Ford Out?

Through the aviation industry last week flashed a report that Henry Ford is through building airplanes.

The aircraft plant at Dearborn, Mich, is shut down except for repair work on planes now in operation. From that plant, which produced 300 tri-motors at $50,000 each for the past five years, only four new ships have emerged since Jan. 1. Prospects for new orders were slim because 1) airline expansion has ceased at least for the present; 2) big operators are abandoning Fords in favor of planes made by allied builders; 3) some operators believe that the Ford, basically unchanged since 1927, is obsolete.

The second reason is well illustrated by American Airways and United Air Lines. American Airways is replacing Fords with Stinsons built by its new and influential stockholder Errett Lobban Cord. United, which currently flies Fords between New York and Chicago, is getting ready to install new high-speed Boeings capable of crossing the U. S. in 24 hours. Transcontinental & Western Air is expected to patronize Curtiss-Wright, to which it is related through their mutual holding company, North American Aviation, Inc.

Last week's report coincided with the resignation of white-haired William Benson Mayo, Ford's chief engineer for 19 years, and head of Ford's aviation division. Mr. Mayo said he planned to devote himself to private research in aeronautics. Of his former employer he said: "I don't know whether Ford will carry on in aviation or not. I don't think he has decided yet. I don't think he's lost interest. There's just so little business. . . ."

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