Evening star., 1938-10-30

OF the Roosevelt administration
For many years Congress has had
the local airport matter under con-
sideration during session after session.
Always it has begged down ove- the
question of a site. Regardless of how
many other sites have been brought
forward, however. the Gravelly Point
site always has been toward the fore
front
Tiring of the dilatory tactics of Con-
greSs in the face of accommodating evil
dence that the local airport situation
had long since assumed an emergency
status and was becoming something
of national disgrace, President
Roosevelt last year called upon Con-
gress for prompt action. recommending
specifically that Gravelly Point be de-
veloped as close-in terminal. He
also suggested the necessity for an
"all-weather" airport farther out for
instrument landing purposes in cases
Of exceptionally thick weather. leaving
selection of that site to Congress
But again Congress proved unable to
legislate. Although the Senate passed
bill introduced by District Airport
Commission authorizing construction Of
a model airport on huge site at Camp
Springs, Md. III miles from the down.
town section of the city. the measure
was caught in a last-minute jam in the
House and Congress adjourned, as
usual. with the problem unsolved.
Last August the new Civil Aero
nautics Authority came into existence
under terms of the Civil Aeronautics
Act of 1888 President Roosevelt asked
thority. to treat the local airport mat
ter as one of the first emergency items
facing his organization.
A month later the President was
able to announce that the Gravelly
Point site had been selected for devel-
opment and that construction would
be undertaken jointly by the C. A. A.,
the Corps of Engineers of the Army,
the Public Works Administration and
the Works Progress Administration.
A joint committee representing all
four organizations was set up under
Craftsmanship Of Col. Sumpter Smith.
chairman of the new Air Safety Board
OF the c. A. A. This committee. work.
ing under high pressure. drafted de-
tailed plans for model airport and
completed the elaborate engineering
studies necessary for the preparation
of estimates for obtaining P. W. A.
and w. P A. funds.
The Civil Aeronautics Authority. at
the Presidents request, prepared pre-
liminary plans for 750-acre air
terminal all or major part of which
will be constructed as an initial unit,
with arrangements for future expan-
sion if necessary.
The joint committee, known as the
Washington National Airport COM
mittee, undertook the immediate
preparation of plans for the 75O-acre
project, appointing an engineering
committee for this purpose. The Air
port Committee is composed of Col
Sumpter Smith, chairman: Civil Aero
nautics Administrator Clinton NJ.
Hester and Robert H. Hinckley OF the
c. A. A., representing the authority,
as we'll as members of the three other
participating agencies.
The Engineering Committee, in
charge of the actual preparation of
plans and the construction of the air.
port. Is composed of Col. F. c. Har-
rington, chief engineer of the w. P. A.,
who also represents the Army Corps of
Engineers; Fred Schnepke. represent
ing P. w. A. Administrator Ickes, and
Col. Smith, representing the authority.
This committee is making full use of
services of Administrator Hester's
technical staff in preparing plans for
the project.
The l2-year story of the Gravelly
Point airport quest is an epitome of
the history of local air transportation
development. 1t came to a dramatic
climax late in the afternoon of
September 26, when President Roose-
welt, during a press conference, an
nounced abruptly that he had become
tired of waiting for Congress to solve
the airport problem and had taken the
matter into his own hands because
human lives were at stake
The President recalled that in 1927
President Coolidge urged Congress to
build an adequate airport for Wash
ington and that President Hoover had
repeated the plea Mr.. Roosevelt said
that he called to the attention of
Congress on two occasions during the
past year the great need for an
adequate and safe airport here. Still
nothing was done.
The local airport story, however,
went back to earlier than 1927. As
early as 1921 former World War