Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-09-08
AVIATION
BY JOSEPH S. EDdERToN.

, Cleveland, however, the business
is heavy. Capacity loads are flown
and often it Is necessary to ny two
planes to take care OF the over
fiow.
Department of Commerce air
ways engineers are completing
the installation Of besconS and
the establishment and lighting
of intermediate landing fields
along the Washington Pittsburgh
Cleveland route In anticipation of
the opening OF air mail service in
the near future, under postal con-
tract. This development, natural
ly, will do the Clifford Ball Line
no harm. 1t also will help future
competitors, several Of whom are
ready to make their appearance.
The natural clouds and miStS
which so often shroud these East
ern mountains are augmented
around Pittsburgh, Johnstown
and Altoona by the man-made
clouds from the steel mills and
great industrial plants. A dense,
heavy pail always clings to the
mountains there, even on the
clearest days. Although the sky
overhead may be crisply clear and
blue as you fly over, the earth be-
low Is dingy and dimly seen
through a dirty screen. Visibility
Is limited to few square miles
directly below. On all sides the
smoke rises like the sides of a
gray-brown bowl to a height of
about $500 or 1000 feet, where it
is cut of sharply. Above this level
Is the clear open sky.
Trip Covers Beautiful Section.
The trip from Cleveland Is over
beautiful country, agricultural in
character over part Of Ohio, but
growing steadily more industrial
in appearance as the Pennsyl-
vania boundary is approached.
Great railroad yards, cement
plants and factories are seen be-
low. The Ohio River is first seen
near East Liverpool, Ohio. When
we came over, at the end OF q
long, dry spell, the river was low
and apparently crystal clear, q
strange condition for the usually
cloudy Ohio.
In the clear green stream engi-
neerS are raising new dams and
canal locks for many miles below
Pittsburgh. There is an impress
sion of tremendous activity as the
plane passes over loop after loop
of the river. The engineering fea-
lures of modern development In
the mountain country are inter-
esting and impressive. From the
air it is possible to follow the rail-
road lines for miles and to appre-
ciate the problems encountered in
laying them out through the
mountains. These roads are very
busy. Train after train can be
seen winding among the hills.
Many bridges span the rivers. In
the narrow valleys, between rug
ged, tree-covered mountains, are
railroads, on either bank Of the
river, and many roads. They wind
and twist, are lost in the distance
and reappear, having wound OF
around some mountain spur, los
ing many miles.
The bombers crossed the Allie
ghenies at an altitude of 5000
feet and the mountains were dis
appointingly small from this
height. Shrouded in smoke, only
one or two ridges could be seen
at one time. Owing to the poor
visibility below, they looked low
and not altogether impressive. It
was only in passing directly over
the crest of a range and getting q
momentary glimpse of some per-
spective down the mountain slope,
off into a valley below, that there
was any impression of grandeur.
Smoke Pail Left Behind.
The smoke pail was left behind
and the country below became
fresh and clear once more as
Pittsburgh and the steel and coal
district was left behind. The
Potomac River, easily recognized
by the Chesapeake 81 Ohio Canal
along its northern shore, was first
picked up below Frostburg, Md.
Like the Ohio, the Potomac was
clear green and low in it's banks.
1t slipped by rapidly as the bomb
ers doomed along on a following
wind in widespread cross country
formation.
Great Falls, appearing surpris-
ingly soon, was one Of the most
beautiful pictures of the trip.
Creamy foam shading into every
conceivable shade of green filled
the gorge below, all effect OF
coarsenesS lost from 5000 feet
above. The bombers swung into
echelon formation, each behind,
above and to the left of the one
ahead, in preparation for land
ing. In circling line, the forma-
ton swung down across the War
College to approach Boiling Field.
The air, crisp and cool above, be-
came hot as the great ships drop
ped into the field. One after an
other, in quick succession, they
landed, Cleveland only three and
a quarter hours behind. A few
experiences like that are SUFFICIENT
to convert any one to air trans
portation.