Mail Contracts

Last week, after nearly three months of zero-zero political weather, the fog lifted and U. S. airlines got back the mail. Satisfied that the major companies had reorganized "in good faith," Postmaster General Farley awarded temporary contracts to low bidders on 15 of the 21 routes recently advertised by his Post Office Department.

Thus ended the greatest political setback the Administration has had so far and the greatest economic setback U. S. aviation has had since its beginning. With both Mr. Farley and the airlines apparently willing to let bygones be bygones, action was swiftly taken to relieve the Army of its onerous mail-carrying duties.

First to renew operations was United Air Lines, which took over the mail this week on its old Northern Transcontinental and Pacific Coast routes. Ready to fly the Central Transcontinental mail was Transcontinental & Western Air, which had gotten back its contract by bidding at an almost suicidal rate. Likewise ready was Eastern Air Lines, which was awarded the Newark-Miami and Newark-New Orleans contracts.

Four independents obtained contracts for less important routes, and contracts for three others were held up pending further investigation of the bidders' qualifications. Rejected were three bids, including that of Kohler Aviation Corp. for the Detroit-Milwaukee mail. Reason: vice president of Kohler Aviation Corp. is Richard W. Robbins, whom Mr. Farley ousted from the presidency of T.W.A. last month because he was present at the so-called "spoils conference" of 1930.

Mr. Robbins deliberately joined Kohler after cancellation to make a test case. Because Kohler never held a contract, but operated under a subcontract which became effective only two days before Mr. Farley took office, its past record is "clean." Mr. Robbins will resign to save Kohler's face, give it a chance to bid again. But to save the industry's face he is far from done with fighting Mr. Farley.

In addition to the contracts already awarded, Mr. Farley last week asked for bids on ten new routes, as well as on two of those rejected, to be opened late this month. Thus the new airmail map, as he contemplates it, will embrace some 28,500 mi., which is 3,300 mi. more than was routed before cancellation. Because of curtailed schedules, however, there will actually be 19,000 fewer miles flown daily under the new system than under the old.

This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so reader's discretion is required.