Evening star., 1909-08-26
Emil BerIiner's Invention oil
the Aerial Torpedo.
WILL FALL FROM ON HIGH
Explosive to Be Carried on Small
Monoplane.
LIGHTWEIGHT MOTOR PLANNED
New Engine Of Destruction May Be
Employed to Create Damage or
as Basis for a Menace.

Aerial torpedoes are the latest horror
that are about to be added to modern
warfare. There have been submarine
mines and submarine torpedoes, smoke
less powder and noseless guns and ar
SHIPS, but the idea of carrying 1oO
pounds of gun cotton ten miles and
dropping it on the head of an ordinarily
inoffensive citizen looks like crowding
the limit on modern destructiveness
This, however. Is being worked out
right here in Washington. and Emil
Berliner. known to fame in other and
more peaceful directions as an inventor.
is the man who is developing the idea
Possibly Mr. Berliner does not even
deserve the saving clause just noted.
Tor he is the inventor of many graphic
phones, and Judge kimball. John Philip
Sousa and other prominent citizens
have classed them with lethal weapons.
However. the aerial torpedo is al
ready invented. and it will take an
other Hague conference to prevent it's
use should occasion demand. 1t is moth
ing more or less than small aeroplane
carrying torpedo in place of an oper-
ator and provided with an automatic
balance and steering device to the same
end as a submarine torpedo.
Lightweight Motor Devised.
The thing about the device that has Civ
EN- more trouble than anything else is
getting a simple and lightweight motor
This problem is now solved and there is
motor in the Berliner shops that will
develop twelve horsepower on the brake
and weighs only fifty pounds. The motor
is very simple in construction. This first
inn al L,,;1 I;z~l~x
weight. especially, and it is said that it
can be cut down twelve pounds without
interfering with it's efficiency when the
next motor is built. The saving in weight
will be due chiefly to the use of venadium
steel in the cylinders. This-was not avail
able when the first motor was construct
ed, but cylinders of this material have
been ordered and will be ready for in
stallation in the next motor.
The motor is something of the Adams
FarWell type. with revolving cylinders.
These act as gyroscope to keep the
aeroplane steady in the air and make the
motor run without the vibration that
would shake a small aeroplane to pieces
with motor of the same size and weight
of reciprocating type. 1t is said that
the motor on a light wooden base has
been run without any trouble from vi
bration and it was run standing still in
the sun for half an hour without over
heating. 1t is true that standing still
on long run the cylinders get a little too
hot for greatest efficiency, but moving
| through the air will keep them just right.
One of the cylinders has been fitted with
a copper jacket with cooling fanges and
this aids the cooling without apprecia bly,
increasing the head resistance. but it is
not thought that in practice II will be
necessary to use the jacket at all.
Machine to Be a Monoplane.
Mr.. Berliner has tried out lot of pro-
pellers and has found a pair of light
weight and suitable efficiency. This and
the motor constitute the chief problems,
and, being satisfactorily settled. he is
not bothering much about the aeroplane
to carry them. The whole installation
will be of such light weight that not
much wing surface will be required. The
machine will be a monoplane. and as it
will make fifty miles an hour there will
probably be only about 100 fe1t of sup
porting surface. The automatic balance
is worked out so that il is simply ques-
ton of putting the machine together.
The aeroplane will carry a gasoline
supply for a flight of half an hour but
1t is not thought likely that it will ever
be used at anything like that distance
1t would hardly be possible to hit any
thing but big city at that range. But
the aerial torpedo will outrange the big
gest gun now i'll use. and it is poss BILE
that it will be Of use against attacking
fleets and coast Notifications, and will
be even more effective than the aeropane
Itself in holding up rich cities for ransom.
1t is pointed out that the aerial torpedo
is much cheaper to construct than SUBJ
marine torpedo and that it is more ac-
curate at the same range.
Satisfaction at the Laboratory.
The laboratory is well satisfied with the
work 1t has done on the revolving cylinder
engine and is constructing another OF
sixty-six horsepower for Mr.. Berliner S
heliocopter, and this will be tried also on
the heliocopter of Newton Williams, who
il will be recollected, was lifted along
with his machine at Mr.. Beriner's coun-
try place last summer. In this trial the
heliocopter had on board the two thirty
horsepower revolving cylinder engines
that had been brought for practice and
from which the present lightweight mo-
tor was developed. The Williams machine
was never built to stand much as sixty
horsepower, but 1t was the first time that
it ever got into the air with an operator
on board. 1t was noticed at the time tina,
when the lift once began the machine sho,
into the air. that it was plain that less
than sixty horsepower would have made
il fly after the start had been made.
The new engine that is being built will
be of greater horsepower and less weigh,
than the two motors previously used, anC
it Is thought that there will be some inter
| esting developments in this line before
next spring. The heliocopter does not
promise to develop as much speed as Mr.
Berliner originally predicted for it, but II
seems to be particularly valuable for hov.
ering and for observations. 1t will prob
ably not make more than fifteen or TWEEN
ty-tive miles an hour but can stay Still
| on the air or rise from confined space
and from any sort OF ground.