Northwest History. Aviation 8. Rescue & Searching Parties, United States.

• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: 1938
• Subjects: Fairbanks; Alaska; aerial search; bad weather; northern Alaska; army signal corps station; Barrow; Harold Gillam; commercial pilot; Chandalar river; George Saunders; Russians; transpolar flyers; John river; Endicott mountains; M. B. Beliakov; meteorologists; United States; aerial history; Eddie Wisler; flying visibility; Northwest; Pacific > History > 20th century; Aviation; Arctic; Gillam; Pacific; Saunders; Point Barrow
• Online Access: http://content.libraries.wsu.edu/cdm/ref/collection/clipping/id/86057

Lost Alaskan Flyer Is Safe. LOST ALASKAN FLYER IS SAFE By Associated Press. FAIRBANKS, Alaska, Feb. 1.— An aerial search, postponed by bad weather over northern Alaska, was called off today when the army signal corps station at Barrow reported a wireless message from Harold Gillam, commercial pilot, saying he was safe and waiting a break in the weather at Chandalar river or lake. He and Mechanic George Saunders hopped from here at 7:40 a. m. (9:40 a. m. Pacific standard time) yesterday for Barrow with supplies for the Russians searching for six missing transpolar flyers. He was last reported at 10:15 a. m., when flying over the John river, near the towering, rugged Endicott mountains. Gillam informed Barrow today he was short on gasoline. M. B. Beliakov, Russian search representative here, who had planned to dispatch a search plane tomorrow if the weather cleared, may dispatch it tomorrow with additional gasoline, depending on instructions from Gillam. Gillam is a veteran flyer and two years ago contracted for the pioneering weather observation flights above Fairbanks by which meteorologists in the United States sought to anticipate weather changes by reports on high-moving polar cold waves. This year he pioneered again in making the first winter flight to Point Barrow in aerial history. He made it by moonlight, with Mechanic Eddie Wisler, carrying supplies for the Russian search party, and reported arctic moonlight and snow reflections make better flying visibility than the "dusk" of winter daytimes. ''