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Aviation History
1927
1927 - 0236.PDF
APRIL 7, 1927 ROYAL AERONAUTICAL SOCIETY Annual General Meeting THE sixty-second annual general meeting of members ofthe Society was held in the Society's offices, 7, Albemarle Street, on March 29. Col. the Master of Sempill, Chairmanof the Society, presided. Mr. \V. P. Savage, Mr. G. H. Dowty and Mr. P. Narrawaywere appointed scrutineers of the ballot for the election of new members to the Council. As a result of the ballot the following members weredeclared duly elected to serve on the council for the two years ending March. 1929 : YYing-Comdr. T. R. Cave-Browne-Cave,Sir Mackenzie Chalmers, Mr. A. E. L. Chorlton, Mr. C. R. Fairey, Mr. J. E. Hodgson, Maj. R. H. Mayo, Col. MervynO'Gorman, Mr. T. O. '"M. Sopvvith, Sir Vyell Vyvyan, and Dr. H. C. Watts. The Council report of the year 1926-27 and the balancesheet and accounts were dealt with. Rules 18, 19 (a) and 19 (c) were amended to read as follows : " The President must be a voter, and shall be appointedby the Council. He shall take office for one year, but shall be eligible for re-election for a further period of one year afterhis first year of office. If elected for a second year he shall not be eligible again for further election until two years haveelapsed, since the expiry of his second year of office, when he shall be eligible. He shall be an ex-officio member of theCouncil and of all Committees appointed by the Council." " At a meeting held in June in each year the Council shallappoint a Chairman, who shall take office in the following October, and hold office for one year. He shall be an ex-officio member of the Council and of all Committee;appointed by the Council. He shall be eligible for re-election on the expiry of his year of office for one further year, but,if elected for a second year, he shall not be eligible again for further election until two years have elapsed, since thiexpiry of his second year of office, when he shall be eligible." " The Vice-Chiarman of the Council shall be the retiringChairman. He shall be an ex-officio member of the Council and of all Committees appointed by the Council, and shallhold office for one year. In the case of a Chairman being elected for two years in succession the Council may ask theexisting Vice-Chairman to continue his office for a second year, or may elect a member of the Council to its office forthe same period." The following resolution was proposed by Mr. H. T. Tizard,and seconded by Mr. J. D. North :— " That this meeting supports the action of the Council inendeavouring to come to an agreement with the Institution of Aeronautical Engineers on the lines discussed in theBeharrell Report, and authorises the Council, if satisfied that the general body of the voters of this Society and of theInstitution of Aeronautical Engineers endorses their views, to carry the amalgamation into effect with such alterationto the draft terms of the agreement that appear to them desirable." On a show of hands the resolution was declared carried bya large majority. J. LAURENCE PRITCHARD, Sec. THE WILKINS ARCTIC EXPEDITION THE second air expedition into the Arctic organised byCapt. Wilkins has not made a very successful start. As originally planned, three aeroplanes were to have departedfrom Fairbanks, Alaska, on March 17, and flown to Point Barrow, the extreme northern point of Alaska. CaptainWilkins intends to establish his base there, from which he will carry out flights over the unexplored areas round thePole. The two Stinson machines (named Detroit News No. 1 and Detroit News No. 2, after the newspaper which isbacking the expedition financially), fitted with ski-runners, and a third machine, one of the Fokkers used last year,named the "Alaskan," formed the aerial equipment. The entire personnel of the expedition was to be transported to thenorthern base by air, each machine being equipped with rations for eighteen days in case of a forced landing, and alsowith a rifle shotgun, 340 rounds of ammunition, a collapsible boat, and a first-aid kit. The " Alaskan " carried wireless for communication with Fairbanks, while No. 1 machine carried the scientific equip- ment. In addition to Capt. Wilkins, the expedition in- cludes Alger Graham (pilot), C. B. Eielson (pilot), Orwil H. Porter (mechanic), Howard Mason (wireless), etc. The flight to Point Barrow is hoped to be accomplished in three leaps of 180 miles each, crossing the Endicott Mountains by the Anaktuvuk Pass. The chosen course will keep the planes always within 20 miles of water to afford a safe descent in case of any trouble. When the " Alaskan," loaded with 4,200 lbs. of equipment, tried to take oft on or about March 25, it failed to do so, and after three attempts overturned and was damaged. Later, one of the Stinson machines got away, but some days elapsed before any further news of it was received. It appears that engine trouble was experienced, and Capt. Wilkins had to land on the ice. ANTIQUITY WE have before us the first number of " Antiquity," a quar-terly review of Archaeology, edited by O. G. S. Crawford, F.S.A. In addition to being most excellentlv produced, thisfirst number contains matter that kept its present reviewer thoroughly interested—almost fascinated—from cover tocover. The various articles and notes should, in our opinion, appeal not only to the student of archaeology—and to himthey must obviously be of considerable value—but the ordinary " man-in-the-street-and-espectally-the-air " willsurely find them of more than usual interest. For, apart from the fact that archaeology is always an interestingsubject in itself, we have found that the articles in " Antiquity " are written in a style that should be understoodby all—one need not be an " expert " in order to glean the information available. By this, however, we do not inferthat they are written in what is generally known as a " popular " style, for they are, of course, intended primarilyfor the archaeologist himself. We have, on frequent occasions, pointed out in FLIGHT theimmense value of aircraft in connection with archaeological re- search, and it is not surprising therefore that the part played byaircraft in this direction figures prominently in " Antiquity." Thus, we find in the " Editorial Notes " :—" Excavationremains the most valuable instrument of discovery we Antiquity* A quarterly review of archaeology, edited by O. G. S. Crawford,F.S.A. Single copies, price 5s. Gd., obtainable from Messrs. Tohn Bellows, Gloucester, or through any bookseller. Annual subscription, £1, payable tothe Editor, O. G. S. Crawford, Nursling, Southampton. possess. It may be supplemented by field-work and air-photography. The uses of air-photography are only beginning to be properly appreciated, and they are many. Air-photo-graphs reveal lost or unsuspected remains, such as " Wood- henge " and the Stonehenge Avenue ; they show the excavatorwhere to dig for walls, ditches, or pit-dwellings ; they reduce a tangle of earthworks to order and may prove their relativeages ; they are invaluable to the lecturer and writer to illustrate his thesis . . . We intend to use air-photographywhenever possible, for the purpose of illustrating articles, and, reversing the process, to select some of the best availablephotographs for use with explanatory text and diagrams. Amongst the most startling are some taken in Iraq which,for the most part, arc unpublished." In the current number of " Antiquity," several veryinteresting aerial photographs are reproduced ; two (taken by No. 480 Flight, R.A.F., Calshot), clearly indicate thesubmerged wall on Samson Flats, Scilly Is., where, onve upon a time, it is supposed a fertile land—" Lyonesse "-—lay between the islands and Cornwall, now covered by t'ie waters of the Atlantic. An excellent aerial photograph a! -oillustrates an article on " Stonehenge as an Astronomic u Instrument," while perhaps the most interesting of all a~esome taken by Sq. Ldr. Insall, V.C., M.C., of prehistory Timber Circles (" Woodhenge "), a unique monument, t .epresence of which was quite unknown until revealed by t-ia photographs. We shall certainly look forward with interest to the public -tion of subsequent issues of " Antiquity." 210
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