Glacier County chief. [volume] (Browning, Mont.) 1931-1940, 1940-01-12
HELENA AIR FIELD
BUSY DURING 1899
HIGH SCHOOLS GROUND COURSE
HAD 100 PERCENT INCREASE
IN ENROLMENT
Municipal Airport Now Has 25 Full
Time Employees; Two Surfaced Run
ways Completed; Landing Area
Fenced With Help of NYA Labor.

Helena civic leaders. looking back
over municipal achievements dur
ing 1888, declared development at
the Helena airport was the years
outstanding achievement. Among
the numerous airport improvement
projects, expansion of the Helena
high schools aeronautics depart
ment was declared the most nota-
BILE. The department has an en-
rOIlment of 100 studentS-100 per-
cent increase over 193S-and appli-
cations were received from 400
more students, many more than
there are facilities for.
Five new courses have been added
this year, l.. w. Fahrner, in charge
of the school, reported. These include
aerOnautical radio, engineering, sheet
metal work, aircraft riveting and shop
mathematics.
All Graduates Employed
All graduates of the school are now
employed. Recently Warren kepler OF
the Helena valley was employed by
the Douglas Aircraft Corp. Roland
GaSperis of East Helena has been hired
by the Boeing plant, and Sam Mitch
ell has been accepted by the army air
corps.
In July Montana aviation was given
a boost by the appointment of Clar-
ence Claybaugh as general inspector
for the civil aeronauticS authority for
Montana, with headquarters at Helena.
Commercial flying has grown IN
Helena during the past year. R. E.
CRed Morrison of the Morrison Fly
ing Service, with headquarters at Hell
ena, has made many charter trips dur
ing the year, including six ambulance
trips to Rochester, Mimi. Morrison
also is instructor in civil aviation
courses at Carroll and Northern Mon
tana colleges.
Addition of the federal weather bu-
reau offices to the airport services has
been welcomed by pilots as one of the
greatest aids to navigation that has
been made in Montana. For the first
time weather maps can be made up
at Helena since the weather bureau will
be in touch with all points in the
nation.
Another important aid to navigation
and to facilitate traffic was the in
stallation by the airways conlmunica-
ton section of two fan-type radio
inner-markers, one on Macdonald pass,
the other on Spokane hill, to aid pilots
in making blind approaches or to warn
them that another ship is already
within the landing area. The equip
ment is so installed as to broadcast
either beam signals or radio communi-
cation simultaneously.
Runways Completed
Physical development Of the Helena
landing field itself has kept pace dur
ing the year with Other. developments:
The airport commission announced
that the 5,30O-foot east-west runway
was virtually completed and available
for takeoffs by the large ships. About
10000 yards of dirt was moved during
construction of the runway. Completed
earlier in the year was the 6,400-foot
southwest northeast prevailing wind
runway. Construction of both was COM
pleted by the airport commission using
| city labor.
| Using NYA labor the landing field
has been completely fenced during the
past two months and the gas line has
been extended to all airport buildings
There are now Is fulltime employees
at the port, including airline communi-
cation operators and service men,
CAA general inspection section, wealth
er bureau, aeronautics school, Morri-
son flying service and airport main-
|