Air Transport Facts
Annual Growth of the Federal Airways System
The U.S. Department of Commerce maintains on the Federal Airways System 81 radio range beacons and 1,988 great lighted beacons, each of one million or more candlepower, which can be seen 30 miles away.
The airways are now used by the domestic air transport lines operating on schedule, the Army Air Corps, the Navy Bureau of Aeronautics, National Guard flying units, reserve units, commercial flying schools, Federal and State departmental units, aerial and charter plane services and private owners.
The air lines carry thousands of different things needed in a hurry by business and industry throughout the United States and in all other parts of the Western Hemisphere.
During the last 5 years our air lines, domestic and international, have nearly trebled the total length of their routes -- from 16,667 miles in 1928 to 47,595 miles in 1933.
More than 30,000 airplanes and 50,000 airplane engines have been built in the United States since the Wright brothers invented the airplane and made the first flight 30 years ago -- December 17, 1903.
The contract mail lines operate over key routes to form trunk-line systems of general usefulness in the entire transportation scheme, supplementing the older surface facilities and speeding up travel and deliveries in all sections.
Air mail corsses the continent in less than a day, or reaches the most distant capitals in South America within 7 days.