Flight of the City of Yuma

The car was one of several carrying Yuma businessmen to Parker, at the northern extreme of the county, for a Chamber of Commerce get-together. Horace Griffen, auto dealer, was driving and F. C. "Frosty" Braden, Chamber president, was at his side. In the rear seat was a young electrician, Woody Jongeward, and riding with him was Ray Smucker, radio station manager and the man every Yuman thinks of first whenever the word "promotion" is mentioned. It's almost a hundred miles to Parker and subject number forty-seven under discussion was two men, Burris and Reidel, who were on their successful way to a new light plane endurance flight record of 1008 hours. "You know," said Smucker, "there's a lot of publicity in one of these flights. Wish we could have one in Yuma. We'd show the world that we have the only 365 flying day year to be found." Jongeward looked over, "Get me the plane and a partner and I'll try one for you." One milli-second later The City of Yuma did its figurative takeoff in Ray Smucker's mind and three minutes of conversation after that he had outlined his plan to the other three. It was almost six months later that the wheels of the plane really said farewell to the ground for the third and successful attempt. And, in round figures, it took six hundred people to turn the trick. Now six hundred seems quite a number of people for even so large an undertaking as an endurance flight. But let us add the services needed, and the attendant number for each service, as the sponsors of the flight, The Yuma Junior Chamber of Commerce, had to add at each of the meetings following the presentation of the idea to the organization.

The meetings were held in the office of P. C. Byrne, Yuma attorney, for the boys realized that a legal mind would be needed. A partner was found for Woody-Bob Woodhouse, like Woody, an ex-Navy pilot. A plane was found, a sponsoring oil company to furnish fuel. Marsh aviation turned over its hangar facilities and mechanical know-how. Arrangements were made with a local restaurant to furnish food, a doctor volunteered his services to make sure the boys were in condition for the ordeal. Local stores were contacted and were pleased to contribute anything that would help, all the way from two pairs of fur-lined slippers to the fishing pole needed by the refueling crews to rest against the wing of the plane during refueling operations to ground the static electricity. The gears of publicity started turning when Yuma newspaper and radiomen made reporting the event a part of their regular daily routine and photographers gave of their time, film and flashbulbs to produce the pictures that went to papers all over the country along with the stories the publicity crew wrote.

Western Union men were on hand for official timing and Civil Aeronautics Authority set its radios so that constant contact could be maintained with the plane. Police and sheriff's offices were visited next and both forces set into motion the pattern for handling the volume of traffic everyone knew would be on hand for the refueling operations. Insurance men were called upon to set up proper coverage for the principals involved and clearances for the necessary low flying were obtained. Next came the most important step the choosing of the refueling crews. These men had to agree to whatalmost amounted to an enlistment for armed service. The plane would need to be refueled three times daily from a car travelling 80 miles an hour and requiring stopping with only inches to spare. The lives of each four man crew depended upon the driver's skill and the success of the flight depended upon the dexterity of the crewmen who passed the necessities of life to the flyers. And each man had to be there for each of the well over 1500 "passes" required to break the record. Every morning at four a.m. the low, sleek convertible refueling car shot its way through the darkness of an inky morning to pass up food and enough fuel to last until the regular 8:00 a.m. refueling. Then each evening at 5:30 p.m. the process of refueling was repeated. At no time during the entire flight was there an opportunity for the refueling crew to skip its chore. And at no time during the entire flight was there ever a bit of anything but perfect flying weather. And at each refueling operation the term "strictly a man's world" was forgotten for Mrs. Woodhouse and Mrs. Jongeward made each roaring ride down the runway and every morning saw them exchanging letters with their flying husbands. Speaking of the two girls, there is also a story attached to the "consent" needed by the two boys to make the attempt. But the twinkle in the eyes of both Bob and Woody as they answer questions on that phase of the operation precludes any further delving. Suffice to repeat the answer the boys gave, "The less said the better."

So, that is the story behind the story of The City of Yuma. That is the reason for the claim that it took 600 people to make the flight a success. And, if you want to count all the good wishes, the prayers, all the hopes for success you would have to say it took 15,000 people. That, you see, is the number of people in Yuma.