I've read about most of those guys and know people who knew some of them. When I showed up for the first time in Alaska it was suggested to me by an un-named individual (who had job openings) that if I wanted to get a job flying in Alaska an ink pen and a blank logbook would get it done. As much as I longed to do it (alas) I am not that dumb. This was in '96 I think. As my career developed in the oil industry I heard from many pilots in the area that FAA had begun to crack down even harder on such practices. The odd thing at that time was that they seemed more distracted by air taxi operators without the requisite paperwork in place (one man operations) than they were about verifying pilot experience. From what I know now I doubt that crap goes on much anymore. One can imagine that it's as much a function of insurance carrier oversight as the fed's involvement.

Good read. We take so much for granted today in terms of navigation technology and emergency beacons. It's hard to depart without just a little confidence that you'll be found by modern means if you go down and survive. In 1929? Slim chance. Those guys are legends for a reason.