Yorkville Enquirer

Unlucky Flight Commander Tells of Experience.

Major Frederick L. Martin, original commander of the United States army globe encircling flight, whose plans were wrecked on the Alaska peninsula April 30, arrived at Bellingham, Washington, Tuesday morning with his mechanic, Staff Sergeant Alva L. Harvey, on Pacific American fisheries steamship Catherine D., from Port Moller, Alaska. The fliers stepped shore amid the cheers of 2,000 persons. The major and his mechanic were under orders from General Mason M. Patrick, chief of the army air service, to proceed to Washington, D. C., without delay. Major Martin remained in Washington Sunday and went to Seattle the following day, where he rejoined Harvey. Mrs. Martin and her eight year old son, Bobby, met the major at 8:30 o'clock Sunday morning at Lummi island, about 10 miles out from Bellingham. The Catherine D. stopped there an hour earlier to permit newspaper men and photographers to come aboard. The family was re-united aboard the Cannery tender Nile, which carried the major's wife and boy. It was a joyous meeting, the boy tackling his father's leg while Mrs. Martin embraced him.

Martin Followed Mirage.

A mirage was blamed by Major Martin for his misfortune after leaving Chignik. "Shortly after leaving Chignik I saw what appeared to be water and thought it was the Pacific," he said. "I traveled toward it for some time and finally it disappeared. Then I realized it was a mirage which I had been following. It had taken me off my course in a northwesterly direction."

"The weather was foggy and the clouds were low, probably 500 feet between the snow-covered ground and the clouds. I changed my course, heading south, but suddenly hit the northside of the mountain. Had we hit 10 feet lower we would have struck an abrupt cliff and would probably both have been killed, but as it was, we crashed on a gradual slope of the mountain and the plane slid up about 100 feet, tearing it to pieces."

Harvey was uninjured, but Martin broke a small bone in his nose and one eye was slightly injured. The men told of wandering, sleepless, for three days striking out on the trip which led them to a trapper's cabin. They thought they were on the Pacific side of the peninsula instead of the Bearing sea side, and their charts did not tell them of a cannery at Moller. Owing to a bit of good fortune at the time of the crash a bottle of condensed liquid food, two spoonfuls of which are sufficient for a meal, escaped breaking although most everything else was destroyed. With this food supply available they were never hungry. When they reached the unoccupied trapper's cabin they found more food. They also noticed a milk box with the lettering "Paf, Port Moller," upon it. This clue gave them much encouragement as it indicated Port Moller was not far away.

Suffered Snow Blindness.

Harvey said he was slightly snow blind the first few days following the wreck, but recovered. Major Martin also suffered from snow blindness, which grew steadily worse and the last three days Harvey broke trail through the snow. leading Major Martin to the beach along which they followed to the cannery. Harvey praised his superior officer as an efficient flier, and Major Martin declared there is no better airplane mechanician than Harvey.

"If I thought the wreck was due to inefficiency on the part of the major, or because of faulty work on my part, I would never have broken through the snow to get back to civilization," said Harvey.

While the two men were out in the open, snow-covered country, there was no wind, no snow and no rainfall for eight days, but it stormed fiercely one day when they were in the cabin and on the day of their arrival at Port Moller.

Speaking of his future, Major Martin said he was eager to rejoin his command, but would not care to take the place of any of the other three fliers on the final legs of the journey as they, he said, are entitled to the honor if they are successful. The major said he experienced good flying weather in the north only one day, and that day a hole in the crank case caused a forced landing after leaving Sitka.

"If it had not been for that accident, I probably would be with the others yet,"he said.