Evening star., 1935-07-14
AIRPORT ACTION
SEEN THIS WEEK
Resolution to Close Military
Road to Be Pushed
by MCSWain.
H. WINSHIP WHEATLEY.

The fate Of Washington Airport
week by action of the House on the
McSwain resolution to close Military
road.
Blocked in his plan to ask for pas
sage of the measure by unanimous
consent when the Arlington County
Board notified Representative How
ard w. Smith of Virginia yesterday
of its unanimous opposition to closing
of the road, McSwain is expected to
90 before the House Rules Commit
tee early this week to request con-
sideration OF the bill under suspen-
sion of the rules.
Unless McSwain is successful in his
effort to Jam the bill through in the
face of the Virginia opposition or
unless the demand of Secretary of
Commerce Roper for absolute pro-
lection of landing and taking of air.
liners is met by barricading Of the
road. Commerce Department officials
are expected to made good an often
repeated threat to close the local air.
port to air transport operations and
so wipe Washington off the air trans
port map.
Secretary Roper has called upon
Samuel J. Solomon. manager OF
Washington Airport, to install at "a
hour guard to supplement the exist
ing trafic lights and sirens and to
install a traffic barrier at each light
las soon as possible
Request for Barriers.
Solomon has installed the guards
and has applied to Assistant Secre-
tary Of War Woodring for permission
to install the barriers. but up to yes
terday had received no reply from the
War Department to his request.
Should the barriers be installed and
prove adequate in the control OF au-
tomobile traffic, the Commerce De-
partment probably will hold in abey-
ance for the time being its threat to
close the airport to airline operations.
In his letter of July calling upon
Solomon to provide the guards and
barriers, Secretary Roper said: III
these instructions are not carried out
Immediately the Department of Com
merce will consider suspending all
air operations at Washington Hoover
Airport"
Commerce Department officials last
night reiterated the stand taken by
Eugene L. Vidal, director of air COM
merce. in a memorandum to an inter-
departmental commission on the air.
port situation early in the week.
In his memorandum Vidal pointed
out that the Military road crossing
now is a far greater hazard to safety
in air travel than at any time IN the
past. because of the use of new high
speed airliners, which require longer
landing and take-off runs.
He pointed out that arbitrary re-
duction of the pay loads of transport
airplanes using the local airport might
be ordered, leaving the barring of all
air transport operations as a final
measure.
Safety Is Demanded.
Commerce Department officials last
night took the position that the de-
partment is committed definitely TO
a policy of prohibiting all air trans
port operations at Washington Airport
unless it Is made safe for airline fly
ing.
The department has no power to
close the airport itself. 1t was pointed
out, but does have the power under
the air commerce act of prohibiting
Interstate air transport planes from
landing there.
The Bureau of Air Commerce has
invoked this power twice in the past
six months. About six months ago,
when it became apparent that the air
port at Greensboro, N. c., was un-
safe for the operation of the new
high-speed airliners operated by
Eastern Airlines on its route from
Washington to the South. the Com
merce Department ordered that the
airliners cease operations there until
the situation was remedied. Green's
boro today is of the air transport
map.
Within the last month the big
Bowles-Agawam iArport at Spring
field, Mass, was closed and the prop
erty sold for use as a race track.
The Bureau of Air Commerce ruled
that the Springfield Municipal Air
port was inadequate for airline opera
tions and Springfield also has disap-