AIR MAIL SERVICES.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVI, Issue 20244, 2 May 1929, Page 13

AIR MAIL SERVICES.

NOTABLE EVENT IN ARCTIC^

DOG TEAMS SUPERSEDED.

FIRST JOURNEY ACCOMPLISHED. [FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT. 5 VANCOUVER, April's. The arrival of the first air mail afc Aklavik, the Eskimo metropolis on the Arctic Ocean at the mouth of the Mackenzie, is a notable event in aviation history in Canada. The air distance from Edmonton, capital of Alberta, and headquarters of the Western Canada Airways, is 2000 miles. The first mail journey was accomplished in mid-winter without, mishap. Hitherto the service in winter was carried out entirely by dogs. The time of the service was cut from six weeks to three days. Cabin ships will carry passengers, mail, newspapers, parcels and periodicals. The newspapers used to go down the Mackenzie only in summer. They accumulated at Fort McMurray, there to await the opening of navigation, when the small schooners of the Hudson's Bay Company leave for the Arctic Ocean. The dog teams could never take more than a fraction of the mail. Their limit was onlv 2501b.

The air mail was pushed north last year by degrees until it reached Fort Smith, on tho Slave River, at tho boundary of the North-west Territories and Alberta. From tliere it was carried by the dogs across the frozen Athabasca. And only twice each winter, the mail sled reached Aklavik. Now the mails are running fortuightly. Care o! Eskimo Babies. Who gets mail on the Arctic Ocean ? A natural question to one who does not know the developments of the Far North in the past few years. One item of that development suffices. . Afc Aklavik, tiio North-west Mounted Police have an infants' home, in charge of competent Eskimo women, wives of Eskimo employees of,the police. The home was established in 1925, to deal with infanticide among Eskimo mothers, who killed the female children to prevent them starving. Trappers have spread further northward as the great herds of cariboo and fur-bearing animals have diminished in the south. Traders follow the trappers. Then the police, then tho Post Office, then the teacher and the missionary. Little communities spring up around the trading posts. Their only contact with civilisation is tho radio. There were notable flights during last year in the Arctic. Mining exploration groups chartered planes and flew for lengthy' periods over'the barren lands, south of tho circle and westward from Hudson Bay. The country is rich in orebearing bodies, and access is possible to some of these sectors only by air. One mining company owns a fleet of 12 planes. They flew men inland in the summer and left them for the winter to make investigations. In the meantime, planes are continuously catching supplies of food and gasoline at remote spots, in case of need. Two Remarkable Flights.' "Two remarkable flights were made to North Cape, by special arrangement with the Soviet Government. There a ship loaded with a valuable cargo of rare white fox became imbedded in the ice, and her cargo was lifted by a plane in two trips, which were made across 1000 miles of frozen waste that had never been traversed by dogs. The Western Canada 'Airways 'flew 540,000 miles and 6870 hours during the. year with 28 planes, carrying 1.200,0001b. of freight and express, 122,0001b. of mail and 9647 passengers—the passenger record exceeding the United States', two years ago. There is a daily service throughout the winter between the principal cities of the three Prairie Provinces. There are daily, weekly and tri-weekly services 'between the -■ more remote parts. . The of regular air passage across the Rockies is the subject of continuous experiment. The Western Canada Airways plans to institute its regular service during the summer, using the Kicking Horse Pass route. The Vancouver air mails connect with Victoria and the Pacific Statos to San Diego. The air mail takes a day off tho two and a-half days' rail journey to' catch the steamers at San Francisco for Australia and New Zealand. A United State's air mail, from Seattle to Alaska, calls at British Columbia points en route. Sixteen Canadian Flying Clubs. In the east, Montreal and Toronto have a number of daily air mail services connecting with New York, Chicago and other centres. Four or five days have been cut from the mail time between London and Vancouver and Australia and New Zealand, by the air mails, The English mails are lifted from the steamers afc Quebec and taken to Montreal on tho first span. The time is forecast when air mail stamps affixed in London will guai-antee letters for Australia and NewZealand travelling across Canada by air. The -air mail stamp of 2£ cents is uniform throughout Canada and United States. A reciprocal arrangement enables letters with one postage to be carried oyer United States from Canada, and vice' versa.

There are 16 flying clubs in Canada, from coast to coast, with ai total membership of 2400 members. To each club the Federal Government grants two machines. When the club has at least 30 members, the Government provides a fields instructor and maintenance. Each year, one additional plane is given by the Government to the club if it provides itself with another. Do Haviland Moths are the type chosen. In addition, the Government grants £2O for each member who qualifies as a private pilot.