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Aviation History
1929
1929 - 0110.PDF
the moment when he was obviously going to drift out of the aerodrome he pulled down with a big handful of lines and crumbled up almost half of the canopy, which checked the drift considerably, but he could not quite avoid alighting over the hedge although he easily steered clear of all obstruc- tion and landed safely. It was a particularly interesting demonstration of the control that can be obtained over a parachute in windy JANUARY 17, 1929 weather. When the cords were pulled down momentary vertical descent was instantly obtained, as could be seen from the ground, and probably it was only the fact that Mr. Tranum did not wish to alight in the vicinity of the hedge that he shot well over for clearer space. That third descent took 1 min. 11 sees. Mr. Tranum holds the official world's record for a delayed drop. He made it at San Diego, falling 4,500 ft. before opening the canopy. A DATE to note and remember—May 23 to June 8 next, when the Royal Tournament for 1929 will be held at Olympia. IT is very comforting to know there is to be an 18-knot lifeboat ready to rush help in any aviation mishap in the Channel, but surely it is going far to suggest the number of recorded accidents would warrant such an installation. Maybe such a boat might be handy should a flying disaster be forward, but I fancy its main work is more likely to be other than with aircraft. As matters are at present the crews' duties are likely to prove a sinecure, which as time goes on should tend to be more and more so with air travel becoming practically general and 100 per cent. safe. Or has this speed- boat been put up as a bogey by the Channel tunnel supporters to neutralise any suggestion that may be made of future traffic competition in the air ? ALL the same, it looks as if the Channel " Ayes " should score against the '"Noes," if an opinion can be formed upon the result of the " inquiry " of Sir William Bull to the House of Lords and the Commons as to willingness to join or support the Channel Tunnel Parliamentary Committee, the figures at the time of writing being :—House of Lords : for, 101 ; against, 54 ; neutral, 28 ; House of Commons ; for, 175 ; against, 17 ; neutral, 104 ; absent, 4. As a further indication of feeling it may be noted that amongst the Press that counts, so far there are 57 papers supporting the scheme, none against, and nine are neutral. POSSIBILITIES of the photo-electric cell have been suggested and demonstrated here in convincing manner, as applied to burglar alarms, gas-lighting, etc., and now from America comes the news that aviation is also—under the suggestive heading of Air-traffic control and new " Robot " devices—to share in its economic advantages. The particular form in which it is put forward as beneficial to flying is that the " electric eye " will enable an aeroplane seeking a safe landing at night to cast a beam of light to the earth and turn on the ground lights of an airport—thus being independent of night attendants, etc. By being able to reverse the positions from the ground to the 'plane, this device should obviate the necessity, as explained by the bored groundman to the inquisitive old lady, of shooting the pilot when his engine stops in mid- air, to enable him to get down again. WHERE is that Aviation-minded millionaire ? The Daily Mail last week in illustrating the " ^15,000 car " of Major Segrave, with which he will try to secure the world's terra firma speed record, made public the fact that this little venture was due to the carte blanche backing of a millionaire enthusiast—for the moment, at least, remaining anonymous. Hopes run high that Major Segrave will justify his backing, and so say all of us, for it is well that England should be, as of yore, top in all sports matters. BUT—and a very large BUT at that—it is Imperially essential that the British Empire should also be foremost in the Air as well as on Earth and the Sea. To that end there is much to be done and a long way to go in the form of encouragement if we are to lead the world in this direction as of old in other elements. HERE therefore is that offered opening for one of our great sportsmen millionaires to step into the breach and under proper guidance do unto the sport of aviation that which has been so many times done with far-reaching effects in the world of automobilism. It is through Sport that practical advance will be attained, as it always has been, for industrial concerns, although already achieving marvellous results, must, necessarily, be restricted in their experimental efforts at " improving the breed," simply by reason of limited resources and consi- deration for the trust which they administer for their shareholders. There must be many wealthy men in this country who might easily attain fame by entering the arena of Aviation Sport and by offering substantial backing in the form of generous prizes, etc., put forward the day when Britain can once more claim the premier position in the world as holders of all the records worth while. Already we are well on the way to attainment, but it requires now that fillip of " damn the expense " feeling by one or more millionaires to see British records zooming ahead and filling up the list. JUST see how the tables have been turned by this very backing of sport for sport's sake. It was following the advent of the petrol engine for propulsion on the earth that man was able, only five and twenty years ago, to conquer the element of the air. And now what do we see ? Aviation, by reason of the necessity of improving upon weight/h.p. performance, has so advanced upon the comparatively crude power contraption of motorism that it is the aero engine refinements which have carried the motor car to its present wonderful efficiency and in the case of Major Segrave (who is employing a Schneider Trophy type Napier engine), and Captain Malcolm Camp- bell (with a " Napier-Arrol-Aster " engine, the same type as used by Flight-Lieut. D'Arcy Greig in his great Calshot effort) enable them to make their attempts upon the world's " on earth " speed record. And should Major Segrave succeed in passing the at present American-held record, the main direct result will be the glory attaching to Man and " beast " with possible further trade following the flag, but in aviation we are but on the threshold of attainments, and it is there that shall arise some great man whose name shall go down to posterity as he who put Britain in the air where for centuries gone she has been on the sea. As to methods—" it is so simple "—just communicate with the Secretary of the Royal Aero Club and the answer comes back " we do the rest," but we hope not in plain vans ! So who will enter the breach and give the very very earnest Committee of the Royal Aero Club a chance of showing what they can really do, when the sport purse strings are generously relaxed. Needless to say, should any of our millionaire readers not have the address of the Club at hand, Aeolus will see that communications through the Editor of this little journal shall not go astray ! LADY BAILEY, who has just completed her remarkable African solo flight, is not only a wonderful air-pilot, but has exceptional powers of observation in " passing along," as witness, by way of example, a word of corroboration from a press correspondent, Mr. J. Crow, as to the weakening of our position in Central Africa as set forth by Lady Bailey. Mr. Crow writes :—" I have just relinquished a commercial post in Elisabethville, Belgian Congo, and am in complete agree- ment with Lady Bailey when she says that we are being left out of the great development going on in (Central) Africa. With the completion of the railways connecting the interior with the West Coast, the Belgian Congo will be more fully opened up, and the potentialities are immense. America, with her usual acuteness, is already represented, Germany is awake, but there is still time for England to take her place. Delay is dangerous." I NOTICE amongst the recent R.A.F. promotions that Wing Commander Francis Haskins, D.S.C., has now become Group Captain. As a Lieut.-Colonel and CO. of Cattewater Air Station, Plymouth, during the war he made that station the best in the south-west group. A fine man to serve under He won his D.S.C. for persistent air patrols over the lines in France, if I remember rightly. AEOLUS 46
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