Evening star., 1950-01-15

dllu CONTROVERSIAL Glldu ever. he
even after his government, his
airline industry combined in a Sc
his world wide airline from
"monopolistically" operating the
routes he pioneered and developed
to all parts of the world without
opposition for 13 years before the
recent war.
Regulated competition from
other United States owned air.
lines was prescribed instead by
this Government for "his routes
though each nation that flies to
America under reciprocal all
agreements is represented by but
a single airline. On the Blue Rib
bon route to Europe via the North
Atlantic, the heaviest Travelled of
all foreign airways. seven airlines
representing seven nations, COM
pete with the United States which
is represented by three airlines-
Pan American, Trans World Air
line and American Overseas Air
lines.
This. to Mr.. Trippe, means that
the American effort against for
eign competition is weakened and
diluted: the three United States
privately-owned (though United
States Government assisted some
what) airlines not only have to
fight the rising competition from
the foreign, government-owned or
controlled lines, but they have to
fight each other for business orig
mating here and abroad. Such a
continued policy Of regulated
competition" he holds, eventually
will result in disaster for United
States international air commerce.
Straw in the Wind
With his opponents it is an
academic" matter: Huge monopo-
lies are bad for the people, bad
for the Nation. Competition is the
life of trade, competition produces
better goods and services for the
people. Mr.. Trippe wants to regain
his lost monopoly in international
air commerce. Such a monopoly,
in the opinion of some, is an evil
policy, highly inefficient and dead
ening to the best interests of the
United States.
Dispassionate and neutral fol-
lowers of this serious problem be-
lieve the next few months and
years will find the United States
phase of foreign air commerce
continually in the spotlight as Mr..
Trippe and his Pan American
earnestly" carry out the mandate
of the Civil Aeronautics Board
that there be competition-com-
petition to be so thorough, so
devastating as to drive them out
of business. or so weaken them
that they will gladly sell out to
Mr.. Trippe at his price. Then
there will be but one United States
airline and the regulated compe-
tition policy will die.
The action of American Airlines,
the Nations largest domestic oper-
ator, in agreeing to sell out it's
North Atlantic operation known
as American Overseas Airlines,
which has competed with Pan
American under CAB authority
since November, 1945, is not an
example of what Mr.. Trippe can
do to competitor, though it's
straw in the wind. CAB Exam
iner Thomas L. Wrenn, on De-
cember %, recommended the deal
go through. But before AOA is
absorbed by Pan American, SIM
liar approval must be forthcom-
ing from the full Civil Aeronautics
Board and President Truman who
enters the picture because it in
wolves foreign operations of United
States Airlines. These approvals
are several weeks away. American
gave as its reason for wanting to
sell AOA that events and condi-
tions in Europe in the last four
years have not conformed to it's
optimistic estimates made early in
1945 when they sought and OBJ
tained permission to compete with
Pan American on the North At
lantic. and that. it did not appear
profitable to continue.
Mr.. Trippe and his Pan Ameri-
can are more widely known be-
yond the nations shores than they
are in the average American city,
for they have never operated do
mestically. A detailed background
OF the origin and growth of what
is now the worlds largest airline
Is necessary to evaluate the news
to come in the next few weeks
and beyond.
How Pan-Am Started
The Trippe family were original
settlers on the Eastern Shore of
Maryland on land decided by the
Crown during the colonization and
Juan Terry Trippe was born at
Seabright, N. j.. to Charles w.
and Lucy Adeline Terry Trippe
on June 27, 1899. (His first name
Juan was derived from his ma
ternal grandmother who was
Spanish and named Juanita.)
He was at Yale when the first
war began and he left for the
Navy and became a Naval aviator
Returning in 1919, he played foot
ball and rowed on the crew. He
was chairman of the Yale
Graphic. and a classmate, Samuel
F. Pryor, now ranking Pan Amer
ican vice president and former
Republican National Committee
man for Connecticut, was busi-
ness manager. Mr.. Trippe was
graduated from Yale in 1922 ano
Immediately entered Wall Street
expecting to settle down in the
family banking business of Trippe
g. Co. But after a year, he decided
to cast his career with aviation
which at that time was most un-
attractive. But the young man hac