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Aviation History
1934
1934 - 0006.PDF
FLIGHT, JANUARY 4, 1934 CUn, Jicuafunfi <E Commence AIR TRAVEL IN THE UNITED STATES •R. GORDON ENGLAND, in a talk to members of the Press at Caxton House on Thursday, December 21, gave some interesting impressions on flying in the United States. In company with Mr. A. L. McColl and Mr. H. Holliday, Joint Manag- ing Directors of Vacuum Oil, he has just returned from " examining the economic situation in America. In general, Mr. Gordon England gave the impression that he considers we in Great Britain have something to learn from the other side of the Atlantic concerning the running of air lines. The American companies study the comfort of their passengers from a psychological point of view. For instance, Mr. Gordon England was very struck with the " hostesses," their attractive green uniform, and the fact that they were always ready to do everything "for the convenience and comfort of passengers. Refreshments of a light nature, such as coffee, chocolate, and iced drinks are supplied free of charge. No instruments are exposed in the cabin, as it is thought best to keep passengers ignorant concerning the height at which the machine is flying, and the speed thereof, but, inconsistently, passen- gers are informed if bad weather is likely to be en- countered. Mr. Gordon England then gave an account of a flight which he did in a Boeing 247 of United Air Lines between New York and Chicago, the flight being made during the night. He was collected at his hotel by a very comfort- able Cadillac five-seater car. The checking of his ticket, weighing of baggage and other necessary formalities were over in just about 2 min., and there was a comfortable waiting room in which one could sit until the machine was due to leave. As soon as the cabin of the machine was entered a notice flashed up informing passengers that they must not smoke and that " seat belts " must be fixed ; incidentally, the use of the term " safety belt " is religiously avoided, also for psychological reasons. As soon as the machine had reached a reasonable height the undercarriage was drawn up by electrical gear with more noise than would be expected. Permission was then given for smoking—cigarettes only, which were supplied by the company free of charge. The hostess went round taking orders for refreshments, and supplying pillows, papers and periodicals. When about to land, notices were again flashed up ordering the donning of " seat belts," and Mr. Gordon England particularly took notice of the fact that the pilot avoided doing steep turns while gliding in to land. On the return journey a landing was made at Cleveland in a snow-storm with the aid of a beacon with a shadow bar, akin to the one in use at Heston. Here again the arrange- ments were good. Passengers were presented with cheques for the unexpired portion of then- fares and informed that lower sleeping berths had been booked for them on the train. There is an hourly service be- tween New York and Chicago, and if the passenger demand i^ great enough, it is increased to a half-hourly service ; machines do not leave between 09.30 p.m. and 06.30 a.m. On the average there is more demand for the night ser- vice. The journey is made in 5 hr. 30 min., compared with the AN AERIAL SLEEPER : The sleeping accommodation provided by Eastern Air Transport on one of their Curfiss " Condor " air- liners. 20 hr. taken by train, and there is not much difference between the Pullman rail fare and the fare by air. In the air the cabin of the Boeing 247 is reasonably quiet, though not as quiet as the cabin of one of the latest types used by Imperial Airways. The ventilation was also good. The pilots are all experienced men. Before each flight each pilot and the company's manager are required to study the weather reports from all along the route, and sign a chit stating that they are satisfied the conditions are good enough for the flight to be made. In the air they have to report by wireless every 20 min. The cruising speed of the Boeing 247 is, according to Mr. England, in the region of 170 m.p.h., and a new machine is being built which should cruise at nearly 200 m.p.h. THE DUTCH AIR MAIL RECORDA T 9.40 last Saturday evening, December 30, the thousands of watchers crowded on and around the aerodrome at Schiphol, Amsterdam, heard the drone of the engines of the record-breaking Pelikaan in the air above them. A dense mist made land- ing a difficult—at one time, indeed, it was feared an impossible—task, and it was not until 10.14 that the machine came to rest amid the cheers of the vast assemblage. So ended what is indisputably the greatest flight in thehistory of Dutch commercial aviation, and one which the air services of other nations may well envy. The featappears even more remarkable when it is remembered that both the Dutch machines which were to have attacked (infact, if not in theory) the East Indian record were succes- sively put out of action within a few days of each other—the Pander Postjager by the failure of a motor soon after the beginning of its attempt, and the Fokker Zilver-meeuw by a motor defect which prevented her from taking off. The Pelikaan, which, when suddenly called upon to per- form the seemingly impossible in defence of Dutch aerial prestige, " rose " so nobly to the occasion, is one of the five Fokker F.XVIII's which the K.L.M. have been using with a success which has grown almost monotonous on the East Indian route since the end of 1931. Its three Pratt & Whitney " Wasp " (type C) 440-h.p. motors give it a nominal speed of 125 m.p.h., although the actual cruising 10
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