The Key West citizen. [volume], December 04, 1953, Page Page 12, Image 12

About The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current

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Smathers Plans To Renew Efforts To Gain
Establishment Of AF Academy In Florida
Urts First Key
West To Havana
Airline As An
Aviation Advance
MIAMI - Senator George Sma
then traced Florida's historic role
as center ot international aviation
development la an address last
sight in which he announced {dans
to renew his efforts to locate a na
tional Air Force Academy within
toe state.
The Senator spoke at a dinner
celebrating the 25th anniversary of
the “Miami Story" in aviation and
paying tribute to Captain Eddie V.
Rickeobacker, the World War I
pilot ace who has been one of the
nation's great air lanes pioneers.
Smathers admitted frankly that
he cento net predict thet em
press either wfll eutherise en Air
Perse Academy, er thet the
eeiectien heard, when activated,
wauld select the "sunshine state."
"But there la nothing that Con
gress can do, or fail to do," he
Mid. "Which will adversely affect
Florida’s position aa the number
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one avis tin state in the nation and
Ithe greatest of international air
commerce center*
Somewhat facetiously. Senator
Smathe.s added:
"I think we sen exercise the
feresifht to envision, ir the
'specs world' of the future which
is se reel to eur beys who fellow
the cem s c strips, that both Suck
Refers end the Spec# Cadets
will someday be operating from
• Specs Academy in the heart of
Florida."
In recounting Florida contribu
tion to aviation, Smatbers said a
“dynamic outlook" of forward-look
ing Florida citiaens had a great
deal to do with forming “receptive
attitudes sad a sense of air-mind
edness” m America. He cited three
j contributing events,
i The first of these early events
was the creation and publishing of
.the world’s first aviation legisla
ition. On July 17, 1908, there ap
peared in the Kissimmee Valley
Gazette a proposed ordinance for
the regulation of aircraft. The pro
posed ordinance was perhaps as
much an exercise in legal seman
tics as a practical piece of legis
lation. preceding, as it did, wide-
I spread use of the airplane by many
years. The Kissimmee ordinance
was published more than a year
before the first reported flight
made in Florida.
Although never officially adopted
into local law, the proposed ordi
nance, and Kissimmee itself, re
ceived attention from cities all
over the country and from abroad.
Commenting on the wide publicity
resulting from publication of the
document. Col. William Lazarus re
ported that it “became the basis
of international treaties; its repro
duction is s matter of official re
cord in the archives of nations and
its provisions have been fully ac
credited sa an outstanding piece
of wisdom and foresight by dis
tinguished scholars, diplomats, and
journalists."
Another event which was help
ing to condition the minds of Flo
ridians to the new mode of travel
came about in 1912. This was the
first West-to-East transcontinental
flight performed by Robert W.
Fowler. Mr. Fowler’s flight was an
unsuccessful attempt to capture
the William Randolph Hearst prize
for the first coast-to-cost trip by
powered airplane. The flight be
gan at Passndena, California on
October 11. 1911 and ended at
Jacksonville on February t, 1912.
The flight impressed many people
with the future possibilities of sir
transportation.
The establishments ef the Na
val Air Statien at Pensacela dur
ing the winter ef 1913-1914 was
a nether event which helped the
peeple f Florida to adjust them
selves quickly to the concept ef
flying. The Navel facility at Pen
sacola become e permanent air
statien and exertod a rather
strong influence, aviatianwisa, en
the people at Florida.
While plans were being formulat
ed for the establishment of the
Pensacola Air Station, another
event took place which had the ef
fect of making the people of Flo
rida air-conscious. This was the es
tablishment of the nation’s first
scheduled commercial airline. On
January 1, 1914 the Benoist Com
pany, using a Benoist flying boat,
inaugurated air passenger service
between Tampa and St. Peters-‘
burg were situated on opposite sid
es of Tampa Bay with no bridge
! connections to shorten the distance
between them. To travel across the
bay by boat or around by land con
sumed nearly a full day. The Ben
out seaplane flew across the bay
in less than one-half hour. Thu
feat of shortening travel distance,
while greatly accelerating the
speed of travel, has been an out
standing advantage of air trans
portation.
j Proof of the foresigbtedness of
the people of Miami can be shown
Proof of the foresightedness of
the people of Miami can be shown
by their act of 1912. A tract of
land, now occupied by the Miami
Springs Golf Course, was designat
ed as an airport. This is reported
to be one of the first established
airports ir the United States.
During the first Werlc War,
military activities in aviation
generally overshadowed civilian
efforts in this field. However, at
the close ef the war, interest in
civilian flying was revived. On
November 1, 1920 the nation's
first international airline was
formed. Known as Aeromarine
| Airways, Inc., the line operated
between Key West and Havana.
! Florida’s contribution tc the car
riage of international mail by air
is significant. Col. Gazarus re
ported that the first suen flight oc
curred on October 28, 1927 when
mail was transported by air be
tween Meacham Field, Key West
and Havana Of greater signific
ance was the Foreign Air Mail
Act of 1928. Of the seven mail
routes authorized to the Caribbean,
and Latin American areas, five
originated in tne United States.
Four of these terminals were in
Florida.
Seme ef the early ventures in
commercial flying In Florida
wara net successful,' although
each mada soma contribution to
eviction. Seme, however, have
been successful. Two notable ex
amples are the water flying base
at Biscayna Bay, oparatad by
A. B. Chalk, and tha land bata
at Jacksonville, operated by Lau
rie Yonge. Beth gentlemen com
menced operation in the early
1920's and hava continued suc
cessfully through the years,
i Another important aviation mile
stone in Florida which occurred
at this time was the organization
of the Florida Airways Corporation.
The organizers were Reed Cham
bers, Eddie Rickenbackei W. A.
Robertson, and Edward Hart.
Florida Airways is given the dis
tinction of being the first schedul
ed line to flj jthe mail in Florida.
Beginning operations on April 1,
1926, Florida Airways flew the
mail between Miami, Tampa and
Jacksonville.
Operation over the new Miami-
Atlanta route was begun on De
cember 1, 1928. On that day, Flor
ida was connected by air with
New York and large intermediate
ipoints along the Eastern Seaboard.
On March 1, 1929, Pitcairn ex
! tended air mail service to Day
-1 tone Beach, Orlande, and Tampa
| St. Petersburg. Tha new route
from Atlanta to Florida totaled
777 miles, which slightly exceed
ed tha 743 miles of the original
Now York-Atlanta route.
When we entered the aecond
World War, Florida was ready to
play its part. Its contribution to
the war effort was enormous. In
field of aviation alone there
were over 120 airports and bases
under military control. Someone
has estimated that the paving of
all runways, aprons, and taxiways
j*Follow The SuiT Is Storv Of A Great Colfer
J
In “Folio* The Sun ' the screen
profile of golfer Ben Hogan com
ing to the Strand Theatre on Sun
day, Twentieth Century-Fox has
brought to the screen the most
dramatic sports event of the last
quarter century. Glenn Ford. An
ne Baxter and Dennis OKeefe
have the starring roles in this
heart-warming story which Direc
tor Sidney Lanfieid says could just
as well have been titled: “The real
life love story of two kids from
Texas." June Havoc heads the
impressive supporting cast of 29
players not counting 'he dozen golf
pros, headed by Sammy Snead.
Jimmy Demaret and Dr. Cary
Middlecoff, who, add their skill to
making “Follow The Sun” a thrill
ing saga.
Six weeks before the piccture
went before the cameras Hogan,
who gave up his tournament play
to be a special consultant on the
production of his life itory, took
Ford under his tutelage in prepara
tion for one of the most exacting
roles any Hollywood actor has had
in years. Every day the pair prac
ticed Ford in Hogan’s accurate
style in golf. During this interval,
Anne Baxter spent much time with
Mrs. Hogan so that ner portrayal
would form a 20-foot highway from
Florida to Alaska.
Eastern Airlines closed out its
period of service with the Military
Transport Division in October
1945. The record indicates that
Eastern flew 200 million miles car
rying a total of 125,000 passengers
and 60 million pounds of cargo.
Eastern, like Florida, made its
weight felt during the war years.
The report showed that for the
period from June 1946 to June 1947
a total of 29,917 people had been
directly employed in Aviation,!
while an additional 33,356 persons
were associated with the field, such
as students and personal pilots.
The payroll for all aviation activi
ties in the State was reported at
nearly $Bl million. Supplies bought
in Florida amounted to SB9 million,
while indirect aviation revenues in
the State were estimated at s4l
million. Total expenditures within
Florida for the year came to about
s2ll million. The total investment
was reported to be over $7Ol mil
lion. This is a clear indication of
the importance of aviation to Flor
ida.
It is interesting to note that, ac
cording to the survey, the sche
duled airlines employed 10,289 per
sons in Florida during that period,
reports indicated that the lines
with a payroll of $33 million. The
spent about S7O million in the State
for supplies, and that their capital
investment amounted to $34 mil
lion.*
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of Valerie Hogan in the film would
be as exact a characterization as
Ford's. O'Keefe, who bolds many
amateur boners among Holly
wood’s golfers, fitted perfectly into
his role of a breezy, tournament
pro wbo befriends Hogan and who
has a tempetuous romance with
June Havoc in the role of a blonde
socialite wbo basked in the reflect
ed glory of the golf champions.
. For background scenes, special
camera units were sent to all parts
of the United States from Hogan's
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home town Fort Worth. Texas, to
Nigara Fails. Canada with stops
at all th famous got! courses a
long the ‘ Follow The Sun" trail.
The story for “Follow The Sun”
was written by Frederick Hazlett
Brennan and Samuel G. Engl* was
the producer.
Only three pitchers who began
the 1951 season with Cincinnati are
still with the Redlegs - Ken Raf
fensberger, Hera Wehmieer and
Frank Smith.
ICaroleoauc** LA
DAYTON. Ohio David Hale,
35, told police before he died that
he sat down in a f eld, tit a cig
aret and dozed off.
He was found m the middle of
Page 12
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READ THE CITIZEN DAILY
Friday, December 4. 19SS