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Aviation History
1909
1909 - 0683.PDF
OCTOBER 30, 1909. Latham " crossing " " Hight" Copyiight Photo. the wind at Blackpool Meeting last Friday week on his Antoinette monoplane, during hisflight through the half gale. r It was quickly realised, however, that such was not the case ; it was merely a false start. Once more the propeller whizzed in the air, and again did the mechanics run alongside, steadying the tail as the machine githered way in a second attempt. Letting go, they left the machine to Latham, and in a few yards those watching the proceedings in breathless excitement saw the wheels quit contact with the ground. A flight had commenced. Would it continue ? Latham was heading in the teeth of the wind ; painfully it seemed did the flyer make progress. Grasping the two control wheels, Latham could be seen working them quickly to and fro as he battled against the gusts. Warpinj the wings, dipping the elevator, turning the rudder, all these manoeuvres did he bring into play with infinite skill as he was swayed from side to side. Sometimes the machine would heave bodily beneath a specially severe gust and for a moment would seem about to be blown back- wards, yet after a pause it continued to forge ahead. Not an eye but watched its every move, as, slowly, it circled the course twice in succession and then settled gracefully down by the Judges' box. It was a superb exhibition of skiil, pluck, and daring, as unexpected as it was completely successful. In the second lap Latham flew quite outside the course, beyond the spectators in the lower priced enclosures, and owing to this fact, only his first lap-time counted for the slow speed test. His times were as follows : — LATHAM. Lap 1 ... 25-09 m.p.h. ... Time, 4 m. 45 s. ,, 2 ... 21-65 ». •• " 5m- 3°f s. Latham's flight concluded the day's proceedings, for the wind having increased still more in violence, although Saunderson gave notice of an attempt, he did not leave his shed. Saturday, 23rd. More rain falling on Friday night and continuing on Saturday morning, completed the conversion of the ground round the sheds into a lake. It was impossible to enter Farman's hangar except by the use of a bridge of planks, and even that was little enough protec- tion. Quite early in the morning there was a negligible wind, but the chances of keeping the engines running properly in such exposed positions as one and all of them have on flying machines, gave little hope of any flying unless the weather cleared up. The local prophets once more put forward the mystic two o'clock as the hour when the day should brighten, but once more also the "clearing shower" continued to repeat itself. To make matters worse, more- over, the wind freshened, so thai even if the rain had ceased the conditions would not have greatly improved. It was an inglorious ending to a meeting which opened under such auspicious circumstances. Many of the competitors have never so much as put their machines outside their sheds during the week, but that on the whole was their own fault, for they ought to have been ready at the beginning of the week for practical work in the field instead of turning up at such a lime that they needed two or three days' tinkering to get their flyers into condition. It was for their benefit that the Committee decided to extend the meeting over the Monday and Tuesday of this week, but the prolonged meeting was bound to lose much of its interest, for all the important aviators had engagements which necessitated their departure. Monday, 25th. On Monday, there was no improvement in the weather, and so at ten o'clock the Aviation Committee met and decided that it would be useless to continue. The meeting was therefore declared at an end. Very shortly afterwards the wind moderated, but even so the " Flight" Copyright Photo. AFTER LATHAM'S DARING FLIGHT AT BLACKPOOL.—The aviator (X) being escorted back to his hangar immediately after he had finished his splendid achievement. 685
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