Evening star., 1936-05-24
BY LAUREN d. LYMAN.

w limitations in armament,
with special emphasis on
military aviation, an intense inter-
national air struggle goes on almost
unheeded. That struggle is the race
for leadership on the new air trade
routes of the world.
A year ago the racers were moving
swiftly and the favorites in that race
were Great Britain, France, Germany
and the United States. The great
international air lines Of these re-
spective countries had been pushing
out their routes in their own spheres
of influence for several years and had
come into competition with each
other in many places. The British
and the French were racing to China,
with the British particularly inter-
ested in Australia and India and the
French chiefly concerned with COM
munications to Indo-China.
The Germans and French were
competing for air trade routes and
spheres of influence in the great mar
kets of South America, where they
ran into the sturdy competition OF
Pan American Airways for the United
States.
Maneuver for China Routes.
on on the other side of the world
these four nations, with Japan and
Russia, maneuvered against each other
for air routes in China, with the big
gest population and the worst rail-
roads and highways of any OF the
great nations-a glorious field for the
flyer. Here the United States at
once took the lead, again with Pan
American Airways in cooperation
with the Chinese. holding a virtual
operating monopoly over the fast
growing airlines. and today the roar
of Yankee engines and the broad
wings of American transports are
familiar sounds and sights over thou
sands of miles of Chinese airWays.
There remained unconquered the SKY
routes above the great oceans, the
North Atlantic and the Pacific. Ger
MANY. with that remarkable old ship,
the Graf Zeppelin, had demonstrated
beyond a doubt the possibilities OF
hghter-than-a air craft over oceans with
regular operation between Rio, Per-
nambuco and Friedrichshafen. The
Deutsche Lufthansa and Air
had both sent planes on experimental
schedules over the 1000 miles Of water
between West Africa and Brazil, and
their engineers and designers, with
those of Imperial Airways for Great
Britain and Pan-American here, were
already building for the North Atlantic.
Today the picture has changed.
| Germany and the United States in the
last IL months have moved out into
the van and now are setting the pace
the Germans with their experimental
airship line between Frankfort and
Lakehurst, and the United States with
Pan.American Always sending its new
clipper ships back and forth across the
Pacific between Manila and San Fran
cisco.
Plane Doubted as Competitor.
A few years ago, few thought it pos
sible that the airplane, with its shorter
range. would ever be able to compete
with the airship in transoceanic service
Among those few-and they could be
counted in hundreds-weret the men,
bers Of the Technical Committee OF
American Airways, of which Col
Charles A. Lindbergh was chairman
In many meetings they worked out q
series of specifications calling for air.
plane performance far and away aheac
Of anything yet attempted. Airplans
manufacturers both here and abroad
studied these requirements and SHOOK
their heads.
Finally, two companies iJreed Il
build the ships. flying boats thai
could carry payload at 140 miles ar
hour with range Of 5000 miles. Thai
payload, the specifications said, mus
be more than ton. The planes thai
resulted exceeded expectations. Igol
Sikorsky constructed his S42, with Q
top speed of 100 miles an hour. Ont
Of these machines in one afternoon
broke eight world records for loac
carrying. Tests revealed, however
that, for this particular machine, Q
payload of ton over the 2,400-milt
reach between San Francisco and
Hawaii was out of the question.
Fourteen of these CLIPPERS have beer
built. With the first. the trial was
blaZed over the Pacific, and two oi
them are ready for first flights across
the North Atlantic. One is to be used
between Canton, China, and Manila
and the others will shorten the trave
time between the United States anc
South America to three days from six
Meanwhile, the Sikorsky engineers are
at work on a plane nearly twice the
size of the clipper. with equal speed
and a greater range.
The Martin Co. has built three huge
flying boats and. while slower than the
Sikorsky planes, they can carry q
r