In 1918 a hardy group of pilots began flying U.S. mail cross-country. Eighty years later, Addison Pemberton and crew are recreating their pioneering flights. The 2008 transcontinental air mail re-enactment flight will consist of 3 historical aircraft (pictured below): a 1928 Boeing 40C flown by Addison Pemberton, a 1927 Stearman C3B flown by Larry Tobin, and a 1930 Stearman 4E flown by Ben Scott.
Pemberton, Tobin and Scott are dedicated to recreating this epic flight to honor the pioneers of commercial aviation in the U.S. This commemorates the 90th year of air mail service in the U.S. and will bring visibility to the general public. Each of the 15 original air mail stops will include an education program. The “flight” is also authorized to carry official U.S. mail for the post office between New York and San Francisco. A staff photographer, George Perks, will fly along to document this historic reenactment. The Smithsonian Air and Space Magazine will feature the odyssey re-enactment on their web site under History of Flight: Air Mail Odyssey so that interested parties can track the pilots' progress, read daily blogs and view daily pictures.
Below are photos of the flight crew and the three historical aircraft. Addison Pemberton is a partner in the Scanivalve Corp of Liberty Lake, Washington, and George Perks retired from Avista Corporation, headquartered in Spokane, Washington. Larry Tobin is a retired TWA airlines pilot, and Al Holloway owns and operated an aircraft engine rebuilding business in Reno, Nevada. Ben Scott is an owner in Scott Motor Company of Reno, Nevada. (Click any photo for a larger image.)
The crew from left to right: Addison Pemberton, Spokane, WA; George Perks, Spokane, WA; Larry Tobin, Spokane, WA; Al Holloway, Reno, NV; and Ben Scott, Reno, NV.
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Addison Pemberton plane:
1928 Boeing 40C
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Ben Scott plane:
1930 Stearman 4E
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Larry Tobin plane:
1927 Stearman C3B
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Actual Route and Timeline
• Sept. 9 – Arrive in New York City.
• Sept. 10 – Depart New York Republic field (FRG) 9:30AM. Arrive Belafonte, PA (N96) late morning.
– Depart and arrive Cleveland (BKL) late afternoon,early evening. Overnight stop.
• Sept. 11 – Depart Cleveland (BKL) 9:30AM. Arrive late morning Bryan, Ohio (OG6).
– Depart and arrive Chicago Lansing Airport (IGQ) late afternoon.
– Headed to Iowa City (IOW), but turned back due to weather. Overnight stop was in Rochelle, Illinois.
• Sept. 12 – Grounded in Rochelle, Illinois, due to weather.
• Sept. 13 – Still grounded in Rochelle, Illinois, due to weather.
• Sept. 14 – Grounded in Rochelle, Illinois, yet another night.
• Sept. 16 – Depart Rochelle, IL early AM. Arrive Iowa City (IOW) mid-morning.
– Depart and arrive Grand Island, NB late evening. Overnight stop.
• Sept.17 – Depart Grand Island, NB headed for North Platt.
– Depart North Platt, NB (LBF) and arrive Cheyenne, WY (CYS).
– Depart and arrive Rawlins, WY (RWL).
– Depart and arrive Rock Springs, WY (RKS). Overnight stop.
• Sept.18 – Arrive late morning Salt Lake # 2 (U42).
– Depart and arrive Elko, NV (EKO) late afternoon.
– Depart and arrive Reno, NV (RNO) early evening. Overnight stop.
• Sept. 19 – Depart Reno, NV early morning.
– Depart and arrive Hayward, CA (HWD) late morning.
– Depart Hayward, CA mid-day for San Francisco (SFO) and return to Hayward, CA. Overnight stop.
Estimated flying time from New York to San Francisco over 6 calendar days, 27 to 29 flying hours.
Travel Notes and Photos
Each day of Travel Notes and Photos is a separate album in our photo gallery below. Click the Gallery icon 
to view the complete list of albums. To view the slideshow full screen, click the Full Screen icon 
on the player. Mouse over the photos to read the Travel Notes (photo captions).
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