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Aviation History
1912
1912 - 0588.PDF
L/U£dl Sunday was hopeless, wind and rain preventing any attempt being made. R0V4I Flying Corps.—A good deal of flying was done on Tuesday evening of last week when conditions were ideal. Capt. Loraine was on the Xieuport monoplane scouting around the Plains, and he was followed by Lieut. Porter who made a twenty minutes' trial at a good height on biplane F7, Corpl. Ridd on biplane F8, and StafT-Sergt. Wilson on F7. At 8.40 Lieut. Fox arrived at a height of 1,500 ft. from Farnborough on an Avro biplane, having done the journey in 60 minutes. He had had a head wind the whole distance. Wednesday, wind and rain prevented any outdoor work before evening, when Lieut. Fox flsw from Tidworth on a De Havilland machine. Lieut. Fox started the ball rolling on Thursday by taking up Capt. Brooke-Popham as passenger on the BE3 biplane for a cross country flight, which lasted for 3 hour*. He was followed by Capt. I,<>r,iine on the Nieuport who put in li hours scouting around the country ai a good height, finishing with one of his graceful spiral vol plane's, Lieut. Porter, with Strugnellas passenger, Hying in good form. Ridd and Wilson made flights on biplane F7, and Lieut. Conner a fine flight on the Nieuport for 30 minutes. Lieut. Fox, on BE3 biplane, took up Carter as passenger, and on landing changed over to biplane F8 and took up another passenger. On ThursdayCapt. Alien was flyinga biplane and made asomewhat awkward landing. No flying was possible on Friday owing to wind. ® ® AUTOMATIC VERSUS I By EARLE L. IN the April 27th issue of FLIGHT there appeared an article entitled, " Gyroscopes on Aeroplanes," the article referring to T. W. K. Clarke's paper on gyroscopic control. As an aviator of considerable experience, and as an engineer who has done quite a little thinking on the subject of lateral stability of heavier-than-air flying machines, I should like to say a few words on the subject. It is a question in my mind whether automatic stability, as applied to the lateral movement of an aeroplane, is desirable, even assuming that it can be accomplished. There is not much question but that some form of an automatic device could be devised whereby an aeroplane could l>e kept in a safe position as far as lateral stability is concerned. It is a question in my mind, however, whether such a device is desirable. Let me illustrate by an example. We will assume that we are on one side of a deep chasm, a fall into which means sure death. The chasm is, say one hundred feet in width. Let us further assume that your advocate of automatic stnbilily, by means of a gyrostat or other mechanism, is on one side of the chasm with me. Over this chasm stretches a narrow wooden pathway, perbapj three feet wide. I have two bicycles. One of them is an ordinary machine, while the other is fitted with a theo retically perfect gyroscopic balancing device, whereby the machine is prevented from falling over sideways. I say theoretically perfect. By this 1 mean it works perfectly under all circumstances, so long-as tin different elemen's compering it art in g&od01 dei. I now give your advocate of automatic lateral stability in aero planes the choice of riding across this narrow plank or pathway on one of the two bicycles I have at my disposal. In other words, he can use the ordinary mount and tru.it to his own brain and muscles to carry him safely past the danger, or he can use the automatically balanced bicycle, and in using it he would have to steer only in a horizontal plane. Although the analogy is not exactly perfect, it explains at what I am driving. Is there any question which wheel would be chosen ? Would anyone in his senses prefer a bicycle with any automatic device upon it in preference to the ordinary bicycle ? I think there is no room for discussion on this subject. To be sure, the automatically balanced bicycle would work so long as its elements were in perfect order, and the chances are that these elements would be in perfect order for such a short ride. However, then is a possibility of them becoming deranged, and in such a case sure death would be the result. On the other hand, any man who knows anything about bicycle riding would not hesitate to ride across a three-foot roadway, provided he was obliged to do so. And he could do it safely with an ordinary bicycle. I am assuming, of course, that he did not lose his nerve. It seems to me that the experienced aviator is in about the same position with regard to the flying machine. He knows how to operate it and so long as the machine is structurally what it should be, and the controls in working order, he knows, that under normal circumstances, he will not meet with accident. Of course, abnormal conditions may ari.-e and then an accident may result. On the other hand, these abnormal conditions would still be present with an auto matically balanced aeroplane. In addition to this, the aviator JONK 29, 1912. . ssffissjsa afar ASSSJSE ,n good form andI Lreut. J ox then o £ pg ^ wiUon rSrSPSEi ^- fine flightsP on biplane F8 and !uo on the Nieuport. Lieut. Porter made several flights with Ss°enges on bTplanes F7 and F8. Capt. Brooke-Popham was r^ce.Ving messages thrown from a machine flown by Lieut. Fox. Sunday was another off day p Monday, Lieut. Conner was out on Nieuport B4.. Lieut. Vox was flying BE3 biplane with passenger, and also tried the two- ^aer mlriot. Capt. Brooke-Popham was on the Avro biplane uking uP Lieut. Reynolds as passenger, doing some signaling with flags a a fair height. Lieut. Fox took off in BE3 biplane, and waf up for 40 mini, being out of sight at times in the clouds He finished with a beautiful glide to ground. In the evening Lieut. Fox made several flights on BE3 biplane practising dropping balls. He also took up a passenger and did signalling over Knighton Downs, Capt. Brooke-Popham was on the Avro biplane, Lieut. Porter was flying biplanes ¥7 and F8, Corpl. Ridd made a good flight on biplane F7. Capt. Burke arrived at 8.40 with a passenger, Lieut. Mackworth, on the factory biplane BEi, from Farnborough. He reported having experienced rough weather at a height ot 2,500 ft. Harbrows, of Bermondsey, London, are now busy putting up twelve temporary hangars for use in connection with the forthcoming Army Trials. ® ® NHERENT STABILITY. OVINGTON. would have to trust his life at all times to the proper operation of a series of mechanical devices. And there is no discussing the question that sooner or later, this automatic mechanism would refuse to "automat." So would a few of the automatic mechanisms within the aviator (after he had fallen a couple of thousand feet). It teems to me that an automatic device to balance an aeroplane is not what is required or desired, at least by the experienced pilot. And by an automatic device I mean such a mechanism as a gyro stat or a pendulum which operates controls instead of the operator himself doing it. I believe that the future of the aeroplane rests in the solution, among other things, of the problem of lateral stability. But I do not think that an automatic mechanism is what is wanted to accomplish the purpose. I divide lateral stability into three classes. Manually obtained lateral stability, such as used at present, in which the personal equation of the operator is paramount. Automatic stability, in which the balancing is done by automatic device. Inherent stability in which the machine is constructed in such a manner as to maintain its stability under all conditions. 1 understand that Mr. Dunne is striving to obtain the last- mentioned condition. I am firmly convinced that, sooner or later, we shall know enough about aerodynamics to construct a machine which is structurally and inherently stable laterally. This has been done so far as longitudinal stability is concerned, for a well-designed aeroplane of the present day is wellnigh perfect as far as longi tudinal stability is concerned. Take, for instance, my Bleriot, with the inverse curve on the elevator. It is difficult to make the machine climb at a steep angle or descend on a steep vol plane. The tendency is to fly normally and when it is in this condition there is very little pull on the control. In other words, the longitudinal stability is almost all that could be desired. There is little tendency for the machine to settle on its tail, or plunge head foremost on its nose. Of course, such accidents have happened, but I believe it is due to the rupture of some element of the control or flying machine, or the sticking of a control. As an aviator, I much prefer to trust my life to my own brain and muscles than to trust it to any automatic device, and I believe that most aviators are of the same opinion. The men who are spending so much time inventing more or less complicated devices for main taining automatic lateral stability in aeroplanes are largely those who belong to the " rocking chair fleet" of aviators. In most cases they are not practical flyers. I would hate, personally, to get into a machine and realise that if a certain automatic device did not operate, I would surely be killed. I should like to hear the opinion of your readers on the subject. It is one which is of the greatest importance of the present day, and a problem which must be solved before the aeroplane can be practical in the full sense of the word. It is the one big problem before the aeronautic engineers of to-day. A free discussion in youi excellent paper, it seems to me, would be of great advantage to all. 588
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