ATLANTIC FLYING

Evening Star, Issue 22106, 13 August 1935, Page 7

ATLANTIC FLYING

THE NATIONS MOVING A COMMERCIAL SERVICE Few ’ innovations in the realm of transport are being more overlooked than are the air-mail and passenger services across the Atlantic, says a writer in the ‘ Winnipeg Free Press.’ They are certainly, except for some 70 crossings by airships, confined to the South Atlantic. But they are now far from being new. The beginning of May brought the first anniversary of Germany’s completed year of weekly air crossings from the African coast to Natal, Brazil, carrying Berlin mail to Buenos Aires in four days. The French do better than that occasionally, and deliver Paris mail at Buenos Aires in three days, and less. A variety of difficulties prevents the British and American. problem of commercially flying the North Atlantic from being so complicated as the Gormans and French have found operating services across the South Atlantic. The British and Americans were inclined to take the North Atlantic, at their own good time. They cannot afford to delay much longer. They have to establish themselves over the Atlantic if they are not to discount the projects they have completed. _ The United States Pan-American Airways gained a magnificent lead in South America, but is finding its traffic being stolen by German and French lines_ flying direct to Europe. North American air transport remains unentered for, and it is the richest unserved in the world. The Germans have been making heroic efforts for the last year especially to gain it for their airships. When their hopes were brightest at Washington, they were blighted by an unrelated. unfortunate happening. But very soon the Graf Zeppelin is to be replaced by the newer sind larger airship that should be flying across the Atlantic very shortly.

FRANCE ARRIVES. France came openly into the North Atlantic picture last April, when her director of civil aviation announced the completion of arrangements wi.th Great Britain and the United States, for an airline across the North Atlantic. This line is to link London, Paris, and New York, and it may be the first flyingboat service over the Atlantic. Its route is by way of the Azores and Bermuda. Probably for this reason it can never satisfy, nor justify, the British demand for Empire airlines. It cannot be the filial effort of the British to establish an air route over the North Atlantic. What it will do, however, is to deprive Canada of the advantage of her position. France has- not been particularly generous in her attitude towards British air lines, and has gone out of her way to withhold permission to fly over her territory. Sir Eric Geddes, speaking as chairman at the tenth annual general meeting of Imperial Airways, said: “Permission to cross France was conditional upon terms which we considered far too onerous, having regard to what France obtains from the Empire, and, indeed, to what France obtains under any circumstances.” The permission has since been granted, but it remains conditional, perhaps properly, but it was extracted only under compulsion, which had become necessary. France seemed to imagine she could fly the British Far East and African routes to get to her far-distant colonies, while for years compelling British air passengers for the East to alight and entrain across France. NOT REVEALED. Why France should now be brought into the North Atlantic airline project remains to be explained. But she has gained a footing and established a partnership. M. Louis Couhe, who led the French mission to Washington in April said: “ France has established the basic points of transatlantic airline in conference with business and Governmental circles both in the United States and Great Britain.” Private companies have entered a pool to operate a yearround service over the Azores-Bermuda route. The route is, however, one of the matters still in abeyance, to be further considered by the pool interests. M. Couhe had a very good knowledge of the three alternative routes over the North Atlantic. The sub-Arctic, or Greenland, route hud been fully explained to him by Colonel Lindbergh at Paris. They found themselves, M. Couhe announced, “ in complete accord that although that route might constitute a secondary service during the summer months, weather conditions rendered it unsuitable for year-round traffic.” There is the Great Circle route, from Ireland to Newfoundland or the coast of Canada, but M._ Couhe does not approve of it. He said if is “ meteorologically the worst. Storm and fogs disqualify it for the kind of regular services envisaged by the Anglo-Franco-American project.” SOUTHERN ROUTE. The Southern, or Azores, route will be the first over the North Atlantic probably to be flown by the international pool. It has its special advantages, mainly climatic, but these may be offset by its clisadvantages, from a British point of view, for neither of the nations using it has control over the Azores. The French once had exclusive flying rights on the islands, but relinquished them in 1933. France first held them as a stage in her South American airline. But M. Cot, Air Minister at the time, complained that the Portuguese asked too much for the concession. They insisted that services to the Portuguese colonies be operated. Then Great Britain and the United States obtained the concession, and Imperial Airways, Pan-American Airways, and Aeropostale (now Air France) agreed on the joint operatipn of the Azores-Bermuda route.

This lifting of the curtain gives only a mere glance at what is happening behind the scenes. It is not the whole story. Imperial Airways and PanAmerican Airways still have their joint agreement based on Imperial Airways’ 12 more years of exclusive flying rights in Newfoundland. Where Canada comes in is not clear. She once held the key position. She is fast slipping into a backwater. The possibilities that are still hers will have to bo grasped more vigorously if they are not to be lost. None of the pooled air interests or any of the countries fighting for control of the Atlantic airlines, is likely to care a rap how Canada fares. It is up to her to look more intelligently and more energetically after her own commercial flying interests.