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About Medford mail tribune. (Medford, Or.) 1909-1989 | View Entire Issue (July 24, 1963)
B WEDNESDAY. JULY 24, 1SB3 MEDFORD MAIL TRIBUNE. MEDFORD. OREGON ms mgr. fflff ISP T ' aT . - - " ' A is - Mm n i Ply Tige Line Observes Anniversary ing After Battling Overwhelming dds By ROBERT J. SERLING UPI Aviation Editor Washington - (UPii - Just 18 years ago, a group of fighter pilots started an airline. Their chances of succeeding were roughly akin to Slip pery Rock beating the Green Bay Packers. But this was no ordinary group of pilots and they started no ordinary airline. Today, it carries the name "The Flying Tiger Line." The 11 men who founded it in June, 1945, were members of the original Flying Tigers who chewed up the Japanese Air Force before and during World War II. Eight still are with the company-five ' a s senior captains, two in top management and the eight, Robert W. Prescott, as presi' dent. Prescott and his 10 buddies raised $90,000 to start the airline. Three Los : Angeles businessmen chipped in an other $90,000. With $180,000 in the till, the Tigers put a down payment on 14 Budd 'Conestoga" Airfreighters and began operations out of Long Beach, Calif.' Original Company Originally, the company was known as National Sky way Freight Corp., but two years later Prescott changed this to the Flying Tigers Line- a smart as well as sentimental move because the name car ried connotations of the old Tigers' reputation for "can do" in face of any odds. And the odds against com mercial success were just about as heavy as those the the Tigers' ancient P40's faced when they tackled Zeroes. There were more than 300 airfreight operators in the cargo business after the war, trying to survive in a jungle of competition with womout surplus aircraft and shoe string resources. Prescott thought he had a head start with his clumsy but huge Budds, a twin engine plane specifically designed for hauling cargo. But the ' Con estogas" were incredibly ex pensive to fly and Prescott, after only one year, aban doned them in favor of DC3's and later C46's. The Tigers just managed to keep airborne in the early stages but got a break in 1946 that kept the infant firm in business for keeps. It was awarded a contract to supply Gen. Douglas MacArthur's oc cupation forces in Japan. Prescott- didn t have the planes to do the job, but he managed to lease 42 DC4's and for the next year the Tigers operated fights daily between the United States and Tokyo with a perfect per formance and safety record. Today, the "Tiger" is the world's largest all-cargo air line. It flies eight Lockheed Super-G Constellations and 10 new CL44's- a cargo version of the prop-jet, British - built Britannia. The 44 boasts an unusual "swingtail"-a hinge in the rear fuselage that per mits fast and efficient loading. It also carries up to 65,000 pounds of freight at speeds of more than 400 miles an hour - at an operational cost roughy 40 per cent less than older equipment. Hop for Future The loudly-painted CL44 (its color scheme makes a circus wagon seem conser- ative) is the Tigers' hope for a bright future. Thanks to the new plane, the Tiger line netted a modest profit last year ($313,809). Prescott him self says the CL44 in its first year doubled the ' company's volume and claims it. may be another 15 to 20 years before more efficient and econom ical airfreighter will be de veloped. - - Prescott is the first to admit that all -cargo lines like his own plus Slick, Kiddle and FREIGHT CARRIERS-Members of the Fly- one of the airline's swing-tail cargo planes, a ing Tiger Line air freighters are shown at Canadair CL44, is shown on a runway ramp, top in a 1945 picture. In the bottom picture, . l . ; (UPI) Seaboard World face tough competive going. The major airlines have finally recognized that the air cargo business is in for a period of expansion that may dwarf the growth of passenger operations. American Trans World, United and Pan Am all have ordered or already placed in service new pure jets-707 s and DC8 s designed to carry freight. But Prescott believes the potential traffic is big enough for an all-cargo carrier to sur vive. The Tiger line now runs eight transcontinental . flights daily plus scores of other schedules, and also has inte grated its own operations with those of trucking firms to provide fast air-truck service to nearly 1,500 cities in the U. S. alone. p e Relies on Charters . ' 1 . The company still relies heavily on passenger charter operations, including military charters, for much of its bus iness. It was the Flying Tiger line that introduced special low-cost tourist rates for Europeans wanting to visit the U. S. last year-a highly successful program that won official government praise. In August, 1962, there was an apparent sabotage of a Tiger Constellation over the Pacific while carrying key military personnel to Viet Nam. Today, Tiger officials have been taking a frank look at their crew training program to make sure all procedures have been modernized. A ditching in the Atlantic last year, which resulted in some fatalities, bought criticism of both flight deck and cabin at tendant emergency training. But the Tigers have come through adversity before. It is an airline with proud roots in the past and to the senti mental world of aviation, pride is a practical weapon. .. Syncom II Launch Delayed Cape Canaveral (Wll- The scheduled launching today of the . Syncom II communica tions satellite was postponed because of technical difficul ties in the spacecraft's anten na, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration an nounced. A NASA spokesman did not elaborate on the nature of the antenna difficulties which de layed the launching. The shot will be postponed for at least 24 hours. The first Syncom satellite was launched Feb. 14 and achieved a successful orbit, but radio contact was later lost. The trouble was believed to have stemmed from either an electrical or nitrogen tank failure. . As a result, the Syncom II has been extensively modi fied. If successful, it will be capable of two-way telephone, teletype and facsimile tarns- missions. -- The Syncom shot had been set for mid-morning. . Scientists plan to place Syncom II into a so-called synchronous orbit- 22,300 miles above the earth. ,; In synchronous orbit a sat ellite would appear to hang stationary over one spot on earth because it revolves at the same speed the earth ro tates on its axis. ... Spencer Tracy Steadily Improves ' Los Angeles - (UTO - Actor Spencer Tracy was reported in steadily improving health tqday at St. Vincent's hospi tal where he is recuperating! from pulmonary edema -fluid on the lungs. - The 63-year-old actor was taken to the hospital after he collapsed Sunday at actress Katherine Hepburn's Malibu Beach home where they were preparing to go on a picnic. Attendants at the hospital said he spent a comfortable night and was eating well. ; : ; :v Mobile, Ala. - IUP1I -- Mary Reinsch said she considered her 100th birthday Tuesday a mile-stone because "after 99, I thing a woman can relax." FREE Parking Entertainment X MUi l hAAMTAAM AAPPjrPir wujks in i mi j Tit t iyi i i Mini ii ftttiri in irci j V V U I WW MM VBBH bt u m THURSDAY - FRIDAY - SATURDAY-3 BIG DAYS - JULY 25-26- 211 W. Main eilf"a . J$r ...,tAi. . - nUEUIUNC Clewing & Re-Styling J&j Make clothes Ilka new agalnl Renews original fit and feel. 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Cobbler-Mr. Guss-Smartaire Vc&tdfyK and Stewart THE CORNER SHOE STORE Central at Main Downtown Medford PENNEY'S 2-Gal. ROOM COOLERS Penney't Street Floor now 1 9 ALWAYS FIRBT QUALITY Open Monday And Friday Until 9 p.m. Panney's quality constructed evaporative coolers do the obl Cools 100 to 150 sq. ft. Eye level water Indicator, 2 speed blower, squirrel cigr fan, baked enamel all steel portable cabinet. Compare. & : - PENNEY'S Solid Colors CORDUROY ALWAYS FIRST DUALITY Open Monday And Friday Until 9 p.m. It's the moit for school wear! famous-maker pinwale cordu roy in 15 fall shades. 36" wide, machine washable. , YARO -4-
