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Aviation History
1912
1912 - 0556.PDF
OUR FRIENDS ABROAD. JUST recently we have heard from three of our pilot friends, now aviating abroad. These letters, most interesting in that they tell of the manner in which things pertaining to aviation are progressing in other countries, we are pleased to reproduce below. Mr. C. Compton Paterson, of the African Aviation Syndicate, writing from Kimberley, says :— " We seem to be jogging along all right here. I made a long cross-country flight, as no doubt you will have noticed, but thought you perhaps would like to have more details, so enclosed cutting will furnish you. (Pn'cis appended.—ED.) " The machine behaved like gold all through, and not even a wire was touched. Some of the landing-places were the very limit too ! " Turner, my mechanician, kept the motor in absolute trim, and I took chances over bad country, feeling comparatively safe. " I don't know whether I told you, but I had an exciting race with a racing motor cycle round a ij-mile track, both from standing start. For six miles my time was exactly 8 minutes, while the motor cycle took 30 seconds longer. Won a nice gold medal for that. The race was very exciting, and they took very good care, that I didn't cut inside the railings (kept about 30 feet). Livingston is doing good work for the Company, and in the future there may be something doing." From the cutting enclosed we have gleaned the following:— The main idea of Paterson was to fly from Kimberley to Klerktdorp and back, a distance of 442 miles. Using the little biplane he had himself constructed at Messrs. Lawton's works at Cricklewood, he started oft' on Tuesday, April 9th. The countryside being entirely new to him, he followed the railway, passing first over the open workings of the Kimberley mines to Warrenton, some 50 miles off, where the needs of both man and machine were supplied, " Pat" getting his breakfast and the machine getting all the petrol and oil it wanted. Throughout this first section of the trip 2,500 ft. was the maximum level attained. Starting again after breakfast at 9.40, he followed the course of the Vaal River, past Fourteen Streams, on to Christiana, 26 miles further on. Here, owing to the discomfort of flying through the heat eddies set up by the action of the hot sun on the river, he had to descend and wait for the improved conditions that evening would bring. A move was made at five minutes past five, and the distance to Bloemhof, some 33 miles, was covered in 40 minutes. At Bloemhof, Paterson descended, intending to remain down for only a short time. However, so great an interest did the populace— chiefly consisting of diggers, hundreds of whom gathered round the machine—take in this wonderful machine from England that actually flew through the air, that quite a long delay ensued before sufficient ground could be cleared to get a run off. Eventually a start was made. But it was too late in the evening to hope to get to Maquassi. He had, therefore, to come down at Kingswood. Before descending here he circled over the place, selected a likely looking hotel, and came down on an adjoining piece of ground. Next morning early he flew over to Maquassi in 22 mins., and after a short wait, during which he gleaned information as to the direction in which Klerksdorp lay, he set off again. His information, however, had been rather defective, for he flew for some considerable time without catching a glimpse of the railway line he had been expecting to find. At last he caught sight of the track, and descended near a ganger's cottage, the occupants of which suffered a great fright at his appearance, running back home, pulling down the blinds and generally barricading themselves against the mysterious intruder. At length he was able to console them slightly, and elicited the information that Klerksdorp was some five hours distant. As to the exact mileage they could not inform him, but recommended him to apply at a neighbouring farmhou?e. Obtaining information here was not all a bed of roses, for a large- Africander bull barred his path, and had to be tactfully eluded before the desired knowledge could be obtained. Yes, Klerksdorp was some eighty miles off. Leaving his aeroplane in a field where he had descended, he took the train to Harrisburg to bring back a further supply of fuel. Klerksdorp was reached at five minutes past six that evening to the immense delight of many of the hundreds of people that had gathered on the show ground to greet him. It was decided not to start the return journey until the following evening, Thursday, when he flew straight away back to Maquassi, covering 58 miles in I hr. 8 mins. Here the night was spent, and on the following morning a move was made to Christiana, passing over Bloemhof on the way. Nothing further could be done that day, for towards evening thunder and lightning and adverse con ditions generally sought to work in opposition to the aviator. On the following day, Saturday, things were little better, for it rained all the morning. However, things cleared a bit in the evening, and, although the wind was still very bad indeed, Paterson managed to get to VVarrenton after a most hair-raising trip, flying the 26 miles in 25 mins. Sunday was worse still, and Monday's prospects were but little better ; but things cleared up a bit towards evening, and although the conditions were threatening, Paterson decided to start. He had not gone far—only about 15 miles—when a severe thunder storm broke, and he was forced to land again, when only 35 miles from home. On the next day, Tuesday, the weather seemed even more determined to delay the flight, for on each occasion that Paterson visited his machine, the event was accompanied, curiously enough, by a severe rain storm. Wednesday also was a blank day for the same reason. Thursday brought the favourable opportunity, and starting at 6.40 in the morning, he flew back to his tent hangar at Kimberley in 45 minutes. Thus, the trip, a distance of 442 miles, was completed, his flying time being 8 hrs. 39 mins. Not a single replacement of any kind was made to the machine from the time he left Kimberley till he returned, which is testimony to the excellent work Paterson put into his little biplane, for it must be remembered that for well over a week the machine was exposed to almost every type of weather condition it would be possible to cram into that space of time. From Rangoon, Burma, comes the following letter from Mr. W. C. England, of the Burma Motor and Engineering Company. Mr. England, it will be remembered, graduated at the Grahame- Mr. W. C. England on his E.N.V.-englned Howard Wright biplane at Rangcon, Burma, where he has been introducing aviation at the Rangoon Golf Club at Mingaladon. &
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