 From August 1933 until June 1935 he served as commander, Patrol Plane Squadrons, US Fleet.In January 1934, his squadrons made the first mass non-stop flight from the West Coast to Honolulu and to Midway Island.While in this command, he developed the patrol plane squadrons by conducting their operations away from home bases for extended periods of time in distant theaters of activity, to increase their usefulness to the fleet.