 It's time for the Lawn Jean Chronoscope, a television journal of the important issues of the hour brought to you every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. A presentation of the Lawn Jean Wettner Watch Company, maker of Lawn Jean, the world's most honored watch, and Wettner, distinguished companion to the world-honored Lawn Jean. Good evening. This is Frank Knight. May I introduce our co-editors for this edition of the Lawn Jean Chronoscope? Larry Lusser of the CBS television news staff, and Gil Robb Wilson, editor and publisher of Flying Magazine. Our distinguished guest for this evening is General Harold R. Harris, President of Northwest Orient Airlines. General Harris, you've been a test pilot, a crop duster. I think you were the first man to bail out by parachute, and then I first met you as an Air Force General, and now you're the president of an airline. Can you tell us something about the future of your opinion of commercial air transport? I think the easiest way to speak to that particular question is to consider where we are in air transportation. We are today in the same position as the railroads were in the turn of the last century, as the steamships were at approximately the same time. We are on the threshold of air transportation. No one can tell how far we will go any more than the people that were watching the new railroads and the new steamships. It's a plant that former means of transportation. General, I've traveled on your airline out to the Far East, to Japan. I wondered what effect peace in Korea would have on your own operations in Asia? There would be a marked increase in the activities on all of the airlines serving the Asian area. We found that in connection with the rehabilitation of Germany as soon as the shooting stopped and the situation became a commercial situation rather than a military situation. We found that there was an enormous increase in air travel. The same thing is true of the Orient. As soon as the bars are down, the military security is released or at least reduced. We would have no difficulty in filling every airplane we could possibly put in the operation. Well, if peace broke out all of Asia, you'd be in a good position. But tell me, what effect does the hostile China have on your operations towards the Orient now? It has a very serious effect in that we realize we're flying past a keg of dynamite that might explode at any time. We are, of course, very alert to situations of that sort and do as little to bother our unfriendly folk out there as possible. Well, you've never had an incident, have you, Harold? We have not, no. Well, flying over the Bering Sea, I notice that your pilots rather circumscribe their routes in order to keep south of the international date line, although we are normally allowed to travel right up to the edges of it. Do you feel that there is some danger from cruising Soviet patrol planes up there? Oh, certainly there is a possibility of some trigger-happy Russian getting way out of course and doing something ridiculous. That has not occurred so far and hopefully it will not. Well, General Harris, there are a lot of oriental passengers coming this way. I notice on the planes coming back from Tokyo, are human beings actually considered strategic cargo? Well, from my money, the only strategic cargo that exists are human beings. The material that we normally think of as strategic material is only used and useful by people who know how to do it and consequently, the strategic label goes on the people and not on the material. Was there very much screening of the people that you bring back from the Orient to the United States and to Alaska? Well, I presume there is. That, of course, is not done by the airline. That's done by the government agencies concerned. Well, as a former General Harris, could you tell us what the relationship is between a commercial airline and the air defense of the United States? Yes, sir. The commercial airlines, as you may realize, have exactly the same relationship to the defense of the United States as the maritime ships in the maritime business, which are normally used for commercial purposes. They're all available as naval auxiliary vessels as soon as the war starts. We are exactly in the same position and have, of course, a greater scope of activity because of the great ease of transport movement to any part of the world, Well, I think that's the point that most people miss. Harold and Larry, air transportation is a system of global logistics which could control the peace of the world. They talk about air power and they're usually referring to military establishment, but the Romans controlled the world in their day by the commercial use of the roads and the British controlled the world of their day by the commercial use of the airlines. There was no distinction between the military and the commercial. Let's get this right. The British didn't control the world by the airlines. They controlled the world by the Navy. Well, their Navy controlled the sea lanes and the British Navy made them enroad doctors stand up. Now, I think that we could control the world the same way today and I think that is the one great hiatus in the whole international thinking about aviation. I think this airline out here is just as important a factor for world control as you could possibly get if you want to describe any military situation. I want to differ with you a little bit there in this respect. The airlines, the United States are not in business to control the world. Well, that's good. And we don't feel that there's anybody in Washington that wants us to take that position. We're quite sure that the United States itself does not want to control the world. Well, surely it's important, General, for the flag of the United States to be flown on our aircraft all around the world. And in regard to that, may I ask, why are we letting the British get ahead of us in the development of jet air transport? The history of the British development is quite interesting. You'll recall that at the end of the war, the British were doing almost nothing with large transport aircraft. By a combination of circumstances, the transport aircraft development had fallen into the hands of the United States manufacturers. The British were wise enough to see that they would be behind the eight ball in connection with trying to match the piston engine aircraft, which were so satisfactorily being turned out by the American manufacturers. Consequently, they moved right into the jet field. They have spent very large sums of money in their experimentation and have turned out some very, very interesting products. Well, why haven't we spent that much? Why haven't you, as an airline's president, spent that much in research and developing jets? Well, no airline can afford to do a development job without sort. That either has to be done as a private venture by a very wealthy manufacturing organization. It's estimated that it will cost from 20 to 28 million dollars to design, build, and test one jet transport airplane in the United States. And there are very few people that are prepared to walk up and put that kind of money on an experiment which might not be very successful. I don't say that as a criticism of the engineers that we've got in the United States. I'm sure that we could today build a more successful, more satisfactory jet airplane, jet transport airplane, than can be built elsewhere in the world. But it's just simply a question of finding somebody that's prepared to take that risk. Well, if the government won't do this research in commercial air transport, how can we compete with the British if they put these jets on our transatlantic or your trans-specific routes? Larry, I didn't make myself clear, I guess. I didn't say that the government wouldn't spend the money. I said the government hasn't spent the money. I said that the airlines can't spend the money because they don't have it. And that the manufacturers are understandably a little slow in spending that kind of money. The government could spend it. Are we putting our research money now, General Harrison, in military research solely? Well, almost all military research has some eventual end product in the commercial field. But how rapidly those various end products can be integrated into the commercial activities is, to a considerable degree, a question of how much equipment the various airlines already have in hand. We can only buy expensive new aircraft and get them in operation as we are able to do so with profits which we are making in our business. So far, the profits in the airline business have not been as satisfactory as they might be, and consequently, it isn't possible for many of the airlines to even consider the enormous expenditures which a complete rehabilitation of its fleet in the expensive jet field would require. General, I understand you want to extend your airline to Hong Kong and Calcutta. Would you be able to compete with the British Comets on those routes? Well, the present Comet aircraft has got a variety of people reporting on it, but many of whom say that it is not an economic aircraft. That the question of trying to make some profit with that airplane is a question which cannot be answered in the affirmative. Since the British company that's operating the Comets is a part of the British government, wholly owned by the British government, presumably that any loss, if there is any loss, would be borne by the British government. General Harris has a final question I'd like to ask you. What developments do you see ahead in commercial air transport? Well, it depends on how far ahead you want to look. Next year, for instance, we will institute non-stop operations across Pacific. There will be non-stop from Tokyo to Alaska in both directions. That is a very important development. If anybody had ever told me that aircraft would carry large numbers of passengers and crew and cargo and mail across Pacific non-stop, I thought they needed the heads examined. But it's still a fact. There we are. We're going to do it. Now, down the road apiece, we're going to have atomic power. Perhaps we'll have what are now called guided missiles that will carry not only cargo and mail, but maybe we'll have them so that they'll properly carry passengers. Well, thank you very much, General Harris. It's been a great pleasure to have you here tonight. Thank you. The opinions you've heard our speakers express tonight have been entirely their own. The editorial board for this edition of the Laun Jean Chronoscope was Larry Lisser and Gil Robb Wilson. Our distinguished guest was General Harold R. Harris, President of Northwest Orient Airlines. Will there be a Laun Jean watch in your stocking this coming Christmas morning? Well, why not a subtle hint to your own personal Santa clothes? Believe me, nothing could give you more satisfaction or more pleasure. Now, here in these diminutive Laun Jean ladies watches is beauty for the adornment of the loveliest rest and more important, dependability to keep the busy hostess or businesswoman precisely on time. For the man in every field of activity, a Laun Jean watch is a priceless possession. No other name on a Christmas watch means so much as Laun Jean, for no other watch has won ten World's Fair grand prizes, twenty-eight gold medals, and so many honors for accuracy. Yet, unbelievably, many beautiful Laun Jean watch models are priced as low as seventy-one fifty, each made to the unique Laun Jean standards of excellence, which have gained for Laun Jean the title, The World's Most Honored Watch, The World's Most Honored Christmas Gift, premier product of the Laun Jean Witner Watch Company, since 1866, maker of watches of the highest character. We invite you to join us every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday evening at this same time for the Laun Jean Chronoscope, a television journal of the important issues of the hour, broadcast on behalf of Laun Jean, The World's Most Honored Watch, and Witner, distinguished companion to the World's Honored Laun Jean. This is Frank Knight, reminding you that Laun Jean and Witner watches are sold in service from coast to coast by more than four thousand leading jewelers who proudly display this emblem. Agency for Laun Jean Witner Watches. This is the CBS television network.