Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-04-09
TRADE BODIES ASK |
AIRPORT BY 1882
Prefer GravelIy Point, but
Any Site Congress Picks
Held 0. X.
(continued From First page.)

J
along the Atlantic Coast will be in flying
boats and there will have to be place
| on the Potomac for them to land
| Mr. Williams Of the Board Of Trade
| said his committee regarded Gravelly
Point as hte most practical site, but that
! If the commission finds q better place
| the board will work just as hard for 1t.
Referring to the suggested site at Camp
Springs, the witness said he had flown
over that area and had not noticed
there was an available site. Senator
Bingham explained that probably was
| because much of the site is now q
wooded area that could be cleared of.
! leaving site that does not vary much
| in contour
Mr.. Williams argued that the wash
| ington airport will be national in char
acter and therefore should be paid for
| in part by the Federal Government, but
! added, I'VE do not want that question to
interfere with the city getting an airport
| second to none"
Asked About Choice.
Senator Bingham asked Mr.. williams
what his choice would be as between
a 300-acre field costing 81 200, 600, that
could not be made ready for three
years, and 600-acre field costing less
than that, which could be made avail
able in year and half.
Mr.. Williams said that II all other
| conditions we're laid aside he would
probably say the latter, but argued that
an airport close to the city, such as
Gravelly Point, has great advantages.
| The question of fog danger on the river
front was raised again by Representa-
| tive Nelson of Maine, who felt that a
| flyer coming up the river in fog might
not be able to tell whether he was
| landing on Hams Point. Gravelly
| Point or Boiling Field. Senator Bing-
ham said that flying IN fog has been
| conquered, but that landing in fog Is
another question.
Mr.. Cottrell emphasized the argu-
ment that location OF an airport far
| from the center of the city resulted in
losing in travel to and from the port
| time saved by an air trip.
He said that he had been impressed
by the loss of time in several Of the
cities visited recently, where the air
ports have been located at q consider
able distance from the heart Of the city.
BerIiner FavOrs Gravelly Point.
Mr.. Berllner, who has had consider
able experience In flying both at
| Hoover Field, near the river, and at
College Park, Md, favored the Gravelly
Point site. Referring to the cost figures
given yesterday for developing Gravelly
| Point, which included construction OF
runways. Mr.. Berliner declared run
ways are not necessary with well
drained field and that Gravelly Point
could be well drained. Mr.. Berliner
said he had found about the same
amount of fog in flying out in Maryland
as on the river and added that when
ever you have fog on the river SO
bad that you could not land. you would
| find about the same condition over the
whole area" Mr.. Berliner said that in
| this part of the United States, where
train service Is good, there is no advan-
F., tage in travelling by air If the landing
| field Is far away from the center oil
| the city. He said Washington has an
unusual opportunity at Gravelly Point
to establish an airport very close to the
center of the city.
The afternoon session yesterday
brought into the record further indorse-
ments of the Gravelly Point site, the
witnesses including Assistant Secretary
of Commerce MacCracken, in charge
of aviation; Harry H. Blee, chief OF
| the airport division of the Commerce
Department, and Maj. Carey H. Brown
executive aide to the National Capital
Park and Planning Commission.
| During the afternoon. the commits
sion also took the testimony Of Prof
| Charles F.. Marvin, chief Of the Weather
| Bureau, as to prevailing winds and
! atmospheric conditions in this vicinity
and heard Mai. Brehon Somervell
| United States engineer for this area
| give detailed figures on the cost OF re-
| claiming Gravelly Point for an airport
Some members Of the commission
including Chairman Bingham, indicated
| they were somewhat concerned over
| selection Of o riverfront site because
of testimony that fogs would be more
prevalent there than around an inland
/ location.
I When Secretary MacCracken took the
stand, he declared with assurance that
fog is going to be overcome by the
progress Of the flying art.
| Enthusiastic over the future Of
| WASHINGTON as center of air trans
portation, Secretary MacCracken de-
clared:
mo doubt there is more fog al
| Gravelly Point than at some Of the
other sites, but fog is going to b
whipped with radio and instruments.
Mr.. MacCracken said engineers are
at work now on devices to tell the pilo
how close h, is to the ground while
| landing in fog.
The Assistant Secretary said III
! learned that the two airports ALREADY
operating across the river carried 75,0Ot
| civilians over the National Capital II
the last IL months and that thousandi
of others undoubtedly few over the
city during the year.
The day is not far off, he said
| ,s,1,a In, mil IN Wa ghirUfni
in chartered planes as they do now IL
buses. and he commended the mair
airport should be located as centrally
as possible. He stressed the fact tina
the Government is the only agency tina
could develop Gravelly Point, which i
water area, to be reclaimed b!
dredging the river
| One Of the primary reasons for hav
ing q publicly-owned main airport i
the uncertainty which always exists a
to when the value of o privately ownel
field will become greater for su6dividini
than for aviation purposes, he said.
Mai. Brown Presents Map.
Mai. Brown read a letter showing
that the park and planning commission
long ago decided that the Gravell
Point area combined a greater numbe
of advantageous features with les
number of objections than any othe
site now obtainable in the District a
q cost commensurate with the use ex
pected.
In order to give the members Of Con
gress the fullest possible information
on the subject, however, Maj. Brow
presented a map of the countryside sur
rounding Washington, both in Mary
land and Virginia, on which wer
marked off 48 separate areas topo
graphically suited for landing field pur