New Britain herald., 1929-09-06
19 Planes Join Search

Gallup, \. NJ, Sept. 6 tP}-Ninc- teen airplancs. in the van of an aerial armada seeking the lost air liner "City of san Francisco" took off shortly after dawn today to make 2 systematic search of the wild New Mexico border country. Fifteen of the planes operate out of WinsloW Ariz., and four from the local air port.
 Tho searching planes were each assigned 10 q given territory in the region where the tri-motorcd plane with it's eight passengers was last reported sighted.
 While the concentration camp of the ar searching parties has been located here, officials of the Trans continental Air Transport planned to work to the southwest between Gran, N. ML, where the plane was last authentically reported seen, and Wmslow, Ariz., it's scheduled ftop ping place.
 Greatest Hunt in History
 The greatest aerial hunt in the history of American aviation Was being organized today to seel; the lost air liner which was swallowed up somewhere in the great south west as it flew through stormy weather from Albuquerque towarI Winslow, Ariz.. last Tuesday with eight persons aboard.
 Because first reports indicated that the plane was forced down m the forbidding volcanic area south of Gallup, officials of the Transcon- tincntal Air Transport, operators Of the air liner. and others chose Gal lup as the central point for direct ing the hunt.
 The aerial armada, marshaIcd from several states for the search. was virtually without a clue where to look for the lost ship. One hy one the reports of it's WrcckaGa having been sighted were run down yesterday, and each time the search CTS returned and reported they had seen nothing but froWning dese.t and extinct forbidling volcano peaks.
 Xani Indians Eclp
 Supplcmenting the aerial search CTS were hundreds of Wiry Zuni h. dians, wise 10 the ways of the desert and mountains. as well as uncount- ed automobile parties and cowboys.
 The v2riegatcd eXpanse from Texas to Southern California WIS the field that had to be searched A reward of 5000 offered by the T. A. T, spurrcd the aearchcrs nj the more.
 T. A. T. officials believed that the combing of the Black Rock waan country south Of here had been sui licient to establish that the City Of san Francisco had not fallen there, as at first thought. The region around Iuni then was searched without result. Likewise the dis. trict around Houck, AriZ., Was su"- veycd from the air on the strength of reports from a railroad section crew that they had seen a plane be- lIeved to be the missing one.
 Army Planes Join In
 All available army planes in the southwest were ordered to ioiT the aircraft of the T. A. T. and it's com pctinG lines in the search. Navy planes also participated yesterday and d dozen more from San Diego were under orders 10 join the hunt today.
 The much advertised report that the plane had been seen 23 miles south of here and it's eight occG- pants apparently dead was traced to ifs source yesterday and T. A. T. officials discovered that it had come from bus driver who had heard an unidentified man telling it in q shoe shining parlOr.
 In spite of the blank wall which has confronted the searchers at eV- cry turn thus far, H, W. Beck, west ern traffic manager of the T. A. T. ut Los Angeles, issued statement