Viewing page 24 of 36

This transcription has been completed. Contact us with corrections.

Illinois. On December 19th Sinnie was transferred to Call Field, Wichita Falls, Texas, where he remained until April, 1918, when he was sent to Detroit as an inspector on Liberty engines, until after the Armistice. 

In 1919, Sinnie organized the Universal Aviation Corporation in Detroit, Michigan, with Henry M. Leland of the Lincoln Motor Car Company as President. This company operated until 1922. Later that year he bought a Canuck and operated from a field on his father's farm, carrying passengers and giving exhibitions in that vicinity, near Jacksonville, Illinois. 

In 1923 he joined the Marie Meyers Flying Circus at St. Louis, Missouri, putting on exhibitions throughout the mid-west. 

In 1924 Sinnie joined his old friend, Shorty Schroeder, who was with the Underwriters Laboratories in Chicago, Illinois. On June 1st, 1925 Schroeder left to become Manager of Ford Airport at Dearborn, Michigan, and one month later Sinnie joined his as his assistant. In 1926, when the Ford Company received an air mall contract tween Detroit and Chicago, Schroeder became Pilot No. 1 and Sinnie No. 2 on contract air mail runs, using Stout all-metal planes first, which were single Liberty-engined craft, and later the new tri-motored machines. During 1926 Sinnie flew his tests and obtained Department of Commerce License No. 624.
 
In July, 1927 he left Ford and joined Trump Brothers of Minneapolis, Minnesota to start the Trump Airline, flying between Minneapolis, St. Paul and Duluth, with a new Buhl Air Sedan with Wright J-5 engine. That winter the run was discontinued due to severe weather and Sinnie took the plane to Hot Springs, Arkansas to carry passengers. The venture was not successful and the company went out of business.

In the spring of 1928 Sinnie joined Universal Airlines in Chicago and was assigned to the run from Minneapolis, Minnesota to Fargo, North Dakota, known as the Northern Airline, flying Ryan B-1, Stinson Detroiter and Fairchild planes. He continued on this run until January 3d, 1929, when he and a second pilot, Bob Rentz, were sent to Brownsville, Texas, to look into the possibility of starting an airline from there to Mexico City, Mexico. After several trial flights the company decided to establish the line, using Ford tri-motored planes. February 4th Sinnie made the Charter Flight carrying American and Mexican officials, and the line was under way. 

3