Old Missoula

Missoula’s First Aviation School – 1927 – A. W. ‘Steve’ Stephenson Instructor

Will Rogers Visits Missoula – Piloted Around Montana by Stephenson

 

FIRST AVIATION SCHOOL IN MISSOULA IS TRAINING FLYERS

That aviation will soon play an important part in Montana as it has begun to do in other states is established by the fact that a flying school is already in existence in Missoula.

With the formation recently of the Montana Air Service corporation, commercial flying in the state will be carried on in a much larger scale than ever before, and classes in flying are now being held in Missoula with courses also scheduled for Dillon and Torrington, Wyo, by the same company. A. W. Stephenson of Missoula, one of Montana’s pioneer aviators, is instructor. The company, with a capital of $25,000 was organized with Mr. Stephenson, and Mr. and Mrs. Fred Woodside of Dillon as principal stockholders.

In connection with their commercial flying and aviation school, the company is also a representative of the Advance Aircraft Co., of Troy, Ohio for Waco airplanes. Sometime in June, another ship and pilot will be added to the force which will be devoted to commercial flying.

Call For Pilots.

“With the U. S. Army looking to flying schools to furnish it with pilots, and the increasing demand for flyers existing in the growing commercial businesses of the country, graduate pilots find a large field for placement, and we guarantee to place our graduates immediately and will furnish a licensed plane to those who desire one,” Mr. Stephenson said.

“It is a simple matter to secure a commission in the army with the acquirement of a pilot’s license and a licensed plane,” he continued, “as nearly one thousand have done so during the present year. The government now contracts its airmail service to aviation concerns, which opens another field to the newly-trained pilot.

“Proof of the growing interest in aviation in Montana as well as other parts of the United States is shown by the number of responses we have had from our small advertisement placed recently in an aviation magazine. Inquiries in regard to cost of planes and to instruction in flying are coming to us from all parts of the Treasure state, as well as coast states and from points east as far as Ohio,” the flyer said. “By all, I expect to see four or five privately owned ships in Missoula, and there will be about that many in Dillon.

Five prospective pilots are now enrolled in the course in Missoula. They are “Chick” Neaves, Curtis Hopkins, W. H. Brown and Carl Amos, and with the arrival of a new plane here recently piloted from the factory by Mr. Stephenson, instruction will go forward at a rapid pace. Four to six weeks are required for the average student to do solo flying, during which time 10 to 15 hours of actual flying instruction is given. The finished student will be granted a government license and the loan of a plane should the pilot go into work requiring ownership of one. Three classes of licenses are issued; private, needed to own and operate private ships; commercial, for property carrying for hire, and the transport license for carrying property and passengers.

Following graduation of the flyers now under instruction here, Mr. Stephenson will go to Torrington, Wyo., and then to the class in Dillon. Upon completion of instruction at Dillon, another class will be formed in Missoula, Mr. Stephenson said.

The type of plane to be used by the company is the same as was recently driven by Mr. Stephenson to Missoula from Troy, Ohio, when he made a distance of 21,000 (sic) miles in 19 and one half hours of actual flying. The trip included many miles over the flooded areas in the middle west and over the U. S. air mail route from Omaha to Rock Springs, Wyo.

This class of machine, made by one of the pioneer plane manufacturing companies in America, sells for about the price of an average automobile. Gas mileage averages from 12 to 15 miles per gallon. As an example of the cost of driving, Mr. Stephenson said, for the 285 hours of flying over 25,000 miles, motor overhauling and material costs amounted to $6, and labor $20, besides the gas and oil expense.

The engine is of the Curtiss OX-5 model, 100 horse-power. The biplane is constructed with steel tubing instead of wire and wood, truss and frame braces.

Among Mr. Stephenson’s past students in flying are: Irene Neville of Helena, now Mrs. Irene Williams of San Francisco, who is doing a great deal of flying on the coast; Frank Wiley[1], now at Scobey in commercial service; E. A. Brennan, now in the coast in the commercial service, and Al Stewart of the state highway commission.

 

The above article appeared in The Sunday Missoulian on May 8, 1927.

https://www.newspapers.com/image/348720335/

 

Without a lot of local fanfare one of Missoula’s early pilots quietly became a legend. Arthur (A. W.) Stephenson, served in 2 world wars and then guided many young fliers to become prominent pilots themselves. His civilian flying career lasted decades and touched many lives, especially in the west. After more than twenty years as a civilian pilot, WW 2 found him re-enlisted in the Army Air Corp as a lieutenant in 1942; then retiring as a Lieutenant Colonel in 1945. Stephenson’s duties took him around the globe. In addition, he was a gold star father, whose son, Arthur, was killed while flying a P-38 in the South Pacific in August of 1945.

Along with many other young men and women, Stephenson’s remarkable life began with an early addiction to airplanes and flying. He learned to fly in the military at Rockwell Field in San Diego, Payne Field in Mississippi, and took advanced training in France during WW I. By 1922 he lived in Missoula as a partner in the Edwards Motor Company, the Hudson dealership on E. Front Street. He partnered with W. R. ‘Lon’ Brennan, one of the first owners of an airplane in Missoula, teaching him to fly in 1923. Brennan’s disassembled plane was stored at the Edwards Motor Company garage in the winter. Brennan later taught Bob Johnson of Johnson’s Flying to fly. Brennan was also credited with starting Missoula’s first landing field near Mt Sentinel. Stephenson and Brennan were flying passengers in Missoula by 1924 and soon they were also doing search and rescue flights and performing at local events. Both Stephenson and Bob Johnson entered a National Air Derby from N. Y. to Spokane in 1927. That exploit was notable when they encountered fog that, according to Johnson, “made it impossible to tell where you are, how high you are, or in what direction you are flying.” A Missoulian article in 1927 stated that the first students trained on the local Missoula airfield (Garden City Airport) were taught by Stephenson. When he left Missoula that year there were 12 students in his class and 3 were to continue training. Bob Johnson filled the gap when he left. “At present, Mr. Johnson, who is now running the school, has seven student fliers.”[2]

 

Missoulians may have witnessed a Stephenson demonstration flight in 1925 without even knowing who he was. The Daily Missoulian reported on an event at the Western Montana Fair that included a live bombing exhibition south of the fairgrounds:

Bombs Hit Mark

Another military event of the day was the airplane and bombing in which Lieutenant H. G. Sydenham of Fort Missoula dropped 12 army bombs from a plane at a target marked on the side hill south of the grandstand. Twelve bombs were dropped and four of them hit the objective. The bombs were types of those used in warfare. The machine was piloted by A. W. Stephenson, a lieutenant in the air reserve corps. Today they will repeat the air stunt and bombs will be dropped on a balloon and machine gun fire will be directed against the balloon. The balloon is to represent an enemy observation balloon.

 

The above excerpt is from The Daily Missoulian on October 2, 1925.

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Flying Will Rogers

Stephenson flew the famous humorist Will Rogers from Missoula to Butte in March of 1927. An article in The Montana Standard in 1954 (with Photos) noted the following: “The machine piloted by Stephenson was an open cockpit plane, the property of Fred Woodside, auto dealer who still resides in Dillon. Stephenson later became the chief pilot for National Parks Airways which was taken over by Western Air.”[3]

Little else is known about the Will Rogers visit to Missoula since the local newspaper for that period is unavailable. [Strangely, Missoulian archives have approximately a 4-month gap in early 1927.]

In Butte, Rogers expressed his affection for Charlie Russell and noted that he had written an introduction for Russell’s new book at the request of Russell’s widow. “Charlie was one good hombre,” he said, “and my long time friend.”[4]

Stephenson then flew Rogers to Helena from Butte the following day and, after landing, the humorist made a few comments on the flight, and on Montana:

“That’s a smooth old highway you’ve got in the air from Butte to Helena by Deer Lodge, but oh, man, that’s the crookedest railroad I ever saw,” said Will Rogers, humorist and mayor of Beverly Hills, as he stepped out of the pursuit plane of A. W. Stephenson onto Follensby Field at 10:40 yesterday morning, having made the trip to Helena in the air.

“Fifty-five minutes after he told the richest hill in the world goodbye Will Rogers was saying “Hello, there to former Governor S. V. Stewart and Sam Goza of Helena . . . And we passed over the penitentiary twice,” said Rogers. “I’d hate like the devil to drop inside those walls. But there was no danger. That boy’s a good driver – he came along smooth and though we crossed the snow-covered peaks of the Rockies, we were never for more than a minute or two over a place where he could not have alighted had it been necessary. I didn’t get a bit cold – it was all fine and beautiful scenery. I’ll bet this is a pretty country in the summer time when those mountains get green but the snow looked good to me.”[5]

Stephenson flew Rogers to Great Falls the following day, where he was met by a crowd of cowboys and Indians and a line of automobiles that “stretched for out for at least a mile.”[6] Rogers was honored with a parade and Great Falls marked the day as Will Roger’s Day. He again complimented Stephenson, saying “That lad certainly is a good pilot . . .”

On Charlie Russell, Rogers said, “I first met Russell in New York. . .That was a long time ago. He was there to sell some of his paintings and I was trying to peddle some jokes. The longer we knew each other the better we seemed to hit it off.”

Following the flight to Great Falls, Stephenson flew Rogers to Billings, Mt. and finally to Sheridan, Wyoming.

 

Stephenson was charged with defrauding a customer who purchased a vehicle from Edwards Motor Company in 1926. He pleaded not guilty. Charges against him were dismissed by Judge Asa Duncan in February of 1927.

 

Flying The Mayor

In July 1928 Stephenson piloted a six passenger, cabin type Fokker aircraft over the city of Missoula, demonstrating the machine that was capable of carrying 1,000 pounds of mail. This type of plane was to anchor the new Great Falls to Salt Lake mail route, contracted by the National Parks Airways airline. This same type of National Park Airways plane crashed in Pocatello, Idaho in September that year, killing seven people aboard.

The Daily Missoulian reported on the local event when 2 of its reporters made the trip over the city with Stephenson:

Mayor Beacom Views Garden City By Air

Makes Flight In Fokker Ship To Be Used In Mail Service

For the first time in its history, Missoula was viewed from the air by its highest civic official when Mayor William H. Beacom took a spin in the Fokker monoplane which carried a number of Missoula residents on short trips over the city yesterday afternoon.

With Mayor Beacom were Miss Virginia Wood and Miss Barbara Sterling, Frank Thomas and two members of The Sentinel staff. The members of the flying party were the guests of the National Park Airways, several officials of the firm having flown in the big monoplane from Butte early in the afternoon to let Missoula have a look at the plane, the first of its type to be made by the Fokker company in the United States. The ship is to be placed in the air mail service between Great Falls and Salt Lake, making its first run August 1.

Stephenson Is Pilot

Pilot A. W. Stephenson eased the ship off the ground so smoothly that the passengers had to watch the wheels to know when they were off. Southwest the ship rose, circling high over Missoula, turning north and floating over Mount Jumbo, while the party watched the shadow of the plane speeding across the side of the big lump, far below. Passing Pattee canyon, the ship went over Miller creek hill and swung around to the airport.

From the ground, the beautiful plane seemed to be slipping through the air in an unending glide, but with the door of the engine room open the passenger in the nicely finished cabin had the sensation of ploughing through the air, so smoothly did the big plane go through the air and so great was the power required to carry it along.

Excellent Views.

In the rear, the two young women enjoyed themselves immensely, carrying on a lively conversation. The others also exchanged comments as they gazed down at the ground far below. The mayor glanced calmly out of one window, then out of the other. Ploughed fields looked like fine grey corduroy, and alfalfa fields looked like scraps of green velvet. Houses looked like tiny dollhouses, and cars looked like wee bugs motionless on winding grey ribbons. People on the sidewalks were mere pinpoints.

“Twelve hundred,” the reporter who sat beside the open door to Stephenson’s pilot cabin informed the men near him. Down below the paved streets were glistening brooks after the rain. “Two thousand.” Waterworks hill was a fat wart straight below them. The plane eased along at 95 miles per hour.

Down – the passengers’ ears were heavy. Bump, bump, bump – the plane’s wingtips wiggled as the ship tore through the rough crosswinds above Miller creek. Then a smooth glide, and suddenly the passengers looked out to find the wheels on the ground.

It was after the flight was over that the mayor evidenced his progressive nature. He stated his age, which is considerably above that of the average age, and declared “But I’m going to learn to fly one of them!”

Several Trips Made.

Several trips were made by the plane, Stephenson and Ray Elsmore, co-pilot, handling the ship, with many Missoula residents as passengers. Mayor Beacom having made the first flight an official one, Commissioner Lloyd A. Hague and President R. T. Richardson of the Missoula Chamber of Commerce made the second trip also one of an official nature. After they had gone up, groups of other citizens were given rides.

The Fokker, making the trip here from Butte, arrived at 1:45 o’clock on a good-will mission, the trip from the Mining city having taken one hour and 10 minutes. Stephenson piloted the plane to Missoula, and Elsmore took it up on its return to Butte late in the evening. With the two pilots were Al Frank of Salt Lake, president of the National Parks Airways; W. R. Walker, traffic manager, and C. L. Barker, chief mechanic of the firm; Eddie Borchard of Butte, an Anaconda Copper Mining company official.

 

The above article appeared in The Daily Missoulian on July 20, 1928

https://www.newspapers.com/image/348713853/?terms=a%2Bw%2Bstephenson

 

One of more entertaining and revealing articles written about Stephenson appeared in The Butte Standard on April 13, 1930:

Veteran Pilot Cultivates Friendship of Antelope on Trips Over Scenic Country

Many and varied are the landmarks by which a flyer charts his course and the most beautiful of these are the craters and desert in the territory south of Monida, according to A. W. (Steve) Stephenson, airmail pilot from the National Parks Airways, Inc., flying between Great Falls, Butte and Salt Lake City.

“Light effects caused by the shadows of clouds and sunlight playing on the lava craters make them the outstanding objects of beauty on the flight,” Stephenson said last night when asked to describe the route covered by the planes, “Even in cloudy weather one’s impression of the craters is fascinating,” he continued.

“Of course there are other points of beauty but they are so numerous. Among them is the Sleeping Giant between Great Falls and Helena, and the Gates to the Mountains, both of which I look forward to on each flight for their beauty and to check my flying schedule.

“South of Butte along the summit of the Continental Divide there are many peaks that I have circled with the plane to give the passengers an opportunity to see the picturesque formations as well as the many wild animals that inhabit the high altitudes. Occasionally I drop into a canyon or valley where the scenery is very attractive.

“Between Blacktail creek and Red Rock lake is a wall of rock, extending 9,000 feet above sea level that affords an unusual scene of natural beauty. The mountain is topped with pine trees and the wall has been opened by the elements leaving many deep narrow ravines that hold one’s attention each time they are viewed.

“But when it comes to beauty that cannot be found at all times, I get above the clouds. There, on a sea of a white billowy mass in the sunlight a picture is offered that cannot be equaled anywhere, especially when a storm is raging below.

Friend of Antelope.

“During the fall months, in my various flights south I cultivated the acquaintance of a herd of 12 antelope. At first the herd was frightened by the roar of the motor but each time the plane flew over them they became more interested in the ship and would stop their grazing to watch it.

“Early in the winter though, a hunter, or possibly another plane frightened the animals and they haven’t been seen for some time. Often I circled the herd to give passengers an opportunity to watch the animals form into a circle for protection, and then center their interest on the ship.

Stephenson has been a pilot on the National Parks’ lines since the inauguration of the company nearly two years ago. He has more than 6,500 hours of flying time and has never failed to make a start on a scheduled run with passengers or mail. He is considered one of the outstanding pilots in mail service in the West.

Trained in Army.

He trained as a flyer at Rockwell Field, San Diego, early in the war and later at West Point, Miss., before being sent overseas. While in France he took an advance course at Issoudun, the largest army training school in the world which consisted of more than 12 fields and hundreds of planes.

He was then attached to the Fourth army pursuit group with the Second army headquarters and belonged to the squadron led by Reed Landis, Second American ace. He saw several months’ service on the front line during the hostilities.

Following his discharge he returned to his home in North Dakota and later moved to Miles City where he operated a flying school, associated with Earl Vance of Great Falls, also an air-mail pilot on the National Parks’ line. Stephenson later moved to Missoula, Dillon and then Butte where he operated flying schools and trained many, now widely-known Montana pilots.

At the present time he is operating a school of flying at Great Falls, said to be one of the best in the state. More than 50 students look to him for instruction while he is off duty from the mail run. His experiences have been many, some of them thrilling and others, humorous.

On one occasion, Stephenson said he was coming to Butte from Great Falls and had as a passenger, Charles Bonner of the Goodyear Tire company. As the plane emerged over the city from Elk Park valley, the town and airport were blanketed with fog. At the time, Stephenson called his passenger’s attention to the fog belt and explained how to locate the city by smoke in the mist.

Unable to see the ground, Stephenson circled for a time seeking a hole in the fog. Eventually he found one near Ramsey, west of the city, and made for it. After getting under the mist, he managed to reach the field and make a safe landing. Several weeks later while talking with Mr. Bonner, the incident was recalled, “Steve” said.

While speaking of the event, Mr. Bonner remarked that “’Steve’ was a good pilot, he found Butte over near Anaconda.”

 

The above article appeared in The Montana Standard on April 13, 1930

https://www.newspapers.com/image/350769097/?terms=a%2Bw%2Bstephenson%2Bpilot

 

WW2 Career – Travis Air Force Base

Stephenson had a second career in the military during WW2. His background of millions of miles in the air enabled him to advance quickly in the Army air corps. He rose in rank from a Lieutenant to a Lt. Colonel in charge of several programs, and later became commanding officer of an air base. Still, he never lost his love of flying or his love for Montana.

An article in The Montana Standard in 1944, quoted below, noted his connection to several Montana cities:

Pioneer Butte Flyer Visits

Stephenson Points to Need of WACs

Lieutenant Colonel A. W. Stephenson, pioneer Butte flyer, who served as a second lieutenant in the Twenty-fifth squadron, fourth pursuit in World War No. 1, now commanding officer of the Fairfield Suisun Army air field[7] in California, made a familiar landing in the Mining city Wednesday.

The well known Montana pilot set down an Army B-25 at the Butte airport, stepped out of the plane and said:

“It’s great to be back in Montana again.”

Colonel Stephenson is touring western Army fields co-ordinating air-WAC recruiting for the Pacific wing of the Air Transport Command. He piloted a recruiting team, which will establish headquarters at Gore field, Great Falls, to the Treasure state. The team is composed of Lt. William H. B. Pratt, Lt. Marion B. Ryall, Corp. Henry T. Heller and Pvt. Jessie Coryell. The team will seek recruits throughout Montana for the Pacific wing.

Best Known Pilot

Colonel Stephenson’s career as a pilot is closely linked with aviation history in Montana. In fact, “Steve,” as he is known to his scores of Montana friends, is the Treasure state’s best known flyer. On August 1, 1928, he piloted the first air mail passenger plane south from Great Falls to Salt Lake via Butte on the National Parks Airways, now the Western Air. Again in 1937 he made aviation history when he made the pioneer air mail flight north from Edmonton, Alta., to Dawson at the request of the Canadian government.

Colonel Stephenson at one time operated a flying school in this city. He was a partner of the late Col. Earl Vance in an air taxi service in Great Falls. Among his flying exploits in Montana he recalls is the time he flew a crated wildcat from Miles City to Kansas City, Kan. That was in 1921 and the wildcat was a present from Montana Legionnaires to Marshal Foch[8].

While serving as manager of operations for Western Airlines on the Salt Lake City, Butte, Great Falls division, Colonel Stephenson was “loaned” to Inland Airlines which had its headquarters in Billings. He supervised the opening of an airline which connected Billings and Great Falls.

All through his flying career in Montana he was the “spark plug” behind moves to establish modern airports in the larger communities of the state.

In Butte he played a prominent part in a public financial drive to raise funds for the lighting of the Butte airport and it was partially through his influence that the main office of the National Parks Airways was established in Butte for many years, until the company was merged into Western Airlines.

At about the time that Howard Hughes, Wiley Post and Harold Gatty were making aviation history with their world girding hops, against time, Colonel Stephenson and Henry C. Hollenbeck, a fellow pilot on the mail line, now a Navy Air corps officer, planned a world-girding non-stop flight with a take-off in Butte.

Plans for that project were developed to the point that the aircraft to be used, the crews necessary to maintain and fly the non-stop plane and those that would refuel it in the air at the various way stations had been tentatively selected and the delivery of fuel and other supplies had been tentatively arranged.

The project was abandoned, however, when financial backers withdrew. However, the proposed flight was definitely proven, through test flights and surveys, to have been possible.

As a flyer of the mail on Montana, Idaho and Utah lines, Colonel Stephenson established many time records but he won his popularity through a number of mercy flights made to remote regions, some of them in the almost inaccessible mountain areas, to take in medical attention or to bring out persons whose lives were in danger.

Right now Colonel Stephenson is looking forward to a happy event. His son, A. W. Stephenson, Jr., will be graduated as a fighter pilot from Williams field, Ariz., in April, and needless to say, if it is at all possible “Steve” will be in attendance.

“The need is great and urgent,” Stephenson said, “for women recruits in the WAC’s. This is especially true in the Air Transport Command service. Women are needed in all fields for this service . . . ”

 

The above article above appeared in The Montana Standard on March 23, 1944

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At the end of Stephenson’s career in 1945, another article in The Montana Standard provided a look at his accomplishments:

A. W. Stephenson Out of Service

Resumes Duties on Western Airlines

Lt. Col. A. W. (Steve) Stephenson, a Gold Star Father and veteran pilot of World Wars I and II, has been retired from active duty with the Army Air corps and is returning to his post as captain of a Western Airlines transport plane operating on the Salt Lake City, Utah-Lethbridge, Canada division of the line which has its southern terminus in Los Angeles.

Steve became a Gold Star father last Aug. 13 when his son, 1^st Lt. A. W. Stephenson, Jr., was shot down while leading an attack against an armed Jap troopship in Singapore harbor. Lt. Stephenson’s P-38 attack plane was hit by a burst of shell fire from a land battery and plunged into the water before the pilot could bail out in his parachute. The war in the Singapore sector ended two days later.

Col. Stephenson, a dental student in his senior year when World War I started, left his classes to enter the Army Air forces. He received his preliminary flight training at Rockwell, Calif., and after completing advanced training at Issoudun, France, was commissioned a second lieutenant. He took part in several flights against the Germans at that time and returned to the States when the war ended. Steve then abandoned his dental studies and turned to aviation as a career. He settled in South Dakota, where he established a flight school and operated an air taxi service. In 1921 he came to Montana and during the following years operated flight schools in Great Falls, Missoula, Dillon and Butte. At the same time he took a leading part in promoting an airline service to Montana.

On Aug. 1, 1928, Steve saw his dream come true when he flew the initial south-bound flight on what was then the National Parks Airways line between Great Falls and Salt Lake City. The first northbound flight was piloted by Col. Ray T. Elsmore of Salt Lake City, recently on the staff of Gen. Douglas MacArthur in the Japanese theater of operations.

A pioneer of that airline, which was later taken over by Western Airlines, present operator, Steve also pioneered Army Transport Airlines in all parts of the world during his service in the conflict just ended. He was recalled to duty in March of 1942 as a second lieutenant. His advancement, however, was rapid and since September of 1942 he held a command of his own.

His first Army assignment was at Ascension Island, where he established an airline flying supplies to the Russian, British forces and the American forces in Africa. In the fall of 1943 he was sent to Hawaii, where he established a transport base for planes servicing troops operating in many parts of the South Pacific.

After completing that task he was returned to the United States, where he was in command of a field in California. He saw domestic duty for about 20 months before he was again sent out to the Pacific. While in the States he came to Montana on a WAC recruiting drive. His last assignment was at Kwajalein[9] which has been described as the “Crossroads of the World.” It was through this station that troops were supplied at bases extending from Australia to the Jap mainland.

It was at Kwajalein that Steve met Capt. Henry C. Hollenbeck, U.S.N.R., last July. The two were almost constant companions while flying the mail from Salt Lake City north. During their visit on the mid-Pacific isle they took time out for a fishing expedition. Other former Western Airlines pilots Steve met in the Pacific base include Col. Elsmore and Ralph Fry. There were many others too numerous to mention, Steve related.

In addition to the various theater ribbons, Steve wears the Distinguished Flying Cross. Since starting his aviation career the veteran pilot has accumulated 17,000 hours flying time. He became a million-miler several years ago while operating on the commercial airlines. It is difficult to estimate the number of miles Steve has flown because of the various speed planes he has piloted. He has had experience on every type of military and transport plane.

Major operations in the Pacific virtually had ceased when Steve’s son was killed. At that time the father was arranging an assignment which would have taken him to Japan where he hoped to have a reunion with the young fighter pilot. Young Stephenson had been promoted just a few days before his death, and had been awarded the D. F. C. When he received news of the tragedy that had befallen him he was given an emergency leave back to the States which ended with his retirement last Sept. 24 at Camp Beale, Calif.

Steve came to Butte Wednesday on a check flight of all major and secondary fields on the route he is to fly. He plans to make his home in Salt Lake for the present but expressed a hope that he will be given the opportunity to spend some time in Butte to renew acquaintances and visit his former pupils. He will leave Thursday morning or a flight to the north terminus of the line.

It will be recalled that some time ago Steve and “Hank” Hollenbeck projected a round-the-world nonstop flight originating in Butte. In his recent war experiences Steve negotiated about 75 per cent of that projected flight – not nonstop, however – and it is assumed that Hollenbeck may have negotiated the other link so they will be thoroughly acquainted with the route should the nonstop flight ever develop.

Hollenbeck, Elsmore and Fry are reported to be en route to the States for retirement.

 

The above article is from The Montana Standard on November 15, 1945.

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Arthur Warren (A. W.) Stephenson was born in Batavia, Iowa in 1895. He died in Redondo Beach, California in 1975. He was survived by his wife, Jessie, a daughter, Virginia Brown of Phoenix, Arizona, and a son, John, of Longmont, Colorado.