Evening star., 1941-09-21
Airline ii 5. {. Mexico
Offers Unique Service
Unapproached Elsewhere
Children Taken to School,
Indion FuneroIs .Seryiced,
livestock Flown Daily

The story of Cia. Aeronautica del Sur,
S. A., reads like a page from the
Arabian Nights. Mixed with ordinary
aviation service are the unusual Incl
dents of this airline in its daily service
over the regular air routes to the
States Of Tabasco, Chiapas and
Puebla, in the Republic of Mexico
Eighteen years ago, G. D. C'Peck')
Woodside left Memphis, Tenn, and
went to Mexico to organize an air line.
After years of flying over short
route from Villahermosa to Tapa-
chula, In Southeastern Mexico. he or
ganized the Cia. Aeronautica Gel Sur,
S. A., and gradually expanded its
routes, its volume and its reputation
until today it is the second company
in Mexico in size and Importance,
with a 1907 safety and schedule
record.
"Peck's Line" as it is known, not
only engages in the usual passenger,
mail. express and freight carrying &C
tivities Gncluding $4,000 bales of to-
bacco, as we'll as coffee, rubber, vanilla
and other products, but also conduct
operations not offered by other COM
panies, so that it earned the nickname
of "The Toonerville Trolley Of the
Air" Imagine, for instance, children
who have never seen an automobile
or a train, going to school daily in
an airplane. When a native dies, his
friends charter 3 or more planes for
the trip to his birthplace, where fu-
neral rites are held. When the topog-
raphy Of this area of Mexico is studied,
the value of this service is understood
High mountains, deep canyons and
narrow passes mean that a trip of 80
minutes duration covers strip Of
territory formerly taking days or
weeks TO negotiate by rivers and tor
turous trails. And despite the fact
that this mountainous section. has no
railroads or highways, the natives ac-
cept the planes as casually as we take
a street car or bus.
One day an air service officer from
the United States made the trip from
Villahermosa to Las Palmas with a
native pilot 18 years old At its con-
clusion he said he did not know a
single U. S. flyer who could have
handled this plane like the Mexican
lad did. Flying blind up canyon,
so feet above the bed of a river, land
ing on schedule on an island not over
rs feet wide and quarter mile long
with a rough rocky landing was feat
in itself, in addition to which the
plane carried a 500 overload!
This line now operates about 90 planes
and has ~ scheduled landing fields. II
| maintains steady operation without stop
| between the town Of Villahermosa and the
following: Tenosique obreEon: ParaiSo:
State Of Tabasco; Carmen, in the State OF
| Campeche: Yajalon, Pichucalco, Simojovel
| and PalenQue, in the State Of Chlapas;
| Coatzacoalcos, in the State OF Veracruz,
| and Tehuacan, in the State OF Puebla.
/ The company recently was awarded
| contract to dust bananas for the chamusco
| fly. a similar evil TO the boll-weevil attacks
| on cotton. OMces OF the Ga. Aeronautlca
del Sur, S. A.. are located in VillahermoSa
Woodside is president and general man.
| ager; Ing. Mariana Dominguez is secre-
| tary and treasurer; Jose Lopez is opera
| tions manager; Guillermo Dominguez is
| maintenance superintendent and Lac
Gabriel Aguillon Guzman Is attorney.