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Aviation History
1927
1927 - 0370.PDF
ships in the day time, and only saw the lights of one at night. It should be noted, however, that there was fog and mist most of the time. At 4.30 p.m. the " Spirit of St. Louis " was sighted 100 miles off Valentia, Ireland, and about half an hour later passed over Smerwick Harbour, County Kerry, flying at about 1,000 ft. A few minutes later it was observed over Baltimore, County Cork, and at 5.50 p.m. it left the Irish coast at Goleen and steered for Cornwall. Lindbergh was seen at several points in the vicinity of Cornwall, at St. Germans at 7.40, and off Plymouth ten minutes later by a British submarine. He was next seen at Cherbourg, at 8.30 p.m., after which he made good progress to Le Bourget. Meanwhile remarkable scenes were taking place in Paris. Throughout the afternoon large crowds collected outside the various newspaper offices, and opposite the electric news signs in the Place de 1'Opera, in order to follow his progress. But late in the afternoon, when news came through that he had passed over Ireland the crowds spontaneously burst into enthusiastic cheering—in spite of the sad thoughts in the minds of most for their own heroes, Nungesser and Coli, who had so mysteriously vanished while engaged on a similar mission. " Vive Lindbergh ! " was heard everywhere, and when the news came that he had been sighted from the light- house at Cherbourg—well, Paris went mad with delight. It was then that thousands made for Le Bourget—where already quite a large number of people were waiting. Special preparations had been made at Le Bourget to receive Lindbergh, and a committee of welcome was formed, headed by Mr. Myron T. Herrick, the U.S. Ambassador, and including M. Fallieres, Minister of Labour, representatives of the President, and the Minister of War, and many well- known French pilots. M. Raymond Orteig, who offered the prize of /5,000 for the first non-stop flight between New York and Paris—which, of course, Lindbergh wiu>—was unable to reach Le Bourget in time to greet the airman. As darkness fell the Le Bourget aerial beacon sent out its flashes to guide the airman into Paris. Incidentally, it may be mentioned here, that Lindbergh first saw the Le Bourget lights when about 30 miles away. People were still arriving at the aerodrome, and by 10 p.m. the crowd increased to over 100,000 strong. Weather conditions were ideal, there being practically no wind and the sky was cloudless. From 9 p.m. rockets and storm shells were sent up at two-minute intervals, while occasionally searchlight beams swept the sky. At 10 o'clock the aerodrome flood lights were turned on, lighting up the landing ground as if it were day time. All this time the crowd had been waiting patiently and calmly, but with growing excitement, and when, a few minutes after 10 o'clock, the faint drone of an engine was heard, this excite- ment increased almost to " bursting point." Thousands of eyes and the 'drome searchlights swept the sky for the machine, but without success, until suddenly the " Spirit of St. Louis," looking spirit-like indeed, loomed into view some 900 ft. up. There was a tense moment when Lindbergh, after having made three circuits of the 'drome, came cautiously down and made a perfect landing at the western end of the ground. As the machine came to rest after a run of about 100 yards, there was a roar of cheering and a wild rush towards the stationary machine, during which several people were injured. The strong cordon of police and soldiers, wire fences, and barricades were soon swept aside by the surging crowd, now completely out of control. As the crowd pressed round the monoplane, Lindbergh, so it is reported, poked his head out of the side window and said, " I am Lindbergh. Where am I ? " On being told " Paris," he said, " Good. Help me out of my box ! " He was literally pulled out of the cabin, and it was only the energetic efforts of some soldiers, who had to use their rifle-butts, and a few pilots, that saved him from injury at the hands of the mob. At this moment, whether by design or not we cannot say, a mechanic was hoisted shoulder-high and carried in triumph towards the aerodrome headquarters, with the cheering crowd pushing all round. Meanwhile Lindbergh himself, still smiling, was smuggled away to the Air Union offices, where a thrilling informal greeting took place between this cheerful, modest young pilot and the American Ambassador, Govern- ment representatives, and several French pilots. He was, he declared, quite fresh and did not feel the need for sleep. He offered to go out and show himself to the crowd, clamouring without for a sight of him, but medical advisers ordered otherwise, and after a short rest he was once again smuggled away, disguised, in a car to the American Embassy. On his way there he stopped at the tomb of the Unknown Soldier. MAY 26, 1927. where, despite his fatigue, he paid a silent tribute to the French heroes—a little incident that has deeply impressed the French people. Meanwhile, a large number of people remained on the aerodrome in the hope of seeing the airman, and some of them, in their efforts to secure souvenirs, tore pieces of fabric and metal off the machine before it could be placed in a hangar under a strong guard. At the U.S. Embassy, Lindbergh first had a bath, and then a meal of soup, eggs and milk, during which he gave a lively account of his journey. Then, at 4 a.m., he retired to bed, and did not wake until 2.30 p.m. on Sunday. While he slept many distinguished visitors called at the Embassy with congratulations. H.M. King George has sent a telegram of congratulation to Capt. Lindbergh, while M. Doumergue, President of the French Republic, sent the following telegram to President Coolidge :— " On the morrow of the attempt of our aviators whose misfortune was so keenly felt by the generous hearts of your countrymen, Charles Lindbergh has achieved what Nungesser and Coli attempted, and, by a bold flight, has established an aerial link between the United States and France. All Frenchmen unreservedly admire his courage and rejoice in his success. I send you the hearty congratulations of the Government of the Republic and of the whole French people." To which President Cooledge replied :— " I thank you for your cordial message, which I share with the American people. I rejoice in the success of the young man who so courageously undertook his lonely flight, but neither myself nor the people of the United States forget to share in the mourning of France for the recent loss of your two brave aviators. Progress in aviation is due in large measure to French genius, which has contributed to our rapprochement and so increased our heritage of sympathy and good under- standing." President Coolidge also sent the following cablegram to Captain Lindbergh :— " The American people rejoices with me at the brilliant termination of your henric flight. The first non-stop flight of a lone aviator across the Atlantic crowns the record of American aviation, and in bringing the greetings of the American people- to France you likewise carry the assurance of our admiration of those intrepid Frenchmen, Nungesser and Coli, whose bold spirit first ventured on your exploit, and likewise a mes- sage of our continued anxiety concerning their fate." Congratulations on Captain Lindbergh's flight were sent by the Secretary of State for Air, Sir Samuel Hoare, to Captain Lindbergh himself, through the British Air Attache in Paris, and to the United States Government, through the British Air Attache in Washington. King Gustav of Sweden has also sent a message of congratu- lation. Sir Alan Cobham flew over to Le Bourget on Sunday to congratulate Captain Lindbergh personally. On Monday Captain Lindbergh received the cross of the Legion of Honour from President Doumergue, at the Elysee. It is stated that Captain Lindbergh will fly over to Croydon on Monday next. The following brief particulars regarding the Ryan mono plane, " Spirit of St. Louis," may be of interest. This machine was specially constructed for the Atlantic flight by Ryan Airlines Inc., of San Diego, California, a firm that has been carrying on a successful aircraft constructing and operating business for some years, and have recently been associated with one of the U.S. Contract Air Mail routes, on which Ryan monoplanes are employed. The " Spirit of St. Louis " is similar to the standard Ryan monoplanes, being of the high-wing type with totally enclosed fuselage, but with larger wings and extra fuel tanks. The fuselage is of steel construction, and the wings, which are of fairly thick section and braced from the fuselage by sloping struts, are of wood construction with box spars, fabric covered doped with " Titanine." The landing chassis has a very wide track and is of the non-axle type. A 220 h.p. Wright "Whirlwind" engine—a 9-cyl. air- cooled radial—is installed, the magnetos being Scintillas, the sparking plugs " A.C.", and the carburettor a Stromberg. The overall span of the wings is 46 ft., their chord 7 ft., and the area 312 sq. ft. The gross weight of the machine, with 425 gallons of petrol and 28 gallons of oil, is 4,750 lbs. Thus the wing loading comes out at 14-9 lbs. per sq. ft., and the power loading, 21-6 lbs. per b.h.p. The speed range, with full load, is 69-123 m.p.h. (with normal load, 44-129 m.p.h.). As previously stated, the machine was equipped witn but a minimum of instruments, viz., temperature gauge, on 332
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