Pacific Air Transport  Ryan  M-1      Identity unknown

                              

                                  When the U.S. Post Office specified Commercial Air Mail Roite # 8 from Seattle to Los Angeles,
                                  Western Air Express' "Pop" Hanshue declined to bid on it, since it involved some hazardous flying
                                  over the Siskiyou Mountains on the Calif-Oregon border.  Vern C. Gorst, a bus operator out of
                                  North Bend, Oregon wasn't so shy, however, and won the bid.   He arranged for the survey flight
                                  to be undertaken by none other than Claude Ryan himself, who did so in the M-1 seen below in this
                                  nice shot from the Ryan Aeronautical company.   The above machine is another M-1 and is typical
                                  of the type which flew to initial services after the contract was let on 27 January 1926. Fortunately,
                                  passengers were not expected to fly from Los Angeles to Seattle in these ancient Ryans.  It was, at
                                  that time, a purely air mail carrying company.