TO BEGIN
AT NEW AIR FIELD
Congressional Airport Flying
School to Start by End
of Week.

Construction of hangers, runways and
q combined Office building and passen-
ger waiting room at the Congressional
Airport, on the Rockville pike miles
north of the District line, which will be
the largest aviation field in this part Of
the country, will begin tomorrow, it was
announced last night by Maj, Harry M
Horton, president of the airport or
ganization.
Two training planes, to be used in
student instruction work at the airport,
will be flown here Wednesday or Thurs
day from Little Rock, Ark, as the first
ordered and now is under construction.
Large Parking Space.
Automobile parking space nearly 100
feet deep, fronting on the Rockville
pike across the entire frontage of more
than three-f1fths of a mile occupied by
the airport, will be set aside this week.
The offlce building, to be of steel and
pressed stone, will be erected at the
southeast corner of the field, facing the
pike. There will be four hangers. each
so by 100 feet in size. also of steel and
pressed stone, along the south boundary
of the field. extending westward from
the Office building
A roadway will be opened along the
north boundary of the field, extending
westward from the Rockville road and
giving access to an attractive farm
house in small grove of trees, which
is to be remodeled and used as a hotel
for student aviators and visiting pilots
and passengers.
The field itself will be almost square,
extending about $500 feet in each d.
rection. There will be three runways,
fur of Ir m
corner and the other extending east
and west, in the direction of the pre-
vailing winds. The runways will cross
at the center of the field, which will be
designated by huge circular marker.
Student instruction will begin at the
field before the close of the week, Mai.
Horton said, several prospective pilots
having signed up for the course. The
training course, to be given under di-
rection of Lieut. John Tilton, chief pi-
lot. and Lieut.. Frederick Schauss will
give each student so hours of flying,
during least so of which he will be
at the controls.
Plan Sent to Germany.
Each student will be continued in the
school, Maj. Horton said, until he re-
ceives his pilots license from the De-
partment of Commerce After being
licensed as commercial pilots the stu
dents will be given an opportunity to
continue on duty at the field, carrying
passengers or flying commercial assign
ments until they run up the 200 hours
flying time necessary for them to &C
Quire transport pilots licenses
Maj. Horton has sent photographs
and plans of the field and its sur
roundings to DR.. Hugo Eckener, build
er and commander of the Graf zep-
pelin, at Friedrichshafen, Germany,
at the request of the German dirigible
expert, who is considering the estab-
lishment of the United States ter
minus of this proposed transatlantic
dirigible line in this vicinity. A 10000
foot vertical photograph and oblique
views from various angles at about
1000 feet were made by Lieut.. Schauss
and have been sent to Germany.
Capt. Ernst A. Lehman, first Of
f1cer of the Graf Zeppelin, was in
conference with Maj. Horton and Lieut..
Schauss while the German dirigible
party was in Washington last month,
and expressed keen interest in the
local airport plans. He was to have
returned before the departure of the
Graf Zeppelin on its return flight to
Germany, but was unable to come be-
cause of uncertainty as to the dirig-
ible's movements because Of bad
weather. DR.. Eckener sent a personal
request for the photographs and plans
Just before leaving Lakehurst for Ger
many.