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web-catalog        CAM Contract Air Mail First Flights CAM-8

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Page ccCAM008 (Revised 03/01/2011)

Background: The Air Mail Act of 1925 (Kelly Act) authorized the postmaster general to contract for domestic airmail service with commercial air carriers. It also set airmail rates and the level of cash subsidies to be paid to companies that carried the mail. By transferring airmail operations to private companies, the government effectively would help create the commercial aviation industry. Various routes were designated and contracts for carrying the mail over these routes were then awarded to many different private air service companies. The Contract Air Mail routes became known as CAM's.
CAM-8: CAM-8 was awarded to Pacific Air Transport. PAT was founded in 1926 by Vern C Gorst. CAM-8 air service was inaugurated with both north and south flights on September 15, 1926 between Seattle Washington and Los Angeles California with interim stops in Portland, Medford, San Francisco, Fresno and Bakersfield with a train connection from Sacramento. Postal mail covers carried on the inaugural flight between each point of landing and take-off are collectible and are known as CAM-8 covers.
CAM-8
        Pacific Air Transport used Ryan M-1 monoplanes for this initial September 15, 1926 air service. The Ryan monoplanes were built by Ryan Airlines formed by T. Claude Ryan. Ryan built Lindbergh's "Spirit of St Louis."
        Pilots flying different legs of this September 15th CAM-8 inaugural air service included, George W Allen, Vernon Bookwalter, Vance Breese, R B Patterson, Arthur W Starbuck and Grover Tyler.

8S1 260915 Seattle WA PAT by train $18.75
8S2 260915 Portland OR PAT Bookwalter $15.00
8S3 260915 Medford OR PAT Patterson $9.00
8S4 260915 San Francisco CA PAT Breese $15.00
8S5 260915 Fresno CA PAT Allen $22.50
8S6 260915 Bakersfield CA PAT Allen $27.00
8N7 260915 Los Angeles CA PAT Allen $18.75
8N6 260915 Bakersfield CA PAT Allen $9.00
8N5 260915 Fresno CA PAT Breese $9.00
8N4 260915 San Francisco CA PAT Starbuck $18.00
8N3 260915 Medford OR PAT Bookwalter $18.75
8N2 260915 Portland OR PAT Tyler $21.00
8W8 260915 Sacramento CA PAT by train $18.00

UAL
Ryan M-1
R8S9 270907 to Tacoma WA PAT $18.75
8S9 270907 Tacoma WA PAT by train $6.75

8S10F 271215 Oakland Airfield CA PAT John Guglielmetti $112.50

8S11 281015 San Francisco CA PAT JC Johnston $15.00
8S11F 281015 San Francisco CA PAT JC Johnston $45.00
8N12 281015 San Jose CA PAT JC Johnston $4.50

8S13 290715 Oakland CA PAT Al Gilhousen $33.00

8S14 300701 Los Angeles CA PAT EL Remelin $18.75
8N15 300701 San Diego CA PAT EL Remelin $4.50

8S16 300815 Seattle WA PAT HC Miller $52.50
R8N18 300815 Tacoma WA PAT $60.00
8S17 300815 Tacoma WA PAT HC Miller $67.50
R8N19 300815 Portland OR PAT $60.00

UAL
Boeing 80-A
R8S21 330202 to San Francisco CA PAT $150.00
8N20 330202 San Francisco CA PAT Eddie Brooks $16.50
R8N21 330202 to San Francisco CA PAT $16.50
8S20 330202 San Francisco CA PAT CF Sullivan $27.00

R8S23 330227 to Sacramento CA PAT $6.00
8N22 330227 Sacramento CA PAT Edward Kiessig $6.00
R8N23 330227 to Sacramento CA PAT $6.00
8S22 330227 Sacramento CA PAT Al Gilhousen $4.50

CAM-8: On February 9, 1934 the Post Office Department canceled all contracts of operators flying mail on routes within the US to become effective on February 19, 1934. The reason given by the Post Office was that there was suspicion that the mail carrying contracts had been awarded through collusion during the previous Administration.
        Cancellation of the air mail contracts held by established pioneer airline companies was accompanied by an executive order from President Franklin D Roosevelt stating that the Army Air Corps should now carry the mail. Three territorial zones were established for the Air Corps mail operations, Newark NJ, Chicago IL and Salt Lake City UT. The eastern, central and western zones each had branch routes to other feeder cities. It was a difficult assignment for the Army Air Corps as they did not have enough planes and the ones they had, did not have the latest instruments, landing, navigation, or cockpit lights. One of the aircraft they used was the Keystone B-4 bi-plane.
Army Air Corps

        New commercial air mail carrying contracts were made in May 1934 and the mail was again flown by private contractors over re-designated revised Post Office Department routes in late June 1934.

CAM-8: After the February 1934 cancellation and reinstatement of new commercial air mail carrying contracts over re-designed revised Post Office routes in late June 1934, United Air Lines began flying CAM-8 air mail.
        UAL began on July 1, 1931 as the holding company of four air carriers, Boeing Air Transport (CAM-18), Varney Air Lines (CAM-5), Pacific Air Transport (CAM-8) and National Air Transport (CAM-17). Each of these contributing airlines flew different types of aircraft when taken over by United.
UAL
        After consolidation, UAL introduced the twin engine Boeing 247 to initially fly some of its mail routes. The Boeing 247 was the first low-winged, all-metal, twin-engined air transport flown on the scheduled airlines. Its speed, comfort and safety created excitement and was quickly accepted by the public, making all other transports suddenly obsolete.

UAL
Boeing 247
8N24 340509 Tacoma WA UAL Joseph R Smith $150.00

8N25f 361001 Los Angeles CA UAL LW Sharman $27.00

R8S27 361101 to Santa Barbara CA UAL $6.00
8N26 361101 Santa Barbara CA UAL AR Thompson $2.25
R8N27 361101 to Santa Barbara CA UAL $6.00
8S26 361101 Santa Barbara CA UAL AW Stainback $135.00

UAL
Douglas DC-3
8S28 370720 Fresno - Santa Barbara CA UAL AW Stainback $135.00

8N29 380401 Bakersfield - San Francisco CA UAL E Hamilton Lee $127.50

R8S31 380720 to Monterey CA UAL $3.00
8N30 380720 Monterey CA UAL Everett McMillen $4.50
R8N31 380720 to Monterey CA UAL $3.00
8S30 380720 Monterey CA UAL JC Crain $2.25

R8S33 400801 to Red Bluff CA UAL $6.00
8N32 400801 Red Bluff CA UAL Bartlett Stephens $7.50
R8N33 400801 to Red Bluff CA UAL $6.00
8S32 400801 Red Bluff CA UAL Felix P Jones $6.00

R8S35 411205 to Salem OR UAL $5.25
8N34 411205 Salem OR UAL ER Jones $4.50
R8N35 411205 to Salem OR UAL $5.25
8S34 411205 Salem OR UAL Grover Tyler $3.00

R8S37 430501 to Eugene OR UAL $5.25
8N36 430501 Eugene OR UAL HB Dahl $3.00
R8N37 430501 to Eugene OR UAL $3.75
8S36 430501 Eugene OR UAL EA Lepenske $4.50

UAL
Douglas DC-3
8S38 451101 Sacramento - Fresno CA UAL Wendell R Craven $6.00

R8S40 460716 to Salinas CA UAL $3.75
8N39 460716 Salinas CA UAL Stewart D Baird $6.00
R8N40 460716 to Salinas CA UAL $3.75
8S39 460716 Salinas CA UAL Wendell R Craven $2.25

8S41 460801 Portland via Klamath Falls OR UAL Homer Cain $30.00
8S42 460801 Salem via Klamath Falls OR UAL Homer Cain $60.00
8S43 460801 Klamath Falls OR UAL Homer Cain $7.50
8N43 460801 Klamath Falls OR UAL HI Taylor $2.25
8N44 460801 Sacramento CA via Klamath Falls OR UAL HI Taylor $22.50
8N45 460801 Red Bluff CA via Klamath Falls OR UAL Stewart D Baird $30.00

8N46 460801 Los Angeles CA UAL George L Boyd $18.75
8N46f 460801 Los Angeles CA UAL George L Boyd $21.00
8N47 460801 Merced CA UAL George L Boyd $3.00
8N48 460801 Modesto CA UAL George L Boyd $3.00
8S48 460801 Modesto CA UAL Jack Milstead $6.00
8S47 460801 Merced CA UAL Jack Milstead $4.50
8S49 460801 San Francisco CA UAL Jack Milstead $18.75

R8S51 460801 to Stockton CA UAL $3.00
8N50 460801 Stockton CA UAL Jack Milstead $7.50
R8N51 460801 to Stockton CA UAL $3.00
8S50 460801 Stockton CA UAL Merle L Loros $2.25
R8S53 460801 to Long Beach CA UAL $22.50
8N52 460801 Long Beach CA UAL George L Boyd $22.50
R8N53 460801 to Long Beach CA UAL $19.50
8S52 460801 Long Beach CA UAL George L Boyd $22.50

8S54 461001 Bend OR UAL Richard Appleby $3.00
8N54 461001 Bend OR UAL Paul Smith $4.50

8S55 461209 Visalia CA UAL Charles R Rushing $3.75
8S56 461209 Eureka CA UAL RR Burley $4.50
8N56 461209 Eureka CA UAL LI Powell $2.25
8N55 461209 Visalia CA UAL JH Hurst $2.25

INDEX: First Flights by CAM Route #

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 15 16 17
18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34

INDEX: First Flights by AM Route #

33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48

INDEX: First Flights by Experimental Route #

1001 1002

INDEX: First Flights by AM Route #

49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65
66 67 68 69 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 84
86 87 88 90 91 93 94 96 97 98 99 100 101 103 105
106 107 111 119 120 121 139 140 141 143 144 148 172

INDEX: First Flights by Air Taxi Services Route #

288 289 290 291 292 293 295 296 297 298
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