OF MEN AND WINGS

men and wings toward the close of World War one men of vision took the wings of war and turned them to a peaceful task the flying a veil from Washington to New York President Wilson officiated as these army planes and pilots working with the post office Department set out to prove that airmail was practical the planes were all de Havilland this was a momentous day for these men and these wings proved that airmail had a future a year or so later they had set new records these early pilots had a right to be proud of their accomplishments [Music] but airmail was not the only news the suffragettes were parading in triumph radio was just getting started the prohibition amendment was ratified by 46 states and Warren Harding won the Republican nomination for the presidency 25 years ago the first transcontinental airmail left Hazlehurst field Mineola New York on September 8 1920 the pilot stuffed the excess mail in the suitcase tied to the wing and took off almost unnoticed the route was over the historic pathway of the Pioneers New York Chicago Omaha San Francisco a route selected by the post office department because it provided a direct line between the two coasts even the Indians welcomed the new sky birds time for airmail across the country by plane and train was approximately three days for four years airmail travelled on wings by day only then in July of 1924 it took wings all the way with the air fields lighted from Chicago to Cheyenne the transcontinental Mail took off slashing the time across the country to 32 hours it was news and the newsreels of the day told the story with this flickering map [Music] remember those days this ice man was the idol of the Monday morning quarterbacks yes it's Red Grange the galloping ghosts and all America was singing this tune [Music] politically the democrats sweltered through 10 July days at Madison Square Garden while Alabama held out for the refrain 24 votes for Underwood a young man named Roosevelt addressed the convention in Atlantic City bathing beauty contest captured the public eye that year flannel slacks for men were called Oxford bags and the dance of the day was the Charleston Congress appropriated a million in the quarter dollars to light the Airways and continued service new fields were laid out by 1925 they were equipped with lights from New York to Salt Lake City arc lights were used to light the runways and although they helped they were a far cry from today's floodlight in airports during the early 20s the government had proved the value and feasibility of airmail service then in twenty six and twenty seven came other men with planes like these privately owned companies carrying the mail under contract to the government National Air Transport flew East and south from Chicago Boeing Air Transport from Chicago to San Francisco Barney Airlines between Pasco Washington and Elko Nevada Pacific Air Transport between Los Angeles and Seattle these pioneers later merged to become United Airlines [Music] remember this tune well everybody was singing it when Gertrude Ederle swam the English Channel and returned to a big New York reception in 27 bill Boing's wife christened the new Boeing 40 the first plane designed for commercial airmail and passenger flights this dirty craft carried a 1600 pound load the pilot two passengers baggage and male passengers crouched together in a box-like cabin alighting 14 times at refueling stops later Boeing forties carried poor passengers well there are 32 hours of flight from coast to coast these adventures some travelers paid four hundred dollars roughly three times the present fare for an overnight trip between the Atlantic and Pacific but even at that it was better than running across the continent in CC piles famous Bunyan Derby and still better than wearing yourself out in a dance marathon and other craze that swept the country during 1928 in 1929 [Music] along the Airways other men were flying ever increasing airmail loads by 1929 the route was lighted from coast-to-coast then men built bigger wings the Ford tri-motor carried 14 passengers in what was then called lounge chair comfort and on the western half of the run baked rye motored boeing ats ate up the miles passengers now had room enough to walk around and the first stewardesses made their appearance to add to the comfort of air travel and instead of depending on amateur weather reports phoned in from hotel clerks and railroad station agents expert meteorologists began to check the winds aloft plop the highways of the air and up-to-the-minute report on flying conditions was made available to airline pilots [Music] to the tune of exactly like you Bobby Jones won the Grand Slam and golf in 1930 he was the king of the links and why not with putting like this and while women wore hats like these 1931 models United Airlines further developed its coast to coast and Pacific Coast system in 33 came new revolutionary wings the nation's first all-metal low wing twin-engine transport forerunner of today's multi motored commercial and military planes the Boeing 247 the famous 247 carried ten passengers and cargo at a three mile a minute clip travelers wrote an increased comfort eight meals served by stewardesses streaked from coast to coast and nineteen and a half hours [Music] err pioneers like Jack Knight shown here at the right now we're flying passengers mail and Express and two-way radio became a vital aid to airline operations we were having a depression then and we fought it with the National Recovery Act the blue eagle of the NRA across the ocean in 1936 Hitler Mussolini and company were plotting trouble and the fat Goering bloated happily [Music] then came still more speed and luxury with a Douglass built Mainliner a 12-ton plane which carried 21 passengers a kitchenette stewardess and all the comforts of home including bridge there were also beds for night travelers in 1938 the whole country United in celebrating airmail week while airliners swing high over the cities during the celebration a ten-year-old blowing 40 was given to Henry Ford as an addition to his Museum of Americana incidentally the plane was blown to Detroit by Jack Knight [Music] but all was not peaceful for evil men were plotting to put wings to other uses the Japs sank an American ship the pan I in 1938 then men and wings on the other side of the world with mad the mighty German Luftwaffe struck at Poland they bombed and strafed ports the wings of peace into wings of war [Music] the vaunted mere mocked frost defenseless frontiers but America was untouched the nations of the world were invited to congregate at two World's Fairs one in New York and the other on the opposite shore of the continent at San Francisco [Music] untouched well not quite well there was war in the offing even then and these women with wings United Airlines stewardesses offered to serve with the Army Nurse Corps if the time should come when they were needed [Music] in those days everybody flew young and old even this whole family the largest in the country they filled a whole plane of course that was BP before priorities the age of flight was dawning and people all over the country were becoming air minded they liked the comfort convenience and the speed of air travel this was the plane we hope for then a four motor giant the Douglas dc-4 able to carry more passengers in even greater comfort with still more speed [Music] this plane was complete with special services wide berths for pleasant sleep and even telephones bigger wings were needed airline ticket offices were doing a rushing business where war was pressing us hard and the tempo of the times was quickening statesmen and diplomats took to the air Wilkie arrived in Denver for a major political conference ex-president Hoover flew in [Music] war was close indeed and on October 29th 1940 in the country looked toward Washington where on that day Secretary of War Stimson drew the first number in the great Selective Service lottery and President Roosevelt spoke to the nation there was Stern work ahead four men and four wings too because with the March of events quick stepping to the brink of battle more and more letters traveled by air more and more air express was piled into the waiting main liners there were more miles to be covered passengers to be flown war production materials to be speeded from place to place it was more important now than ever before to get from coast to coast in a day or a night the war drums were sounding louder [Music] [Applause] [Music] important to wear diplomatic visitors who required special planes like this one which brought South American officials to Washington in May of 1941 and in Chicago young America was learning about aviation here at a model plane contest pilots of the war to come we're learning about stabilizers torque wing camber even radio control [Music] and so war came Pearl Harbor men and wings were needed to meet a crisis in the nation's life many airliners joined the army men and women to built new wings wings for war the Douglas dc-4 was transformed into the military c-54 which became the Air Transport commands workhorse on the far flung air ways to combat fronts there were men to be trained plenty of men to be trained fast link trainer classes like this helped produce a great new crop of pilots [Music] transport planes were carrying soldiers fifty at a clip with full equipment under direct military contract experienced airline crews move virtually any cargo anywhere at any time men of United Airlines made over three thousand flights across the Pacific carried six million pounds of cargo to Alaska while our troops were landing on foreign shores United modified five thousand Flying Fortresses at Cheyenne carried peak loads of war essential passengers and cargo even with reduced beats of planes the nation's airlines set new month-by-month performance records then came peace in Europe the men and wings of the United Nations had beaten the Nazis here at home crowds jammed the streets to celebrate VE Day today we had all wanted and prayed for with victory in the Pacific the wings of peace will spread again ere progress will continue along the original coast-to-coast airway [Music] these are the giant for motored wings which lift half a hundred people and tons of cargo into the air twist them across the nation at five miles a minute in nine and a half hours or less comfortably conveniently efficiently these are the mainline ships these are the wings of men [Music] but this is not the end it is the beginning the beginning of the age of flight [Music]