This picture was taken in 1938, and shows the Post Office’s early investigation of shuttle air mail service. The picture shows the use of a gyro-copter to shuttle mail between the Washington DC post office, and the Washington airport. The gyro-copter could take off and land in short distances, and it was hoped it could make short-hop airmail service feasible. I guess the idea never really took hold. I find it interesting to read the comments this week on the frustration people have with the post office. In my last job, where I had a high-tech start up company, I found it interesting to observe the difference between the service of Fed-Ex and the post office. The Fed-Ex truck would show up right on time. Once the truck stopped, the guy would literally jump out with the package, and RUN to our door. When he came in you noticed that he was dressed in neat, new, pressed shorts and pressed shirt. He was trim, and always had a neat, short haircut. He was courteous, and businesslike. He would greet us, deliver the package, and then RUN back to his truck. On the other hand, the post office guy would show up later than advertised. He had clothes that did not fit, his shirt tail was out, he had shaggy hair, and the front of his shirt was covered with mustard and ketchup from his extra long lunch break. He wandered around the building a little before finally coming around with ! our package, and then would tell us something that was wrong about the way we were using the post office. Interesting, I am not describing two people, but two organizations . . . all the Fed Ex guys were like the one I describe above, and all the Post Office guys were like the one described above. It is interesting how different private sector services operate vs. government services. Some day I will relay my stories from the Department of Motor Vehicles.
Post a Comment