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web-catalog        CAM Contract Air Mail First Flights CAM-2

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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-2: CAM-2 was awarded to Robertson Aircraft Corporation. RAC was founded in 1921 by William B Robertson with his brother, Frank. They purchased large amounts of aeroplane engines and parts at government surplus auctions. CAM-2 air service was inaugurated with both north and south flights on April 15, 1926 between Chicago Illinois and Saint Louis Missouri with an interim stops in Peoria & Springfield Illinois. Postal mail covers carried on the inaugural flight between each point of landing and take-off are collectible and are known as CAM-2 covers.
CAM-2
        Robertson used DeHavilland DH-4 bi-planes with Liberty engines for this initial April 15, 1926 air service. The DH-4 bi-planes were re-built from government surplus parts by Robertson Aircraft Corporation.
        Pilots flying different legs of this April 15th CAM-2 inaugural air service included, Charles A "Slim" Lindbergh and Philip R Love.

2S1 260415 Chicago IL RAC Lindbergh $21.00
2S2 260415 Peoria IL RAC Lindbergh $60.00
2S3 260415 Springfield IL RAC Lindbergh $27.00
2N4 260415 St Louis MO RAC Love $21.00
2N3 260415 Springfield IL RAC Lindbergh $21.00
2N2 260415 Peoria IL RAC Lindbergh $37.50

2N5 260827 Springfield IL-Chicago IL RAC PR Love & Thomas P Nelson $7.50

2S6 270815 Springfield IL-St Louis MO RAC HA Gurney $15.00

2N10 280220 St Louis MO RAC Lindbergh & Leslie H Smith $12.00
2N9 280220 Springfield IL RAC Lindbergh, HA Gurney & EL Solonger $18.00
2N8 280220 Peoria IL RAC Lindbergh $18.00
2S7 280221 Chicago IL RAC Lindbergh, HA Gurney & Thomas P Nelson $12.00
2S7f 280221 Chicago IL RAC Lindbergh, HA Gurney & Thomas P Nelson $21.00
2S8 280221 Peoria IL RAC Lindbergh $21.00
2S9 280221 Springfield IL RAC Lindbergh, HA Gurney & PR Love $18.00

2S10 310720 St Louis MO RAC Ira McConaughey $7.50
2S10f 310720 St Louis MO RAC Ira McConaughey $22.50
2N11 310720 Memphis TN RAC TR Howe $4.50

CAM-2: 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-2: 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, Pacific Seaboard Air Lines began flying CAM-2 air mail from Chicago IL to New Orleans LA.
        PSAL had been founded on June 15, 1933 by Carleton Putnam. Three Bellanca CH-300 aircraft were flown on the west coast of California on the "Scenic Route" from Los Angeles to San Francisco with stops in seven cities near the Pacific Ocean.
PSAL
        PSAL purchased two more Bellanca CH-300 Pacemaker aircraft to serve their new "Valley Level Route."
        When Greenwood MS was added as an interim stop, pilots Benjamin Catlin and WJ Fry flew the inaugural air service.

R2N13 340901 to Greenwood MS by southbound plane PSAL $6.00
2S12 340901 Greenwood MS PSAL Catlin $7.50
R2S13 340901 to Greenwood MS by northbound plane PSAL $6.00
2N12 340901 Greenwood MS PSAL Fry $4.50

        In 1935 PSAL changed its name to Chicago & Southern Air Lines.

CSA
Lockheed Electra

2N14 470915 Evansville IN CSA Wallace A Jummonville $0
2S15 470915 Chicago IL CSA Howard Reid $0
2S15f 470915 Chicago IL CSA Howard Reid $0

2N16 471101 Terre Haute IN CSA William Temm $0
2S16 471101 Terre Haute IN CSA William Temm $0

2N17 480109 Hot Springs AR CSA EA Barton $0

2S17 480601 Hot Springs AR CSA Carter C Haas $0

CSA
Douglas DC-3

2N18 480909 Little Rock AR CSA Charles Quinn $0
2N19 480909 Springfield MO CSA Charles Quinn $0
2S20 480909 Kansas City MO CSA Leland D Anderson $0
2S20f 480909 Kansas City MO CSA Leland D Anderson $0
2S19 480909 Springfield MO CSA JL Kelly $0

2N21 490605 Pine Bluff AR CSA William J Spangler $0
2S21 490605 Pine Bluff AR CSA William J Spangler $0

        In May 1953 Chicago & Southern Air Lines was merged into Delta Air Lines.

Delta
Convair 880

2N22 690801 Nashville TN Delta Noble C Christensen $0
2N22f 690801 Nashville TN Delta Noble C Christensen $0

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

INDEX: First Flights by Experimental Route #

2001

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