Evening star., 1936-08-09
Air Traffic
Continued From First Page,)

age of $50 a day.
Pennsylvania Airlines. oldest Of air
passenger services across the Alle-
ghanies and veteran of the local air.
lines in point of continuous service,
reports that in June it carried a total
of 1,078 passengers out of Washington
and that its average since March has
been 1000 passengers a month out
going and approximately the same in
coming. Washington is the terminal
of this line. which operatN to Detroit
and Milwaukee.
Central Airlines, operating from
Washington to Detroit, now Is aver
aging $50 passengers a month in
each direction. or 1900 outgoing and
incoming passengers handled at the
local airport.
American Airlines, one of the ma
jor transcontinental systems, handles
about 1900 passengers a month in
and out of Washington and carries
about 1000 through passengers.
American now operates a secondary
or feeder line from Washington to
Chicago and a southern transconti-
mental service from New York through
Washington to Los Angeles. The
southern transcontinental service
through Washington has not yet been
fully developed because lack of
complete night equipment on the Fed
eral airway holds passenger operations
to daylight hours only. American Is
preparing within the next two or
three weeks to put giant Douglas
sleeping planes into service on this
route through Washington and pas
senger business is expected to in
crease materially as Q result.
Two sightseeing airplanes are oper-
ated regularly at Washington Airport
by William Payne and they average
1000 passengers a month.
The Goodyear airship, operating
daily over Washington, also carries
sightseeing passengers and her officers
report an average of 1000 passengers
month.
No record is made of the number of
passengers who arrive at Washington
Airport or who leave here in nom
scheduled commercial airplanes, but
the total may run into several hun
dred month at some seasons of the
year.
Charles P. Graddick, superintendent
OF airmail service, Post Office Depart
ment. reported that figures of his Of
flee show total of 111,54 pounds of
airmail originating in Washington
which was shipped on outgoing air
liners from Washington Airport dur
ing March, April and May. This is
an average Of 37.lS1 pounds per month
and the monthly total is steadily
growing for Washington and the coun-
try as whole.
On basis of 40 letters to the pound,
which is the accepted official Post Of
flee Department average, this amounts
to 1,487 ,240 letters a month sent out
by airmail by Washingtonians. No
figures are kept by the Post Office De-
partment on incoming airmail, but it
40 SNANNNN eAldU t1IC COOdl ID tIlc
same as for outgoing mail.
There are no records of mail going
through washington by air or handled
at the local airport by transfer from
one line to another. A considerable
amount of mail is dropped here from
trains coming from the South for
direct forwarding by air. Local air.
mail operations have grown to such
an extent that three days ago the
Post Office Department occupied a
new airmail building at Washington
Airport, in which IL postal workers
are employed.
Inc railway express agency, ham
ding air express shipments to and
from Washington on the four local
air transport lines. reported $50
outgoing air express shipments
from Washington during July and
597 incoming shipments, or a total
of LIT shipments. These varied in
size from a few ounces to as much
as 200 pounds. This total compares
with 3l2 shipments in July, 1885. or
an increase of about 280 per cent.
washington Airport today gives reg.
ular full-time employment to 256
persons. This total includes airline
ofi1ce and maintenance personnel, air.
port officials and employees, Federal
postal, weather and Bureau of Air
Commerce personnel; the airship and
sightseeing airplane crews and en-
ployes in the airport concessions. It
does not include any of the flying
personnel nnerafino oi1t nf Al. a.ia