Evening star., 1939-08-20
Argentina Planning
To Open Air Route
Far Southward
e. AUGUST THRIFT DAYS
Nation Expected to Move
Fast in Aviution Once
She Becomes Aroused
By ALICE ROGERS HAGER.

BY ALICE ROGEkS hAGER.
BUENOS AIRES, Aug. 10 (NA.
NA).-The answer of the Argentine
to Chile's projected "farthest south"
airline, to which observers in the
Pacific Coast country have attached
considerable military significance,
has been made here by the Minis
try of War in its announcement that
ernment and extending from this
city to the far south of Patagonia,
will be opened soon.
Chile with its rich wool-growing
territory around Magallanes its
principal worry, does not begin op-
Grafton of it's line for another year,
but Argentina has made its plans in
secret and is ready now.
No official pronouncement as to
the political or the military angle
has been made by either country. In
each case the move has been repre-
sented as purely national-to tie the
hinterlands closer to the capitals, a
little or no other transportation is
available. But the fact that both
lines will be run-at least at first
by military pilots seems to speak for
itself.
The southernmost point which the
Argentine line will reach, Puerto
Santo Cruz, is only a matter of a
couple of hundred miles from Pu-
erto Arenas or Magallanes - in
Chile. The War Ministry stated that
1t did not expect to fly so far south
during winter months. bur that it
expected to train it's pilots to handle
the entire route
Expected to Move Fast.
The aeronautical significance of
the move, leaving aside political and
military motives, was said by one of
the principal aviation experts here
TO be that, when Argentina really
becomes alr-minded, she will move
fast. Talking with the writer, this
man. who has observed Argentine
aviation from its infancy, offered a
comparison with the road-building
situation. For years, interior travel
was OF the most primitive type.
Then, a comparatively short time
back, the government woke up to
surface transportation Importance.
The result was that excellent roads
went in all over the country. The
same thing, he said, would happen
to air transport
This becomes of interest to the
United States as an increased DO
tentlal market for American planes
and equipment. At present there is
a small, keen group of private fly
ers-assembled in about 20 clubs
with some 500 members and be-
tween 40 and so planes. The same
observer said that at present they
are not especially we'll trained, but
that they are one of the leading
groups in South America and are
enthusiastic in their cross-country
mass flights and their air shows.
Fewer Accidents Cited.
On the training side, he said,
there is need only for some definite
government encouragement and reg
ulation to make first class pilots, and
he cited the remarkable manner in
which the army pilots have prog
ressed since the air mission from the
United States came down. Before,
there were many accidents. Now,
there are very few, and the military
flyers have become expert in night
and instrument flying and forma-
ton technique.
Buenos Aires is at present in the
midst of an internal argument as
to the relocation of it's civil airport.
The government has appropriated
100000 pesos (s2,300,0OO for the
purpose. but the city objects to Civ
ing over the land requested by the
airlines at the park development
called New Port. The commercial
lines are spread now among four
different landing fields-Ar France
comes in to General Pacheco, 20
miles west; Panagra and Pan
American Airways at Moron, IA
miles west: the German line to Chile
and the Aeropost line to Patagonia,
which is German-dominated, to
Outlines, and the German and Ital-
ian lines to Montevideo land at a
temporary site in the New Port dis
trict, only 10 miles from the heart
of the city. Service is greatly
slowed down, especially in this coun-
try where civilian flying is daytime
flying. by the great distances that
must be covered in conveying pas
sengers of the three first groups
back and forth.
Service to Europe.
1t will take central port in the
future to handle successfully the in
ternational traffic that is going to
result when so many trans Atlantic
services are running as are planned
to begin almost Immediately. Buenos
Aires is to have two-day service
to Berlin before the year is out;
the Ala Littoria service from Italy
is imminent, and Great Britains
Golden Hind, the new and larger
short flying boat of Imperial Air
ways, is to make survey flights very
soon. The result will be a demand .
for a great international clearing
point.
An extremely interesting editorial
appeared in local paper here a
few days ago. commenting on the
figures recently given out by the
Aeronautical Chamber of Commerce
of the United States concerning
aeronautical material sales in Gen.
trail and South America. Germany
ranked first in amount, Italy sec
ond and the United States last, the
largest amount from our factories
going to Argentina in December,
1898. The editorial says, although
no South American country has yet
considered it advisable to organize
its flying forces with equipment