Airmail schedule dispatch board

Post Office Department officials in charge of the airmail service used this dispatch board to chart the status of airmail flights in 1918. The rows are marked on the left side with the names of the three airfields. The columns at the top are marked Aviators; Hangers; College Park; Bustleton, PA; and Belmont Park. Additional columns offered officials the opportunity to show if aircraft were "in shop," as well as trip status for forced landings, extra trips, wind direction and weather status. Flags indicating pilot names were used to show flight progress. The flags for airmail pilots Eddie Gardner and Max Miller are still attached to the board.

Regularly scheduled airmail service began on May 15, 1918, with flights between Washington, DC; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; and New York City. The airfields for each city were located at Potomac Park, Maryland; Bustleton, Pennsylvania; and Belmont Park, Long Island, respectively. On August 12, 1918, the Department moved Washington's airmail service field to College Park, Maryland.