FAIRBANKS HAS BEEN ALASKAN AVIATION HUB SINCE THE EARLY DAYS
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Arrival in Fairbanks recently
of numerous foreign airplanes
because of weather conditions
elsewhere is not new to the old
timers living here.
Dating back to the arrival in
August 1920 of the famous
Black Wolf Squadron, Fair
banks has always been the
“hub” of flying in Alaska.
Even before the advent of mod
ern science in the field of aviation,
dozens of fliers made Fairbanks
the stopping point, or point of de
parture on round-the-world flights
and flights over the North Pole.
Since the day when Carl Ben
Eielson organized the first airplane
company in Alaska in Fairbanks,
the many flights were organized or
came through here.
First Airmail Flight
The first airmail flight in Alas
ka was by Eielson in February
1924.
The Wilkins Expedition utilized
Fairbanks in the years 1925-26 on an
attempt to fly over the North Pole
with Eielson as chief pilot.
It was common knowledge in
those days there were only three or
four days out of each year when
you couldn’t land or take off an
airplane in Fairbanks.
In 1928 Sir Hubert Wilkins and
Col. Eielson originated their flight
here to go over the North Pole,
flying from Point Barrow to Spitz
bergen. Both were decorated wide
ly throughout Europe for this dar
ing feat, said to be one of the
greatest in the annals of aviation.
Around the World
In 1931 the first flight around the
world by a single airplane was made
by Wiley Post and Harold Gatty—
and they landed in Fairbanks.
Wiley Post on a solo flight, came
to Fairbanks again in 1933. Actually
Joe Crosson had to fly parts to him
in Flat to continue his flight. Cros
son directed Post in the Winnie
Mae to Fairbanks from where he
continued on to New York.
Courtesv:
Fairbanks Health and Safety Council
The more chances you take,
the LESS chances you HAVE!
It now occurs to us to ask—Why
must there be a two to three year
battle every time a new traffic con
trol light is installed in the greater
Fail banks area? This was the ex
perience of the Fairbanks Health
and Safety Council and others in
terested in establishing traffic con
trol lights on Cushman at Main
school and at the Minnie-Third
Chena Drive intersection in Graehl
(both three year battles).
Now the Council, the Lemeta
Homemakers and the Joy School
PTA are working together in the
second year of effort to get the abso
lutely necessary traffic light on
College Rd. at Margaret . . . Where
two children already have been in
jured in traffic accidents since Sep
tember, one of them seriously . . .
What price Children? ? ?
* * *
For 1961, in the State of Alaska,
traffic fatalities were down, but fire
fatalities were UP, according to
statistics just released by the De
partment of Public Safety. Traffic
deaths totaled 26 as compared to
42 in 1960. BUT fires killed 51 per
sons in Alaska in 1961 or three times
the 17 persons who died in fires in
the State in 1960. Your cooperation
is needed to cut fire fatalities.
* * *
TELEVISION: The Big Brother
Movement as a possibility for Fair
banks will be discussed by Eugene
Zink of the State Welfare Depart
ment and Jim Couch of the Council
during the Fairbanks Health and
Safety Council’s telecast at 5 p.m.
Thursday on KTVF.
' '-■amer, in an attempt to
beat Post and Gatty’s record, landed
here on a flight in 1933. Later
Cramer was lost on another flight
from England to Iceland.
Arnold and Bombers
In August of 1934, Col. “Hap”
Arnold, later commanding general
of the Air Force, landed in Fair
banks with a group of ten Martin
bombers and based here for several
weeks flying to such outlying
points as Nome and Anchorage.
The main objective of the flight
was to take photos of the whole
Alaska terrain, and to prove that
bombers and fighter planes could
defend the country in the event of
war.
The flight was made over the
same route that the Black Wolf
Squadron used in 1920.
Mitchell Supporter
General Arnold was a great sup
porter of General William CBilly)
Mitchell and appeared in his behalf
at Mitchell's courtmartial in the
middle twenties. It was fitting he
should command this flight.
| Robbins and Mattern used Fair
banks as a point of overhead re
i fueling when they attempted to fly
non-stop from Seattle to Tokyo in
1936.
James Mattern on his flight
around the world in 1935 landed
here. Mattern had cracked up in ,
Siberia, and after making repairs,
came on to Fairbanks and continued
around the world from here.
Howard Hughes
In breaking Post's record flight
around the world, Howard Hughes
with four others, landed here in
July 1938.
Levanevsky, the famous Russian
flyer, planned to use Fairbanks as
a stopping point on a flight from
Moscow to Seattle in 1937, but was
lost on a flight near the North Pole.
In 1938 Japanese fliers used Fair
banks for refueling on a flight
from Tokyo to Seattle.
Charles F. Blair Jr., flew his air
plane from Bardufoss, Norway to
Fairbanks in May 1951, a distance
of 3300 miles, and then on to New
York from here, another 3450 miles.
PLAN TO ATTEND THE
WORLD'S FAIR
SEATTLE 1962
VIA
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