The Daily Alaska empire., 1940-06-15

 GREETED
 BY CROWD
Survey Flight with Giant Flying Boat Is Pro-
 nounCed Success


 Four big three -bladed propellers, whirling with the impetus of 340O horsepower generated by a quartet of Pratt Whitney engines, roared smoothly over Juneau last night and Capt. s. E. Robbins, vet eran Alaska flier, brought gently to rest on a calm Aux Bay, the Alaska Clipper, biggest flying boat Alaska has ever seen.
 The giant craft, ending a lei surely survey flight from Seattle with Pan American Airways offici- als and representatives of the Army and Navy and other branches of the Government service, appeared over Aux Bay at 7:20 in the eve- ming, flew on to circle Skagway and Haines, and settled down smoothly at Aux Bay an hour and ten minutes later.
 Brought tC Float
 Executing wide turn, the clip per was brought down off the south end of Spuhn Island, going with a gentle south by west breeze to taxi into the triangle of moor ing floats off the Forest Service float at the Aux Bay Airport. A bowline was secured and another line made fast to. the tail, whence the ship was pulled manually by the tail to the landing ramp and passengers and crew stepped ashore
 One of the first to step ashore from the exit hatch of the Alaska Clipper was husky Joe CrOSson probably the most popular figure in Alaska's flying world, and an individual to whom may be hand ed the bulk of the credit for the inauguration of Alaska to the States plane service-the last link in air connection between the mainland United States and it's farflung ter ritorieS and possessions.
 Joe, who flew when planes con- peted with dogs in Alaska, and whose driving energy has built the Alaska system of PAA to one of the finest organizations in avia- ton, typically didn't want to make speeches, but he said volumes when he answered a spectators observa- tion of the Alaska Clipper as some ship" by replying with boyish grin, Isn't she swell -huh?"
 The name Alaska Clipper" ap- propriate enough in consideration of the area in which the big boat will operate, is more significant when one notes the passenger list of that ship.
 CroSson headed the group. With him were the two Captains of the clipper, s. E. Robbins and Jerry Jones, veteran flying mates and tremendously popular Alaskans whc have been absent from the North for several months doing clipper duty out of Miami to Bermuda and South America. Also aboard were Third and Fourth Officers. respec- lively, Murray Stuart and Gene Meyring, two more Pacific Alaska Airways veterans who can't count their friends and whose experience in Southeast Alaska flying will be invaluable to the clipper service.
 Engineering Officer Jack Edgar is Fairbanks boy, and Alaskan by residence for many years is Bot Gleason, Superintendent of Com munications, another who was busy greeting friends when he disem- parked
 But homecoming joy was defin- iteiy lacking in the face of bust ling Carl Anderson, PAA publicity man.
 Worried" Reception
 Anderson was worried over the reception the clipper would bt given, for when the ship first flew over the bay at 7:20 o'clock, nearly a thousand mosquito skipping Channelites awaiting the arriva of the much publicized clipper were shocked to receive news the clip per would fly on to Skagway ane Haines to return in a little more than an hour.
 The message, transmitted iron the clipper to the PAA patro launch and thence to the waiting hundreds, sent dozens of discour.
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