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Aviation History
1910
1910 - 0576.PDF
[pjGHT] declared that the only reason he wore a pilot's helmet was because he found that his head had an annoying habit of hitting the carburettor. The Demoiselle is a fascinating little machine, but it looks difficult to manage; if it were otherwise, we can imagine it would be exceedingly popular with all light-weight pilots. Needless to say, it is not suited to carrying a big man. Christiaens, who, like Audemars, would have been in the running for a fifth general merit prize, mainly figures for his performance on the first day, when he practically opened the proceedings with a long-distance flight of over 83 miles. He just missed a prize for speed, but won second prize for alighting. His flying in general is not especially sensational, and of course his principal effort, which was for the long flight, calls for stolid endurance rather than any thing else. On the other hand his corner work in the attempt for the speed prize was in marked contrast to the same aspect of his long distance flight, There is no doubt that he is a reliable pilot of the Henry Farman machine. What there was of Wagner's flying with his Hanriot monoplane was of a high order, but he did not compete very much, and it is doubtful if he succeeded in impressing his name on the spectators to a greater extent than is represented by his third place in the speed prize that alone bears his name. Next to Grahame-White and Dickson among the English com petitors, the performance of Grace stands out most prominently. He had, as we have mentioned elsewhere, persistent misfortune with his engines, which is about the most disheartening thing that can happen to a pilot. Whenever he did fly he flew well, and it is a pity that his performances for altitude and speed should have placed him just below the last prize, for certainly no one tried harder to play the game. Jones' flight to the Needles was, of course, about as sensational as anything that took place, and his previous efforts show him to be a fearless pilot. It is a pity, however, that so much repair work had to be done to his machine, as the result of a former accident, that he was unable to appear until towards the end of the meeting. Radley, who Imade many determined attempts to win one or other of the prizes, was not fortunate in the running of his machine, while Boyle and Barnes, who also fly monoplanes, had even worse luck. Gibbs was unable to get the planes of his Farman biplane satisfactorily adjusted, so that he, too, fails to figure very prominently among the official results. Although there was not very much of it, Ogilvie's flying with the Short-Wright biplane is worthy of praise. Whenever he flew he handled his machine successfully and well, but he had the merit of knowing when the weather conditions were beyond his experience, and he had the good sense to stop flying when he was doubtful of success. Like some of the others, he had engine troubles, and once a cylinder head blew off during a flight, which is a sufficiently dis composing mishap for anyone to experience in mid-air. Colmore was unable to do very much flying with his Short biplane, but he appears in the official prize list and was timed for a fast lap, which he accomplished at 35 miles an hour. Rawlinson's flight with his Farman biplane unfortunately ended disastrously for himself. Cody, who had a very large and apparently very well-built biplane housed in one of the sheds, only made one attempt at flight, and that was a failure, owing to the fact that the machine was equipped with but one engine, whereas it is designed to fly with two motors, set side by side, and driving by chains the same propeller-shaft. Moore-Brabazon was the only entrant who made no appearance on the ground whatever. His machine was not ready on Monday, and on Tuesday, after the fatal accident to Rolls, and as the result of persuasion from his wife and other intimate friends, he decided to give up flying altogether. He was one of the first Englishmen to interest himself in the sport, for he made his first flight in France at a time when to fly for 100 yards or so was considered something of a feat. His greatest achievement was the winning of the Daily Mail ^1,000 prize for the first circular mile flight on a British machine. What Rolls himself might have contributed to thelmeeting, had he been spared, it is, of course, impossible to say ; but this much is certain, that it would have been the best he and his machine were capable of offering. Even as it is, his slow speed test—perhaps the most dangerous and difficult that anyone could undertake—stands unsurpassed, so that his name is associated with the only prize in that event. In speed he was second to Grace, but this performance borrows additional interest from the fact that it was carried out under precisely similar weather conditions to that of the slow speed test, and thus establishes useful evidence of the range of speed of the particular machine that he was flying. There is some satisfaction in reflecting that Rolls' last contribution to the progress of flight had this element of instructive interest associated with it, for, above all else, Rolls' work has ever been imbued with scientific thought. In the individual contests the performances of Morane stand far ahead of all others. In speed his machine was nearly 10 miles an hour faster than any other, and he almost doubled JULY 23, 1910. the altitude attained by any other pilot. He did not compete for the longest flight nor for the slow circuit, but in starting he was practically equal to Dickson, and in weight carrying not much below Grahame-White. His sea flight was only surpassed by his altitude as a sensational performance. The fact that Audemars stands second for speed shows how fast the little Demoiselle can travel in the hands of a skilful pilot. Wagner on the Hanriot and Drexel on a Bleriot both achieved speeds of over 40 miles an hour, the nearest approach to which velocity on a biplane was accom plished by Christiaens. Of the British built machines the Short biplane flown by Grace was the fastest; that of the same make flown by Colmore won The Car all British prize. Three biplanes ascended to over 1,000 ft. in altitude, but the performances of Morane and Drexel with their Bleriots far surpass all others, although not even the 4,107 ft. accomplished by Morane approaches the world's record of 6,175 ft- Put UP °y Brookins on his Wright biplane at Atlantic City, in America. The Bournemouth long-distance flights are relatively indifferent performances com pared with the best achievements elsewhere. Grahame-White, who won the prize, flew overtime by special permission, but had to come down when he had gone 90 miles. Christiaens descended as the result of a failing engine after he had covered 83 miles. The carrying out of the meeting was in charge of the following officials, unrestricted praise being due to the hard and untiring work of the Clerks of the Course, the Timekeepers, and the Organising Secretary:— Stewards. — Earl of Malmesbury, Lord Abinger, Lord Montagu of Beaulieu, Hon. Arthur Stanley, Sir George Meyrick, Bart., Sir Charles Day Rose, Bart., Lieut.-Col. F. G. Lefroy, Councillor G. E. Bridge, J.P. (Mayor of Bournemouth), Councillor F. J. Bell (Chairman Centenary Fetes), A. Mortimer Singer, Esq., Roger W. Wallace, K.C. (Chairman Royal Aero Club). Clerks of the Course.—Mr. Ernest C. Bucknall, Mr. John Dunville, Major F. Lindsay Lloyd. Timekeepers.—Mr. T. D. Dutton, Mr. A. V. Ebblewhite, Mr. A. G. Reynolds. Secretary of the Meeting.—Mr. V. Ker-Seymer. OFFICIAL RESULTS. General Merit. ja Pilot and Machine. Prize. 1. L. F. Morane, Bleriot monoplane (60-h.p. 7-cyl. Gnome) 500 (J. A. Drexel, Bleriot monoplane (60-h.p. 7-cyl. Gnome) "| 225 2.-j C. Grahame-White, Farman biplane (60-h.p. 7-cyl. >- (. Gnome) J 225 4. Capt. B. Dickson, Farman biplane (60-h.p. 7-cyl. Gnome) 50 " Daily Telegraph" Cup and Aerial League Medal for British Pilot. C. Grahame-White, Farman biplane (60-h.p. 7.cyl. Gnome). "The Car" Prize for "All British" Machine. G. C. Colmore, Short biplane (50-h.p. 4-cyl. Green) ... 100 Assistants' Prize for Machines Coveriog the Greatest Number of Laps. Laps. 1. C. Grahame-White, Farman biplane (60-h.p. 7-cyl. Gnome) 6i 60 2. — Christiaens, Farman biplane (65-h. p. 8-cyl. E.N.V.) 52 40 Speed (5 Laps = 8 Miles 1,620 Yards). Time, m. s. m.p.h. £ 1. L. F. Morane, Bleriot monoplane (60-h.p. 7-cyl. Gnome) 9 34I 55*9 1,000 2. E. Audemars, Bayard - Clement mono plane (35-h.p.4-cyl. Bayard-Clement)... II 30 46-54 400 3. L. Wagner, Hanriot monoplane (40-h.p. 4-cyl. Clerget) 12 12J 43-87 100 4. J. A. Drexel, Bleriot monoplane (60-h.p. 7-cyl. Gnome) 3 I2| 40-52 50 — Christiaens, Farman biplane (65-h. p. 8-cyl. E.N.V.) 13 32^ 39-54 C. Grace, Short biplane (65-h.p. 8-cyl. E.N.V.) 14 9! 37-38 Hon. C. S.Rolls, French Wright biplane (30-h.p. 4-cyl. Wright) 14 39^ 36-51 C. Grahame-White, Farman biplane 60-h.p. 7-cyl. Gnome) 14 48! 36*12 574
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