Page 36 - Volume 13 Number 8

Both Erwin and Eichwaldt had finished their tests and were found qualified to take off for Hawaii, as were Goebel and Griffin.
As race day approached, final preparations were completed by each crew and their airplanes fueled for takeoff the next morning. A signal code was transmitted to any ships plying the sea lanes between Hawaii and California during the race. In addition, 10 commercial merchant vessels and eight U.S. Navy destroyers would be cruising the same area and were instructed to fly signal flags in a code that would indicate their distance from San Francisco along a Great Circle Route. That would allow airplanes to swoop low over the ships and verify their position. As a final measure, ships were given descriptions of each airplane in the race and the order they would depart Oakland Airport. If pilots saw a ship at night, they were to signal their race number in Morse Code and the ship would transmit the sighting to San Francisco and Honolulu.
The stage was set to begin the great aerial trek to Oahu. The next day, at precisely high noon in Oakland, the first airplane would take off into the western sky to be followed by seven other ships and their intrepid crews. Before them lie 2,500 miles of empty, unforgiving ocean and a black night frought with hazards. The Dole Race
Aerial view of the Oakland airport taken by the Aerograph Company that documented the pilots, airplanes and hectic activities that preceded the Dole competition. The nine contestants on race day were the Oklahoma (at the starting line), Aloha, Dallas Spirit, Miss Doran, Woolaroc, El Encanto,
Golden Eagle, Miss Peoria and the Pabco Pacific Flyer. (Frank Phillips Foundation, Inc., Bartlesville, Oklahoma)
34 • KING AIR MAGAZINE AUGUST 2019