Clifford Ball (November 29, 1891 – June 2, 1972) was an American farmer, soldier, bookkeeper, clerk, automobile dealer, airplane dealer, airline owner, airline operator, airline executive, radio manufacturer, Civil Air Patrol officer and chaplain, and aviation pioneer.
Early life and education Ball was born November 29, 1891, in Banksville, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. He was one of ten children born to Thomas Ball and Charlotte Ann Burrows. Both of his parents and three of his siblings emigrated from England to the U.S. in 1879. Ball graduated from McKeesport High School in 1910. Ball spent time working at his father's supply company delivering coal, operating a hoist, shoveling sand and gravel, and dispatching trucks making $90 a month. During this time his father was taking money out of his paycheck and setting it aside for Ball. Ball also worked as a clerk for a bank, and an insurance company. Ball continued his education by taking evening courses at Duquesne University and business courses at Duffs Iron City College. Ball joined the Aero Club of Pittsburgh when he was 18 years old, according to an early story. The club however, was founded in 1909 to promote an aerial demonstration, and was dormant until 1920 or so when it was restricted to WWI pilots and observers. It was not until a decade later that non-military pilots were accepted.
Air minded His first air minded friend was Madame Alice Zeno. Madame Zeno was one of the early aeronauts to entertain crowds at fairs and other events at Calhoun Park (now Lincoln Place) in Pittsburgh between 1890 and 1909. She would hang from a trapeze suspended from a parachute attached to the bottom of a hot air balloon. Madame Zeno would ride the balloon to a height a few thousand feet above the crowd and then release the parachute from the balloon. Zeno would then ride the wind back to the earth. The first child to locate her landing spot would be rewarded with a quarter and Ball was one of the children that often collected on that reward.
Military service World War 1 Ball joined the Army National Guard July 16, 1917, in Pittsburgh. Ball attempted to become a pilot when he enlisted but was rejected due to poor eyesight. He served during World War 1 with Troop H, 1st Cavalry Pennsylvania National Guard for a month before being transferred to the Headquarters Company of the 107th Field Artillery until he was released May 21, 1919. Ball served overseas from April 30, 1918, until May 11, 1919 (Serial # 1249860).
World War II During WWII Ball served as a captain and chaplain in the Civil Air Patrol and managing director of district fields for Graham Aviation Flying School with its headquarters at Butler Field. On July 2, 1942, Ball was commander of the 315th group at Butler Field where he organized three squadrons of civil pilots, 7 of the 68 fliers were woman. Many served as coastal patrol in spotting submarines, such as Jacob Schlager, who returned from Atlantic Patrol Duty at the end of June 1942.
Career Curious auto dealer After the war Ball returned to bookkeeping for a bond office for a while. He used the $5000 his father had saved for him and opened an automobile dealership called Diamond Motor Sales Company located in McKeesport. Ball became an agency for the Hudson – Essex auto manufactures as well as dealing in used cars. During his time as an automobile dealer, Ball had been fascinated by aerial demonstrations held in a field across the Monongahela River from McKeesport. The field was owned by local farmer Harry C Neel. A friend and neighbor of Neel, D Barr Peat, had made arrangements with Neel to use his property for aerial demonstrations. Peat had cleared a landing area for barnstormers to use for exhibitions and sightseeing on weekends and holidays in exchange for part of the profits they made. In July 1919 Ball had an encounter with a pilot. The pilot was in a group of traveling barnstormers that were performing in a county-wide exhibition. The pilots name was Eddie Stinson (founder Stinson Aircraft Co). Ball paid for a ride with Stinson. This $10 or $15 investment for a ride turned Ball's focus back towards aviation.
Building an airport Ball and Peat became partners with a common goal. They had several meetings with local Congressman M Clyde Kelly to convince Kelly of the benefits in bringing aviation to the Pittsburgh area. Ball and Peat would continue to lobby for aviation with local business men while Kelly took it to congress. In 1924 Ball and Peat began to raise money to expand the airfield. Ball mortgaged everything he owned and they borrowed the rest. They used the money to buy the property from Neal for $35,000 in August 1925. (Neal used this seed money to start Jefferson Memorial Cemetery nearby) Ball was president and Peat was vice-president of the new Pittsburgh-McKeesport air field (PMA). The airfield started out on 25 acres. They used the leftover money from the purchase of the property along with additional funding, from Sam Brendel, Neel and Ball's brother Albert Ball, and they erected a building that was used as a combination machine shop, concession stand and living quarters for pilots. Peat cut down trees and ran a tractor filling in ditches adding an additional 18 acres of useful space to the airfield. Ball would stage aerial stunts and plane rides as well as running the concession stand. In 1925 Ball hired a secretary, Helen Marie Stinner (later his wife), who also acted as gatekeeper and ticket taker.
Entertaining the crowds The traveling barnstormers charged $5 a plane ride, and the airfield received $1 of that. In a week the airfield made about $250. In August officials of the local American Legion, Burt Foster post No. 361, signed a contract with PMA to hold an airplane meet. With the money from the Legion contract Ball expanded the airfield from 43 to 85 acres. Ball bought his own plane from the Robertson Aircraft Corporation of St Louis, whose pilot and instructor was named Charles A Lindbergh. The plane had been named "Fly Today" and was a Standard J-1 in rough shape. It was suggested by Lindbergh based on the money Ball had to spend. Ball hired a local stunt flyer named Romer Weyant to fly his airplane for the Sunday and Holiday events. In September, the Pittsburgh-McKeesport airfield attempted to bring more interest to the new airport by hosting "The Battle in the Clouds" which was a reenactment of a French Balloon being shot down from 8,000 feet by hostile planes. Stunt flying and Army Air Planes were also on site for the crowd to enjoy. PMA held the Legion Aviation Meet on October 17 and 18, 1925. The Legion meet was termed the largest air meet ever held in the state of Pennsylvania. It was estimated that more than 10,000 people attended. Over 100 planes came from across the country, with military and commercial aces, to participate. The crowd was witness to races, stunts, wing walking, skywriting, and parachute jumps. The meet was held with the co-operation of the Aero Club of Pittsburgh and the Technical Data Section of the Army Air Service.
Expanding aviation In January after the passing of what became known as the Kelly Airmail Act, Pittsburgh Postmaster George W Gosser recommended PMA as the best local field to use as a feeder line for receiving and shipping the U.S. Mail. As president of PMA, Ball went on a tour of the Airports along the transcontinental Airmail route to inspect aircraft, equipment and best practices to bring back for use at the airfield. During this trip Ball visited the Swallow Airplane Company in Wichita, Kansas, to inspect a new fleet of Air Mail planes being produced. In preparation for bidding on one of the air mail routes Ball founded the "Skyline Transport Company" (STC), better known as "Clifford Ball, Inc", and submitted a bid on March 25 for Contract Air Mail route 11 (CAM-11) to fly Airmail between Pittsburgh, PA and Cleveland, OH. Late in March the Postal Authorities notified Ball they would visit Pittsburgh-McKeesport airfield to inspect the facility prior to any contract being awarded. Ball continued searching for ways to bring business into the Airport and in January he was able to convince the Swallow Airplane Co to build an assembly plant at the Airport. Immediately they began shipping airplane parts to be assembled at PMA. Some planes were assembled and Ball acted as a local distributor and salesman for the new Swallow aircraft selling a few planes while waiting for the new plant to be built. However the plant never materialized. On March 27, 1926, STC won the bid for CAM 11 and was awarded the Government Contract starting on May 1. Ball was the only bidder on the route and planned to begin operations on July 1 with three Swallow Aircraft.
Ball had flown over 100 hours but the contract from his bondman for STC stated he could not fly for five years. The Pittsburgh-McKeesport airfield "informally" opened to the public on June 19, 1926, with a free exhibition of acrobatic flying by the air mail pilots. The airmail service official opening was delayed by a Government requirement for heavier planes. The field "officially" opened to the public on July 20, 1926, by holding an Air Circus with 10 stunt fliers to entertain the crowds with acrobatic maneuvers, altitude flights and races. Ball announced that this will be the Headquarters of the Pittsburgh-Cleveland Air Mail service slated to start in about 2 months after acquiring appropriate planes.
On May 31, 1928, the airfield hosted the National Elimination Balloon Races with more than 150,000 people in attendance. The added seats for the event were widely used on future weekends and holidays for people to sit and watch the airport activities. It was around this time that the first requirements of the physical exam for a pilot license, even for students, were created. Pilots across the state begin bringing their damaged planes to Bettis for repairs due to the growing reputation of the Pittsburgh-McKeesport airfield.
Renaming the field Less than four months after the official opening of the Pittsburgh-McKeesport airfield, the PMA name was changed. On November 26, 1926, approximately 75 airplanes were used in the formal dedication of Bettis Aviation Field, named for Lieutenant Cyrus K. Bettis, a well known aviator that was killed in a crash near Bellefonte, PA. After a dedication speech was made former squadron mates of Bettis took to the sky in there Curtiss P-1 Hawk pursuit planes to make their dedication to him above the crowd. Some of the aircraft on display at the event were the Douglas C-1, a huge twin-motored Martin NBS-1 bomber, and a Fokker Special monoplane. In attendance were Ithrene Bettis, sister of the fallen aviator; Myrtle Peacock, his fiancée; Congressman M Clyde Kelly; William P MacCracken, Jr, assistant secretary of commerce and director of commercial aviation; George W Gosser, Pittsburgh postmaster; George H Lysle, mayor of McKeesport; Colonel H C Fry, chairman of the aviation board of the Pittsburgh Chamber of Commerce; and Captain Thomas S Voss, in charge of Rodgers Airfield northeast of downtown Pittsburgh.
Airmail contract Ball ordered four new OX-5 powered Waco 9 type biplanes to meet the new government requirements and by the morning of April 19 two were at the field. Ball sent his Chief Pilot and head of the Operating Division, Merle A "Moup" Moltrup, on a test run. Flying the new Waco 9, "Miss Pittsburgh", from Bettis to Youngstown and then on to Cleveland and back while Ball and the postmaster timed the run in preparation for the opening. Two of the new Waco 9's had arrive and a third was expected.
Airmail route inauguration