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Aviation History
1910
1910 - 0106.PDF
(/ran FEBRUARY 12, tgib. ODEL, CLUB FOR LONDON. A LETTER, which we publish in another column, from Mr. A. C. Horth, embodies the carrying out of an idea which in our judgment is excellent, and should receive a very large measure of support from those interested in the scientific development of aviation. The idea of a Model Aeroplane Club is not a new one, but the difficulty in bringing many commendable schemes to materialisa tion often is that the enthusiastic pioneer with the necessary time and qualifications properly to see the idea through is not always to be found. But here apparently is not only the inception of the scheme, but the needful executive to give the thing a start. Mr. Horth's idea is to convene a meeting of those interested, > and to get to work at once with the formation and oarrying on of the club. Being thoroughly satisfied that a club such as he proposes must tend materially to the advancement of the science and sport, we commend him and the idea to the consideration of those of our readers who are in a position to benefit by the proposal. There are many people, no doubt, who incline to the opinion that the making and flying of model machines is more or less waste of time, and that the limitations of those models are so great that the useful lessons to be learnt from this form of experiment are too slight to justify the time spent upon them. But even if this were so—which we cannot admit—there are other considera tions bearing upon the matter that would impel us to lend our support to a Model Club. To begin with, there is the educative effect to be reckoned with. The intelligent youth of the country is at the moment taking the very greatest interest in the problem of flight. Every other lad, even, is constructing his model flyer, with which he achieves more or less success, and according to the measure of his success or failure so his interest in flying waxes or wanes. As things are at the moment, much of the effort that is being put into the attempt to solve the flight problem—in this direction at least—is detached and undirected. The experimentally-minded youth of to-day is the potential inventor and aviator of to-morrow, but in this, as in everything else, his experiments would be the more satisfactory to himself, and the more likely to be of benefit in the direction of development if he had more opportunity of working in accord with, and to a great extent in competition with, those who are experi menting along similar lines. Often an invention contains the rudiments of a great achievement, but fails in consequence of some slight inherent defect which has escaped the notice of the inventor himself, but is discovered' and eliminated in consultation with others. Herein lies one of the possibilities of the Model Club. There must be many whose experiments with models have proved more or less unsuccessful because of some slight want of knowledge which they have no opportunity of acquiring by reason of there being no association for bringing the enthusiasts of model flying together for discussion. And nothing so disheartens the average experimenter as continual failure. Another reason why the suggested Club is entirely desirable is that there are few amusements that pall upon the generality of people sooner—we do not, of course, include the true enthusiast—than that of flying model aeroplanes. The main reason why this is so is the want of any clearly defined objective or organised system ot competition. The average person begins his experiments, bubbling over with enthusiasm, probably in the company of two or three others as enthusiastic as himself, but before long the element of competition, so essential for the good of any sport, drops out. Each knows to the inch the capacity for flight of the other's machine, all have reached the point to which it is possible for their collective knowledge to take them ; and since all finality means stagnation, enthusiasm evaporates and the sport is relegated to the background. This would not be so if any strong club or association were available for the encouragement of the sport and the assistance of the individual. There is still another point to be borne in mind when considering this question of a Model Club. The opposition and the public prejudice that the motor car has had to fight against during its years of pioneering has been due more than anything to the fact that the public mind had not been sufficiently prepared for it. The idea of a self-propelled vehicle, capable of the speed of a train, running upon the public highways, was altogether new; and as we are above everything a conservative people, the notion had to be looked upon with the deepest suspicion and distrust. Had it been possible to educate the public mind thoroughly up to the idea that the motor car was a safe and proper means of locomotion before it became a feature on the road, the opposition would have been greatly less. Now, in the matter of flight, the more the man in the street can be got to look upon it as something entirely natural and familiar, the less prejudiced he will necesarily become against the time when the aeroplane is ready to take its place with the motor car and the motor boat as a method of locomotion. That the sport of model flying must react beneficially in this direction cannot be doubted. By it, flight is brought closely under the notice of the community. And the more familiar the idea of flying is to the average indi vidual, the less likely he will be to raise active opposition when the aeroplane begins to be actively in evidence. In conclusion, the formation of a Model Club for London has everything to be said in its favour ; the proposed initial locale—Blackheath—is eminently suitable for its headquarters j the moment is opportune, while enthusiasm runs high ; and we have that indispensable person, the enthusiast with the time and ability to put in that hard and sometimes thankless work .that falls to the lot of the pioneer. Assuming that the Model Club is duly formed, we commend to its executive the idea for "Flight Golf" competitions put forward in our columns a few weeks ago. Even in a club with a large membership we can quite foresee that there is likely to be some little difficulty in keeping the sporting idea as much alive as it ought to be where competitive events are limited to such events as the model flyer is capable of " on its own," so to say. In order to sustain interest, we have to look beyond competitions of the more formal kind for which some sort of official observation is required, and in our suggestion we are. egotistical enough to think there lie great possibilities. With headquarters at Blackheath, there ought to be every facility to hand for the early evolution of the game, and we are confident that not only would it prove interesting but that it would assist very materially in the development of the model flyer. 102
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