185 - MERMOZ, Jean

MERMOZ, Jean L.A.S. “Ton Jean,” [Buenos Aires, February? 1929], to his “Dearest Mom”; 2 pages, in-4 format, on Via Aeropostal paper. He’s feeling down: “My wonderful project, which I’d managed to get off the ground and which was on the verge of coming to fruition, is threatening to fall apart because of a dim-witted guy, a ridiculous parliamentarian—Laurent-Eynac, to be precise—who is denying me authorization and loudly proclaiming that no crossing of the North Atlantic will take place with a land-based aircraft. Immediately, the company—not wanting to get on his bad side—refuses to deliver the aircraft to me, or else offers to make an exception on the condition that the aircraft be sold in Buenos Aires as an export and for an additional 200,000 francs! So you can imagine how furious I am!! I’m going to try to scrape together those 200,000 fcs. If I don’t succeed, there’s nothing I can do—it’s all over. And I’ll have to put it off until I return in December. The company is delighted, of course, and to console me, they’re dangling the prospect of wonderful trips. But that’s not enough for me”… He was appointed to the board of the Association of Aviation Professionals: “I receive requests from pilots and mechanics asking me to help them out. I respond as much as possible, because I remember my difficult early days all too well”… Source: - Jean Mermoz (1901–1936); - Gabrielle Gillet-Mermoz (1880–1955); - Then passed down through the family