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Milling, T. Dewitt, Brig. Gen. USAF - Biog file - Folder No. 3 - Item No. 12A
Hitchcock carries mail in aeroplane Sept. 27th 1911 Smithsonian Institution National Air Museum

Hitchcock carries mail in aeroplane
Postmaster General flies with Capt. Beck in the Aerial Post Office Service.
New world's flight record
Lieut. Milling, U.S.A., carries two passengers for nearly two hours at Nassau Boulevard.

By flying continuously for 1 hour 54 minutes 42 3-5 seconds with two soldiers of the United States Army tucked away in the spare seats of his aeroplane, Lieut. T. Dewitt Milling, a fledgling aviator of less than two months' experience, captured yesterday for the United States and an American-made biplane the world's record for the longest two-passenger flight.
Lieut. Milling's flight was made as the second event of the program [[sp.?]] of the International Aviation meet at Nassau Boulevard. It was witnessed by about 1.200 spectators, who wildly cheered the young flier and his companions.
Other events which made the day a notable one were a flight by Postmaster General Hitchcock in a biplane driven by Capt. Beck, U.S.A., in which he delivered a bag of postal cards to the Mineola Post Office, and a short exhibition flight by Mlle. Dutrieu, the young woman flier from France, who holds the most notable world's records for women pilots.
The flier whom Lieut. Milling succeeds as record holder in the two-passenger event is Mamet of France, who in a French-built monoplane carried two passengers during the second Rheims meet, in July, 1910, for 1 hour 36 minutes 4 seconds. Mamet's record, which was undisturbed for fifteen months, was the most venerable record in the world of aviation, every other world's record having been smashed in the intervening months of flying.

Milling a Wright Pupil

In achievement in the air Milling now takes a place with Atwood, who brought home to the United States the world's record for the longest cross-country journey after it had been in European keeping for many months. Milling was trained by the Wrights at Dayton, and flew in a Burgess-Wright biplane. He is 24 years old, and is the youngest flier of the army and navy group, whose home grounds are at College Park, Md. The record is the first notable winning to be made by an army or navy flier. By breaking the record and passing a total of 100 minutes in the air Lieut. Milling won, in cash, a prize of $1,000 offered by the Hotel Knickerbocker. This still brings his prize money well below that of Grahame-White and Sopwith, the two English fliers, who have carried away the bigger prizes of the speed events.
His flight as a spectacle hardly became interesting to the spectators along the side lines until the American record of 1:18:22 was passed. As the megaphone men made the announcement to this effect all eyes were turned upon the steadily speeding aeroplane with its three men aboard. The machine was making something over forty miles an hour, flying on an even keel at a height of 200 feet. Without varying its course or the evenness of the flight it continued to glide along, much after the manner of riders in a six-day bicycle race. People held their timepieces and continued to watch the steady "grinding" against time.
From the moment when the megaphones announced that the American record made by Beatty last month at Chicago was broken until the time for the world's record to fall was a matter of only twenty minutes. To win the $1,000 prize, which required a flight of 100 minutes, called for two minutes more of watching.

Rousing Aeroplane Salute.

There was not the slightest faltering of the biplane during this period of watching. Before nineteen minutes had elapsed the automobile horns about the course took up the "aeroplane salute" and sent up their noisy greetings to the trio in the air for fully five minutes after that time. The period covered the time needed both to break the world's record and win the prize. Milling and his passengers waved their hands as bombs, shooting upward, carried the news to them that a world's record had been achieved. They continued to circle the field for nearly fifteen minutes more and then glided gracefully to the field in front of the judges' stand.
Earle Ovington, the aerial mail man, ran out to greet the trio, and he carried Milling in to the judges' stand upon his shoulders. The army and navy associates of the young flier congratulated him warmly, making way only when they saw Attorney General Wickersham and Postmaster General Hitchcock coming up to offer their congratulations.
The three bombs by which the close of the day's events was announced, were set up immediately after Milling had landed.
Of the previous numbers on the program [[sp.?]]perhaps the added event of Postmaster General Hitchcock's visit to Mineola on a mail-carrying aeroplane attracted the most interest.
At 4:50 o'clock, when it was announced that Aerial Postman Ovington would leave with the day's mail, it was found that there were thirty pounds on hand, while Ovington did not care to take in his speedy monoplane more than fifteen pounds.

Postmaster General Carries Mail.

The Postmaster General volunteered to carry the remaining package, which was just then augmented by 100 postal cards brought forwards by Mrs. Timothy L. Woodruff, who announced that she had held them back especially so that the Postmaster General would be their carrier.
Capt. Beck brought out his Curtiss biplane, equipped with a 75-horse power motor, and announced that he was ready to accommodate Mr. Hitchcock as far as Mineola and return. Attorney General Wickersham walked out on the field to bid his associate Cabinet Member farewell.
"Have you made your peace with the publishers?" asked Mr. Wickersham.
"No, I haven't," Mr. Hitchcock replied, "and what is more there is no second-class mail on this aeroplane. It costs too much to carry it this way."
The machine, upon its release, shot high up into the air and speeded [[sp?]] directly into the path which Ovingtom had taken a moment before. A ribbon of vapor from the engine unraveled itself far out behind the machine and caused some uneasiness, as it was a phenomenon which had not been previously observed during the meet.
Ovington's monoplane acted as a scout car for the biplane, and headed toward the field with the biplane not far behind it. The spectators saw, during the latter part of the journey, a biplane performing the unusual feat of overhauling a mono-