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National Women's Air Race
That same year, The National
Exchange Club originated sponsorship of the National Women's Air
Derby, the first transcontinental air race ever held for women. It
began in Santa Monica, Calif., on Aug. 18, 1929, and ended in
Cleveland, Ohio, during the National Air Races and Aeronautical
Exposition then being held in that city and also deeply involving
Exchange. The races were continued in later years and became known
as the Powder Puff Derby.
In 1930, The National Exchange Club engaged the service of Lt.
Walter Hinton in an ambitious project to further promote the
interests of aviation. Exchangite Hinton had been pilot of the
Navy's NC4 flying boat, the first plane to fly the Atlantic, in
1919. The famed flier was also an explorer, writer and lecturer.
Under the auspices of Exchange, Hinton embarked on a year-long
flying tour of the nation, carrying the message of progress through
aviation to cities and towns throughout the country.
 The
1930 National Convention at Indianapolis, Ind., featured a Famous
Fliers' Night. Miss Earhart once again attended along with Lt. I
Hinton But the highlight of the event was the appearance of Rear
Adm. Richard E. Byrd, also a flier and a member of the Exchange Club
of Washington, D.C. he was a national hero, having only recently
returned from his two-year exploratory expedition to the South Pole.
Some 10,000 people packed the auditorium where he spoke and
thousands more listened outside via loudspeakers.
A variety of aviation projects such as new airports and equipment,
roof and highway markers, signals and promotional events were
sponsored by local Exchange Clubs throughout the 1930s. And because
of Exchange's concern marks it as unique. for our nation's youth, a
Model Aviation program was also developed. Thousands of youngsters
became avidly interested in aviation and aeronautics through model
airplane clubs sponsored throughout the United States by Exchange
Clubs. Another natural development for Exchange was its sponsorship,
for a number of years, of the National Model Airplane Championships.
Some Exchange Clubs still sponsor model aviation programs and
conduct local meets as part of their services to youth.
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