Honolulu Liners?

Paul W. Litchfield, president of Good-year-Zeppelin Corp., last week called on President Hoover to ask whether the U. S. would look with favor on granting a contract to carry mail by Zeppelin from California to Honolulu. Evidently the President's reply was favorable, for Mr. Litchfield announced plans for constructing two giant dirigibles twice the size of (he Graf Zeppelin. The two ships, sisters of the two huge ships which Goodyear is constructing for the U. S. Navy, are to use helium as their supporting gas, will have engines and cabins enclosed in the hulls, will cost about five million dollars each. The first is to be launched about Jan. 1, 1931.

Gases

In preparation for the return trip of the Graf Zeppelin to Friedrichshafen, if and after it reaches the U. S. next week as planned, Union Carbide & Carbon Co. last week shipped several tank cars of a new fuel gas to Lakehurst. The German dirigible in its flight to the U. S. last year, used gas instead of gasoline as fuel for its engines--the reason being that when gasoline is used up, an airship becomes lighter and rises unless some of its bag gas is also set free, a costly expedient. Gaseous fuel as it is used up can be replaced by air without loss of weight.*

The Germans adopted "Blau" gas, a mixture of several gases obtained by cracking petroleum. The gas prepared to take the Graf Zeppelin back to Germany is ethane, extracted from natural gas. It is asserted that ethane is not only cheaper to produce than Blau gas but is a better fuel. Germany, which has little natural gas, cannot produce it.

An official of Helium Co., which prepares that gas for use in dirigibles, announced last week the discovery of a new helium deposit, the situation of which was not made public. Helium, which is almost as light as hydrogen, has the great advantage of being non-inflammable. But, rare, it is expensive (about $35 per 1,000 cu. ft.). It is found mixed with natural gas. Hitherto there have been but two chief U. S. helium sources: 1) the Federal well at Amarillo, Tex.,/- which yields 1.75% of helium; 2) Helium Co.'s well at Dexter, Kan., which yields 2.4% of helium.

In Washington, last week, Walter H. Girdler, president of Helium Co., appeared before the Government's new helium committee (Secretaries Adams, Good, Lament) to protest that Government manufacture of helium in competition with private industry is contrary to U. S. policy and precedent, that it threatens harm to commercial aeronautics.

Sky High

In July, 1927, a little Wright Apache plane with Lieut. C. C. Champion, U. S. N., at the stick, soared into the air and circled upward, ever upward, one mile, two miles, three, four, five, six, seven miles. Another 1,000 ft. he climbed into the rarefied air. At 38,418 ft. above sea level, seven cylinder-heads burst from his engine, the life-giving oxygen tube was torn from his lips, one barograph (altitude recorder) was blown to bits, his plane caught fire. All but unconscious from lack of air, like Icarus he plunged down from his eminence. Yet he succeeded in putting out the flames, in coming to earth alive, champion Champion, holder of the world's altitude record.

Last week the identical little cream-colored biplane with a Wasp engine in its nose taxied out upon the field of the naval air station at Washington, D. C. Forty gallons of gasoline were in its tank. In the cockpit was no Icarus. Instead was an Apollo wearing no triple woolen under wear -- merely ordinary clothing cased ty a furlined flying suit, sheepskin boots, fur helmet, fur mittens, a mask with an oxy gen tube (his nostrils were plugged so that he must breathe through his mouth) and a pair of goggles with tiny holes in them so that he might see when they be came frosted. He was Lieut. Apollo Soucek, U. S. N.

He taxied 25 yards and his machine took the air. Beginning to climb at an angle of 30 degrees, he went upward at the rate of 3,000 ft. per minute. In four minutes he had climbed two miles. He took a sniff of his oxygen to keep his head clear. The climb became only 2,000 feet a minute. He climbed three, four, five, six miles. The engine began to slow down for lack of air. He turned on the super charger to increase air pressure in the carburetor.

Watchers on the ground had lost sight of the little plane in the sky. But when the supercharger was turned on, smoke began to pour from the exhaust. Apollo's place in the sky was once more visible.

His upward pace grew slower and slower. At 37,000 ft. frost formed upon his goggles. At about that time another airplane arrived--too late--at the airfield below, bringing another naval flier with a pair of electrically heated goggles that will not frost. The bringer of the goggles was Zeus,* brother of Apollo Soucek, coming from the Philadelphia naval aircraft factory.

High in the sky Apollo opened his oxygen supply full. The temperature was nearing a minimum of 76DEG below zero. The controls were growing stiff from cold. It became impossible to see anything even through the holes in the goggles. In spite of the temperature the flier ungoggled his eyes, the better to watch his instruments. He was dizzy but he pushed the plane slowly through a last thousand feet. At 39,140 ft. he finally pushed it too far. The nose whipped over; the plane plunged 2,000 ft. in a spin. Then the new holder of the altitude record took control of the machine once more, brought it and himself to earth unharmed, 1 1/4 hrs. after leaving.

From Medford, Okla., to Washington, sped a telegram of congratulation sent by John, father of Zeus and Apollo Soucek.

Chain Ports

Air transportation is becoming a bigger and bigger item. Last week was announced the formation of a company to own and operate a countrywide chain of airports. It is to be known as Curtiss Airports Corp. Clement Melville Keys, onetime teacher of the classics at Ridley College, Ont., now president of Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Co. and director of nearly a score of allied companies, is to be Chairman of the Board. Airports which are to form the skeleton of a still larger chain include: 1) Curtiss Airport, now being constructed at Valley Stream, L. I.; 2) New York Air Terminals (through 22% stock ownership), with a field at Secaucus, N. J., a lease on Hadley Field, New Brunswick, N. J., and various seaplane terminals to be constructed near New York Harbor; 3) Marvin Airport, at Fairfield, N. J.; 4) Reynolds Airport, near Glenview, north of Chicago; 5) Central Airport (through partial stock ownership), with a field at Camden, N. J., across the river from Philadelphia; 6) Main Line Airport (through controlling stock interest), with a field 18 miles west of Philadelphia; 7) Baltimore Airport, near Druid Hill Park on the outskirts of that city; 8) Willson Airport, to be constructed in Ohio across the river from Louisville, Ky.; 9) Bettis Airport (through controlling stock interest), with a field eight miles south of Pittsburgh; 10) Herrick Airport, near Gates Mills outside of Cleveland; 11) Steinberg Airport, near East St. Louis; 12) Alameda Airport (through stock interest), across the bay from San Francisco; 13) Grand Central Air Terminal, at Glendale, Cal., near Los Angeles.

*The fuel-weight problem has been differently solved in the Los Angeles. The gasoline burned in its engines lightens the ship, but one of the products of the combustion is steam. This is condensed into water at the exhaust, used as ballast to save loss of weight.

/- Hometown of loquacious Editor Gene Howe, ivho said that Mary Garden was "tottering'' (TIME, April 1); and of one R. H. Hamilton. A onetime judge who shot & killed Thomas Walton Jr., a 21-year-old college boy who entered his office last fortnight to announce that he had married Killer Hamilton's daughter Theresa, aged 19.

*Zeus Soucek holds the record for duration flight in a flying boat--36 hrs. 1 min.--made with Lieut. Arthur Gavin in May 1928.