The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1931-07-01
JUBILANT EAST
is READY FOR
/ DARING AIRMEN
Throngs Flock to Field at
Cleveland as Post and
Gatty Near.
HOOVER IS ENTHUSED
Globe GirdIerS Will Be
Guests of President
at Luncheon.
HOOVER is ENTHUSED
Continued from Page II

the plane. Mechanics had it
wheeled out onto Portage avenue,
a broad pavement which gave them
a two-mile straightaway into the
wind.
Had Good Sleep
A steady rain during the night
had made the airfield soggy and
the runways were too water-logged
for a safe start from their uneven,
soft surfaces. The avenue was
cleared and lined with hundreds
of Edmonton citizens, who cheered
and waved and shouted enthusiast
tically in the rain as the big white
plane gathered Roadway and was
off into the mists to the southeast.
How did you sleep?" the fiiers
were asked as they inspected the
Winnie Mae.
Great" Post replied.
"And we're feeling fine as f1ddles,"
Gatty added.
The world fiiers, heroes for
weeks amazing work in this imagi-
nation-inspiring feat, hoped to
make the 1850 miles to New York
in about fourteen hours. They will
have circled the earth in eight days
and about twelve hours if they do
beating by far the record set by
the Germany dirigible Of twenty
two days in July, 1929.
Land in Hard Rain Tuesday
The globe-circling team brought
their white monoplane down here
at 4:37 p. m. in a driving rain. The
mud at the airport was so thick
after steady down pour Of the
past tWenty-four hours that the
craft became stuck and had to be
hauled from the mire by tractor.
The two men left Fairbanks,
Alaska, at 800 a. m. (7:20 In
dianapolis time) and for the first
part of the trip flew over desolate
territory. For nearly five hours no
word of their fight reached the
outside world. The first word came
from a point 200 miles from White
Horse, Yukon.
They next we're sighted at Fair
view, 800 miles north of Edmonton.
Their progress was recorded again
as they flew over the Northern AL
berta line. The next communica-
ton point to sight them was only
twenty miles from Edmonton.
A vast crowd was awaiting the
fliers arrival here, some having
stood for hours in the steady down.
pour.
Travel at High Speed
The average speed from Fair
banks to Edmonton was about IT'S
miles an hour. 1t was said unoffi-
cially that the Winnie Mae travelled
the last $50 miles of the trip at a
speed Of approximately 200 miles an
hour.
All the way around the earth to
Edmonton they made phenomenal
time, racing across land and sea
with almost express-train precision.
They were on or ahead Of schedule
from the time they left Roosevelt
field a week ago Tuesday morning
and the precision of their Ter-
Torrance has been one Of the
amazing phases of their record
achievement.
They left New York at dawn on
July % and with stop at Harbor
Grace, Newfoundland, flew on across
the Atlantic without incident. They
landed twice on their way to Berlin,
once at Chester, England, and
again at Hanover, Germany, but
stopped only briefly each time.
After a short sleep at Berlin, they
hurried on to Moscow. They had
planned only to refuel and spend
an hour or two in the Soviet CAPT.
tai. but banquet was ready in their
honor and they spent the night, get
ting little sleep before proceeding
on the perilous flight into the across
Siberia to the Pacific.
Stop in Siberia
Stops at Novo-SibirSk, Irkutsk,
BlagovestSchenSk and Khabarovsk
were made on the rapid cruise
across Siberia waStelandS.
Their longest halt was at Khab-
arovsk, where they remained nearly
twenty-eight hours and slept
soundly for the first time since
leaving Roosevelt field. Then they
started the long and hazardous
2,300-mile flight over the North Pa
cific toward Boring Strait and
Nome, Alaska.
The fliers reached Nome at 8
p. m. Monday indianapolis time)
From there on across the North
American continent the journey
continued with the mazing rapidity
and expert precision which has
made it one of the marvellous ex-
ploits of aviation history.