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Aviation History
1921
1921 - 0379.PDF
JUNE 2, 1921 FLYING IN " THE ISLAND " : On Thursday of last week the Brompton Motor Company inaugurated joy- riding in the Isle of Wight, where they will continue during the summer. The photograph on the left shows two of the machines on the sands between Ryde and Seaview, and on the right are seen, standing by the D.H. 6, Lieut.-Col. A. T. C. Veasey, and Capt. R. E. Dean, the latter one of the pilots of the firm. in combination through the realm of the air, occupy no inconsiderable place in these foretellings. One of the latest to indulge is Mr. Denis Gwynn, writing in the Review of Reviews. Premising that during the War the practicability of manoeuvring pilotless aeroplanes by wireless had been completely demonstrated, Mr. Gwynn proceeds to speak of the immense potentialities which the further experiments since the Armistice have brought within the range of practical application. ' He writes that :— " The French electrical engineers have actually demon- strated already that the military and naval strategy of all countries will within a few years have to reckon with the existence of air fleets not only immeasurably swifter, more powerful, and more efficient than any machines used in the last war, but capable of flying under the direction of wireless control exercised at great distances from the scene of their operation. Moreover, this terrifying progress in wireless invention has made possible the creation of shoals of sub- marines and torpedoes which can be similarly navigated and manipulated ; working as automatic machines, far from their base, they are capable of maintaining a prolonged and undeviating course and of changing direction at will in the pursuit of the ships they are sent out to destroy. " Whole fleets of wireless aeroplanes capable of carrying great cargoes of .high explosive or gas shells could be sent out hour after hour to-attack towns or enemy forces. It is calculated, for instance, that a fleet of only 300 machines, each carrying some 5 cwt. of bombs, could, within twenty- four hours, unload nearly 2,000 tons of bombs at any reason- able distance such as separates the chief military centres of several of the principal European Powers, whereas the whole French air force managed to discharge an average of less than 20 tons a day over the German lines, even in the closing months of the War. It requires only a simple adaptation of wireless control to the aeroplanes to enable them either to drop bombs automatically or to take photographs. Further- more, the possibility of 'flying at high altitudes once there is no necessity to "consider the weakness of human lungs will make great speeds possible and add enormously to the difficulties of defence from bombing attacks." MR. GWYNN continues : " Such are some of the problems with which these latest wireless discoveries confront the military strategist. Their application to naval warfare is even more destructive to all the traditional organisation of attack and defence, for torpedoes propelled and guided by wireless will make it utterly impossible for a fleet to attack any base where any large quantity of electric torpedoes are to be encountered. It is the Americans who have concen- trated most successfully on the application of wireless control to naval war. In one demonstration a motor boat travelling at twenty-three miles an hour was steered through a crowd of merchant ships at Fort Monroe under the control of an aeroplane flying at 5,000 ft. and from two to five miles away, while the pilot of the aeroplane had no more difficulty in managing the ship than would a good pilot on board her. By using one hand to guide his machine and the other to manage the apparatus controlling the boat, he was able to direct both with ease. A fleet of such boats controlled at long distances from the air would revolutionise the practice of naval war. " The introduction of torpedoes controlled by wireless is the worst nightmare of all, and its feasibility has long been proved. Guided from the air and propelled by electricity transmitted by wireless, the torpedoes of the future will not only have an immensely longer range, but will be able to change their direction and follow their victims relentlessly until they have tracked them down. These are not fantastic conceptions of experiments which are still being tried. They have already been completely demonstrated, and their first successes date from three years ago." WITH the coming of summer, aerial enterprise, and especially joy-riding, takes on a new lease of life. On the east coast, down Clacton way, a firm is running week-end joy-rides, taking off a bit back from the sea at Plough Corner, Little Clacton, which rather looks as if the local authorities were not inclined to help them along from the sea front. This rather suggests that Clacton is a bit behind the times. However, the firm appears to have been quite busy lat Easter, Whitsun and on week ends, and the Avro can be seen at all times of the day flipping passengers down to the sea and back again. On the south coast a good beginning has been made in the Isle of Wight, where the Brompton Motor Company, Ltd., have inaugurated joy-rides. A commencement was made last Thursday, when' two D.H. 6 machines with 80 h.p. Renaults inaugurated the flying from the sands between Seaview and Ryde. The firm have obtained the use of the sands in various localities, and also have either completed or in course of preparation land aerodromes at Newport, Sandown, Freshwater and Yarmouth. Altogether it looks like being a busy season on " The Island, ' and the two pilots, Capt. A. H. Dalton and Capt. Dean, will have their hands full. AT Croydon the Surrey Flying Services are extending their normal activities as " Joy-Riders " to running a flying school. This is all to the good, as school work is always an indication of interest in flying, while the efforts of " pups "are sometimes more entertaining than the evolutions of old hands. At any rate this was the case in the old days when Bleriots were being used. Modern machines do not, apparently, have the same knack of swerving off their course abruptly while taxying. May this new move prove but the beginning of big things in the same direction. Fencing at Olympia Royal Tournament ON May 25, the Epee v. Epee Championship for officers of the R.A.F. was decided. Seven competitors entered, the outstanding best being Flight-Lieut. F. G. Sherriff, M.C., who in six encounters only sustained one defeat. Squadron- and Squadron-Leader H. Ellershaw secured third with three defeats. The results in other R.A.F. ranks were :— 1, Sergt.-Maj. H. Grainger, R.A.F. ; 2, Sergt.-Maj. R. E. Gorwood, R.A.F.; 3, A.C.2 E. J. Lampard, R.A.F. On April 27, Princess Beatrice was present at the Tourna- Leader Rev. J R Walkley was second with two defeats, ment, and presented the prizes to the winners. 379
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