The Washington times., 1938-06-02
Aeronotes
BY SLIP STREAM

' While profit-hungry airlines
await the new legislation under
which they hope to operate into
prosperity, House and Senate con-
ferees on the McCarran and Lea
civil aeronauticS bills today are
squabbling over highly important
technicalities of the grandfather
clause" of the bill sponsored by
Senator McCarran Cd of Ne
Vada.
The Grandfather Clause" gives
to all airlines operating on or
after May IA of this year auto
matte certificate of public con-
venience and necessity, and ex-
tends the same privilege to air
lines inaugurating operations dur
ing the so days between the date
the bills are reported out of con-
ference and the date on which
they become law.
AMENDMENT PROTECTED
However, a sudden Operations
monopoly" amendment inserted
by the author of the McCarran
bill is now holding up the entire
proceedings and is Threatening
to wreck present airline Struc.
lures if, due to the nearnesS OF
the adjournment of Congress, the
bills are rushed out of conference
with this amendment included.
The amendment gives any all
line carrier the right to protest
issuance of a grandfather Ger.
tificate" to any other airline II
the first line can prove it Is ao-
Versely affected" The amend
ment goes on to give the commits
sion setup under the bills power
to refuse certificate OF con-
veniences and necessity to any
one airline on such grounds.
For example, if United Airlines
went before the commission and
stated that Transcontinental and
Western Air Lines was adversely"
affecting its business by taking
one passenger or one pound OF
express in and out of Chicago
weekly. under the wording OF the
bill the commission would nave
to order T. w. A. to cease and de-
Sist its Chicago operations.
MONOPOLY PLAN HIT
The amendment, however, goes
further than that. It opens up
for special debate all the extern
Sions to air-mail routes let by the
Post office Department. The
grandfather clause" covers the
original air-mail contracts only
and a number of those contracts
have been extended with addi'
tional stops en- route.
Any airline carrier could protest
the operation of another company
through one of the extension
stops. prove it was adversely" at-
fected and thereby win a COM
plete operations monopoly over
that sector of the country.
This Operations m opoly"
which would result from passage
of the amendment is its CHIEF
danger.
STOPS AFFECTED
A number of these important
stops on airline routes which
would come into special consider
alton, tieing up operations any
where from six months to two
years while the commission de-
cided the justification OF con-
tinued operation over an estab-
lished route, are Pennsylvania
Central's Pittsburgh-Buffalo route,
Baltimore Pittsburgh route, Nor
folk-WaShington route, United's
Denver stop on its transconti'
tinental and its Philadelphia stop,
and TWAS Dayton to Chicago
route.
Oddly enough, the very man
who was hailed as commercial
aviations greatest benefactor, is
now stalling it's progress in the
conference - Senator McCarran.
To defend his stand, he stated
that his amendment was designed
to protect established airlines from
unfair competition which might
come from any new lines set up
during the so days before the laws
60 into effect.
GIRLS coon FLIERS