Evening star., 1935-02-10
BY JACQUES FUTRELLE, JR.
THE average newspaper reader
and traveller Is vaguely con-


and traveller Is vaguely con-
scious that the past several
l. months have seen notable ad-
vances in air travel. He is
right. News Of faster services on
lines has followed quickly on the
tail of announcements of spectacular
speed planes, added comforts are be-
ing built into the latest ships; the air
map Of the United States Is being
criss-crossed by new routes, and, more
to the point, Washington is sharing
largely in this improved service.
Unless one is air minded to the
point Of being a fan, or unless he
has been watching in order to map
out his ideal vacation or business
flight, it is likely that the casual
traveller has only a smattering of in
formation on what service is avail
able. A brief outline of Washington
service, therefore, is not out Of order.
And while considering the develop
ments up to the present, it would be
interesting to take peek at what
the future Of air travel possibly holds.
TO begin with, there are few impor-
tant cities in the United States
not served from Washington by dl-
rect line or by convenient connections.
American Airlines links the Capital
directly with the West Coast. The
Southern transcontinental route OF
the line is a good example of recent
travel developments. De luxe through
service from coast to coast New York
Los Angeles was inaugurated less
than a month ago. This route intro
plane, which only few years ago
was a vision of aviation dreamers'
Going westward, passengers change
from the lines new Douglas ships to
the Curtiss Condor sleeper at Fort
/ Worth, Tex The sleeper also Is used
on the New York-Chicago flight.
The Washington-Dallas hop has
been cut three hours ny this new
service. Prior to the establishment OF
the route, the ships went west via
Cincinnati.
The plane in which Maj. James H.
Doolittle broke the transcontinental
record-the Vultee-has been put in
operation over some of the American
! Airlines routes. This spectacular ship
has a cruising speed of 2l5 miles per
hour. It is especially adapted to fast
! travel over fiat country. The line still
uses the dependable tri-motored Ford
over hilly routes.
Among cities served by American
| Airlines are Boston, Montreal, CHI
cago, st. Louis, Detroit and Buffalo.
NdIAMA, Fla, has been brought three
III hours nearer Washington by the
schedule Eastern Airlines introduced
in December. The new Douglas ship,
with a top speed of 210 miles per hour
and a cruising speed of 1876, makes
this saving in time possible. The line
operates two planes daily in the New
York Florida service (stopplng at
Washington) as a result of the travel
boom this year to the southern region.
The recent Inauguration OF the New
York-New Orleans express service.
which also serves washington, mas
clipped several hours of OF that trip.
It is now made in seven. Inc NE"
York-New Orleans local plane con-
tinues to serve intermediate cities. and
1t is on this line that something novel
in the way of air passage-excursion
rates-is being offered. Round trip
tickets. with a 3o-day limit, are being
tried as an experiment at fares lower
| than the ordinary round trip ticket.
A BRIEF picture of the new Douglas
"A plane will give an insight into
the attempt of the manufacturers TO
make air travel safer and more COM
Portable. The cabin is feet inches
high. which permits the average man
to walk to his seat without STOPPING,
1t accommodates IA passengers, who
have individual reclining seats. The
motor has been mounted in such a
manner as to eliminate practically all
vibration Of the motors, and the cabin
insulated to the point that 1t IS only
slightly noisier than a Pullman car
The metal construction permits this
effective insulation. The cabins are
heated by a steam system, eliminating
| the danger of monoXide fumes.