Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-06-07
: D. C.-P|TTSBURGH
AIR LIGHTS READY
Huge Beacons Inspected Pre-.
paratory to Opening New
Service.
BY JOSEPH S. EDGERTON.

passenger service winch now laceS the
country together in great network.
This was revealed Strikingly Friday
night when final inspection was made
of q score Of great beacon lights, spaced
at 10-mile intervals between the Ma
tional Capital and Pittsburgh, put in
operation in preparation for the inau-
guration of airmail service Monday
between this city and Pittsburgh.
No one who has not flown an airway
at night, especially an airway over such
broken and unacceptable country as
that along the new Pittsburgh airway,
can conceive what boon few electric
lights can be.
Light indispensable.
The beacons, lighthouses of the air,
are an even greater blessing to the
night-hying pilot than lighthouses are
to the sailor II the sailor gets lost, he
can lay to or anchor overnight without
any great danger until he can see where
he Is going. The aviator cannot stop
without landing. If he Is lost, he must
keep on going.
The 20 beacons and lighted in
termediate landing fields along the 1922
mile stretch between Washington and
Pittsburgh will be kept in operation
nightly from now on to care for addi-
tional traffic expected to result from
the extension of airmail service between
the two cities.
Two inspection flights were made
last night from the Department of
Commerce AeronauticS Branch station
at Boiling Field. covering the section Of
the airway between Washington and
Frederick, Md, a four-place cabin
monoplane of the anyways division,
flown by William T. Miller, making
both trips.
BeacOns Inspected.
The first trip began just before dark.
permitting observation Of the turning
on of the lighting equipment along the
airway The second started at 9:15
o'clock, when Miller took off from the
rough surface of Boiling Field with
three asSengers-Frederick r. Nicely,
chief of the Information Division of the
Aeronautics Branch; George Gardner
of the editorial staff Of the division and
the writer.
The wind was from the west, and
Miller took off toward the AnacoStia
Naval Air Station, climbing over the
dark waters of the Potomac with the
lights of Potomac Park thrusting a
brilliant wedge into the darkness on the
right. AS the lights Of the city began
to drop below and spread out in be-
wildering array. Washington Hoover
Airport appeared under the left wing,
and the field floodlights suddenly
spread a fan of light over the landing
area as the roar OF our motor was
heard.
The glass roof of the Lincoln Memo
rial, glowing with milky radiance,
formed striking guide from the skies
Immediately below, and then the bea-
con light on Wardman Park Hotel, No.
l beacon on the airway. began casting
a brief glow into the cabin at the rate
of six flashes per minute. Behind could
be seen the green blinker marking
Boiling Field, blinking its "dot-dash-
dot" code number. Above it swept the
beam of the mighty 36-inch airway's
beacon which has just been installed
on top of building in the st. Elizabeth
Hospital grounds.
Cleans Like Stars.
Ahead winked a white star, with a
tiny pin-point of red flashing beneath
it, This was No. beacon, on Con-
gressional Airport, at Halpine, Nd, 70
miles out Of Boiling Field
The great Illuminated bulk of the
National Cathedral slipped by under
the left wing The street lights were
becoming less frequent below, and the
house lights spread farther apart.
Wisconsin avenue, however, was q
pulsing artery of light stretching out
into the dark country ahead.
The Congressional Airport beacon,
with its red Identification light blinking
its number, "dot-dash-dot," was reached
and passed The code would tell the
night pilot who could see no other light
that he was passing No. beacon ~
miles out of Washington, and the course
light would show him the line OF the
airway to the next beacon.
The lights of Rockville glowed below,
rejecting from the cabin roof so
brightly that the dial of watch could
be read. We were a little less than Is
minutes out of Boiling Field, having
lost time climbing and half circling the
Wardman Park beacon to pick up the
course light and look back at Bolllng
Field.
Now No. beacon. near Gathers
burg, Nd, began to turn from an oS-
cillating star into a swinging beam,
and beyond it could be seen the fash
ing pin-point Of No. beacon, near the
foot of Sugar Loaf Mountain.
In the blackness there could occa-
sionally be made out vague splotcn
which might have been pIoweo nelo
or a pend. The next beacon was passed
and Miller jerked thumb to the lett'
Sugar Loaf" he shouted.
Straining eyes made out vaguely
dark mass, revealed for what 1t really
was once each six minutes by the re-
volving beacon, which tipped nVtle
clurnp of trees on the peak OF the
mountain with a fitting beam CT light.
This tiny point of the mountain crest
was a famous lookout ana signal post
during the Civil War, commanding
view Of the Potomac River fords.
Frederick Sighted.
Beyond the mountain appeared the
lights of Frederick, with the next pea
con flashing from the crest OF SCUM
ha loft ND
blinker of the next field cleaning It's
welcome to the pilot from Just beyond
the town.
Miller headed to the right of the
airway, directly for the field bllnker,
passing over the heart OF FREDERICK.
Soon the field boundary fights could De
seen. marking out great L-snapea
landing area against the dark ground
Red obstruction lights glowed along two
sides and tiny green points OF light IN
dicated the ends of the runways.
THE field is leased and maintained
by the Department Of Commerce" FREQ
Nicely explained The long runway is
5000 feet in length. That would look
like a million dollars If we had TO get
down in a hurry, wouldn't it?"
Miller circled the fielc once, throttled
down his motor, switched on two power
full landing lights far OUT on the wings,
which beamed through ground mist,
and stuck the nose down In long
glide into the field. The landing lights
picked up big tree, white house
and a red barn, marked by an obstruc-
ton light, and the plane slipped over
a row of red lights along telephone
line, then over a row of white lights on
the field boundary. between the two
green runway lights, and roared along
10 feet of the ground down the length
of the 3,00o-foot runway. The lighted
wind cone and green blinker flashed
by and the nose went up, over the green
runway lights the boundary lights and