Evening star., 1935-09-01
GALA PRESENTATION
WASHINGTON AIRPORT CIRCUS,

much Washington needs an airport
repeated by special request).
See the Skillful Congressional Jug
glers Hurl 48 Airport Sites Into the
Air at One Time land miss them alb
In the Roman Arena!! See the
Christian air transport passengers
thrown to the Military Road Lions
hear 'em roarl
Witness the Great Battle between
the Gravelly Point Cohorts and the
Washington Airport Legion-Thun-
derous! Blood -curdling! mo one
really gets hurt in this battle.-Ed.
Note)
Watch the Embattled Realtors,
each riding four Airport Sites 90
bareback, without bride, cinch or
whip, as they advance upon the hap
less survivors of the Great Battle
(see preceding paragraph.
Don't miss the Daring Young Man
In the Flying Machine. Without the
aid of any other person, he will
swoop at a speed Of $50 miles per
hour through converging
ptalanxes Of buses and trucks at
the Deadly Military Road Crossing,
missing them all Che hopes
This sort of foolishness might be
continued ad inf1nitum and it still
would not be as foolish as the actual
situation which confrontS the Ma
tional Capital. For years the haz-
ards at the local airport have been
universally recognized. Federal avia-
ton officials, pilots who must use the
airport, members of Congress, the
helpless representatives Of the flying
public, have denounced the condi-
tions at Washington Airport. For
nine years Congress has let the
sword of Damocles hang. hoping that
the hair will not break.
And SO, for the tenth year, on with
the showI
Operation Of the radio landing sys-
TEN at Washington Airport probably
will begin before the middle of Oc-
tober. Reconstruction of portions Of
the radio units employed in the ap-
proach system has been decided upon
by the Bureau of Air Commerce fol-
lowing a preliminary inspection Of
the equipment, developed by the
Army Air Corps at Wright Field.
Ohio. The changes are expected to
better adapt the Army system to
civil air transport needs.
The bureau expects delivery during
September of a special type of cable
required for the power supply to the
chain of approach lights along the
airport runway and extending out
side the airport as visual auxiliary
to the radio. The work of installing
the cable and the radio units is not
expected to require much time after
delivery is made.
The installation here and in other
cities where the new aids to bad
weather flying are being provid- 4
will include. in addition to the ap-
proach lights, two radio transmitting
stations to be located $500 feet and
2 miles, respectively, from the airport
and in line with its principal run
way.
When coming in for a landing
through thick weather, the pilot will
tune his radio compass to one OF the
two radio stations and fly to the i'm
mediate vicinity of the airport. When
he passes over the transmitter radio
signal will flash light on his instru-
ment panel. He then will put the
aircraft on a line with the airport
runway by flying the line established
by the two radio transmitters. On
this line he will glide in for a landing
Although the system has been used
with great success for completely
blind landings, it is to be used by
airline pilots in regular service for
approaches only. Airliners will not
be permitted to attempt landings
unless there is sufficient ceiling to
permit pilots to land by sight after
using the approach system to locate
the runway and glide to within few
feet of the landing area.
The whole panorama of air trans
portation history in Washington has
passed before the eyes Of M. A. Mac
Crowder, traffic representative OF
Pennsylvania Airlines, who has been
on continuous duty at Washington
Airport for more than six years,
Crowder is the senior air transport
official in Washington, and few, II
any. transport employees in the United
States have served as long at one
post.
When Crowder first went to work at
old Hoover Field there was no organ
lied air transportation in the United
States, except for the airmail lines.
Passenger flying was Just beginning
to establish itself.
Crowder was associated with the
pioneer Washington New York air line
which operated quite successfully for
a time, and with the old Cliff Ball
passenger line between Washington
and Cleveland. The Ball line, which
today is Pennsylvania Airlines, Is one
of the worlds pioneer air transport
services still in existence. It was the
first passenger line across the Allegh-
enies.
Civilian owners of airplanes in the
District Of Columbia show q decided
preference for monoplane types and
an almost overwhelming preference
for single-engined airplanes. OF the
80 airplanes registered with the De-
partment of Commerce by residents Of
the District of Columbia, 81 are of
monoplane types and 80 Of biplane
construction. Only / of the 90 air.
planes locally owned has more than
one engine. The figures do not include
any air transport or military airplanes
More than one-third Of all the air
planes owned by residents Of the Dis