Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-04-06

| FOLLOWING OTQcES, dSSlSIllIlB pllOLS
to ships for the evening and night
runs: "Then Potts will take 60 on
thru on schedule No. 8, and
Brown will bring the first one up.
Treat will bring the 9:10 out Of
WK (Newark), and Kyle will
bring it on thru. The ship used
will be No. "a. For the NIB north
bound) we have available in RIM
Richmond, Va Armstrong and
Siever."
Thanks. How Is the weather."
Richmond asked.
Looks OK. to me. Think it
will 60 Through OK. Might get
q little bad on the north end late
tonight"
New Poundage Record Set.
The teletype then conveyed the
information that new airmail
poundage records had been set on
the East Coast run during March,
with a total of 34,9S7 pounds on
the New York-Atlanta line and
1880 pounds on the Atlanta
Miami, or a total of 48,147 pounds
over the Eastern Air Transport
system. Paul A. Miller, chief of
the Boiling Field weather station,
reading these figures of the tape,
commented that he remembered
when a total of 2,400 pounds for
a month on the transcontinental
line was cause for rejoicing.
Messages such as that ordering
Potts to take over PabSt'S plane
on schedule No. 8, brought from
Willis the explanation that it has
become necessary, in view of the
heavy airmail schedules on the
coastal route, to number the
schedules just as the railroads
have done. ,..
On the New York Washington
line No. / is the southbound shut
tie plane from Newark to this
city, No. 2 the northbound regu-
lar night mail plane from At
lanta, No. 3 the regular afternoon
mail plane out of Newark for the
South, and so on through the day.
Many people along the rail-
roads come to know the trains by
numbers, especially the COM
muters," Willis said. Maybe
some time people along the air
mail lines will remark, There goes
No. e. and those who follow such
things will know that the mail is
on the wing from Atlanta to New
York."
More tape came out of the tele-
type receiver. The message stated
that PabSt had brought No. 8 into
Camden, n. j., airport, the Phila-
delphia mail stop, one hour out OF
Hadley. This meant that he was
fighting strong head winds. Will
lis Immediately began to compute
flying time on the remainder Of
| the trip to this city, so that he
might notify the post office when
to have the mail truck at the field.
Pilots Autograph Desired.
Willis then got out q package
Of letters sent to him by collec-
tors of FIRST airmail covers" in
Charlotte, who wanted cancella-
tons on the first airmail flight
into Charlotte. These letters were
to be autographed by the pilots
on whose planes they were car
ried.
At 5:35 the mail truck arrived
from the post Office, bringing
three pouches of mail for Pabst
to carry on South. Five minutes
later, so closely had Willis fig
ured the progress of Pabst's fight
against the wind, the plane came
in for landing on the line and
TAXED up. to new refueling pit
sunk at the edge Of the field.
While Willis and the truck driver
opened the two combination locks
on the mail plane compartment,
took out one pouch of mail for
this city and put in the three new
pouncheS, Wade Todd, who will
take over new third shift as field
manager, gasSed the plane.
Willis gave Pabst the packet of
letters requiring his autograph
and the latest weather informa-
ton and flve minutes after he had
landed, PabSt was of in the gath
ering dusk for Richmond. His
trim, yellow-winged plane crossed
the dull disk of a miSShapen sun
which was Just disappearing into
q dark bank Of mist and headed
away across the Potomac.
In the meantime, Champe G.
Taliaferro, the youngest pilot on
the line, had been at work adj
justing the rigging of the shuttle
plane he was to fly to New York.
He took OF for q short trial flight,
landed, received his load Of mail
and was of, navigation lights
glowing against the .darkening
sky. at $50 pm.
There would not be another
plane at Boiling Field until after
II o'clock that night. In the
meantime, however, the teletype
clattered on and on:
potts is running against head
winds. He is behind schedule.
Tell him not to stop to autograph
those letters, but to have them
returned to him later"
Weather, " -" Hold ship
" 2" Details Of all descrip-
tions. The ground work went on
INCREASINGLY, tirelessly, so that the
planes might move on schedule
and the line might function
smoothly.
Romance Thrills Investigator.
There is a romance about the
airmail which every one may feel
If he will think about it at all.
For some it will be the thought of
the pilot, alone in the dark, buck
ing storms, clouds and fog or rid
ing serenely beneath q friendly
mocn-carrying the mail in ac-