The gold leaf., 1910-08-25
NJ: ::.asS Remarkable Flight
American Aviator Flies Across Eng
lish Channel With Passenger.


The First Person to Fly
Across the Channel With a
Companion.
Deal, England, August lit has
been reserved for an American citizen
to perform one of the most daring
feats in the history of aviation. John
b. MOissant OF Chicago few across the
English channel from Calais to Til
manstone today with a passenger
and by this achievement far surpass-
ed the feats o: Bleriot, De Lesseps
and the unfortunate English aviator
Rolls, who afterwards met his death
at BouFnemouth.
The two-man flight from France to
England was the more astonishing
for it was only a month ago that
Moissant learned to fly and he made
80 few flights that even his nationality
was not disclosed. He was reputed
to be a Spaniard and it was only
when he landed in England today
that it was revealed that he is a
young Chicago architect.
RELIED ON COMPASS.
TO make the feat still more sur
prising, MOissant was totally igno-
rant OF the geography of his course.
He had never been in England and
was obliged to rely entirely on the
compass.
The channel flight was an incident
in the aerial voyage from Paris to
London. Moissant left Issy yester-
day with Hubert Latham and reach
ed Amiens in 2 hours. Latham 8
aerOplane was wrecked and this
morning Moissant leaving Amiens at
an early hour, headed for Calais. His
mechanician, Albert Filliux, who had
accompanied him across the country,
took his place in the machine when
the motor was set in motion for the
dash across the channel.
Moissant cared nothing for the
warnings of the people and even the
fact that there was no torpedo boat
in his wake, but only slow moving
tug, did not deter him. He made the
trip in 81 minutes. When he descend
| Cc LIS c.S CO WCIC dllu
| ly inflamed, as result Of the heavy
rain storm into which they drove,
approaching the English coast.
An average height OF between 300
and 400 feet was maintained over
the water. The aviator expected to
land at Dover but was forced by the
wind few miles North and made the
coast near Deaf. The cold was in
tense, and both Moissant and his
mechanician were benumbed. Mois-
SAINT seemed to take his monumental
feat as though it were a daily occur
renee. When he revived sufficiently
he laughed and said to an interview
er:
"This is my first visit to England. !"
Describing his experiences, he said:
WILL GO TO LONDON.
"This is only my sixth flight in an
aeroplane | did not know the way
from Paris to Calais when We started
and l do not know the way to Lon
don. l shall have to rely on the
compass. | would like to land in
Hyde Park If l can find it."
my mechanician, who weighs
1872 pounds, had never been in an
aeroplane before and did not know
where l was taking him when we left
Paris"
Moissant is 35 years of age. He
first visited Paris some months ago
and became interested in the study
of aviation. He had two machines
built after his own designs and found
the subject so fascinating that he
determined to become practical air
man. His flight today was made on
a Bleriot machine which weighs about
500 pounds.
Filiux, the mechanician, a burly
Partisan clad in overalls, did not
know where he was going when he
started, but says that he felt quite at
home as he had the greatest con-
fidence in the pilot.
OVERTAKEN BY ILL LUCK.
Chatham, Eng, Aug. 1S-Jonhn B.
Moissant, the Chicago aviator, who
is attempting to fly from Paris to
London, descended for the second
time near here today, breaking the
propeller and part OF the frame OF
the machine making the second land
ing.
The broken parts must be replaced
from Paris and a resumption of the
flight to London before tomorrow is
improbable. Neither Moissant nor
his machine was injured in the ac-
cident.
The good fortune which accompa-
MED Moissant in the earlier stages OF
his flight from Paris and in his record
breaking journey across the channel
with passenger seems to have de-
serted him with his arrival upon
English shores. Motor defects in the
aeroplane which yesterday worked
without a slip, forced him to make
two successive landings when about
half way on the course between Lon
don and Tilmanstone, where he as.
cended at 4:55 this morning. His
first descent, a mile from Sitting
Bourne, about 80 miles from London,
vas due to the displacement OF q
small pin in the mechanism, entailina
an immediate descent. He narrowly
escaped disaster in the landing, just
missing the mouth OF a deep CHALK