AVIATION: Too Little, Too Late

When Eastern Air Lines' Captain Eddie Rickenbacker offered to pay $100 million for 35 Comet jet transports (TIME, Sept. 8), it seemed to be a golden opportunity for the British to grab a big chunk of the U.S. commercial plane market. But last week it looked as if the British had muffed

the opportunity. Captain Eddie insisted

that he had to have the Comets by 1956.

Comet Builder de Havilland said that he

could not turn out that many before 1957.

That was too late for Rickenbacker.

Right now he is modernizing Eastern's

fleet with 30...

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