The Washington times., 1911-08-08
PECK SURPRISES
CAPITAL WITH A
u " ""
I MORNING FLIGHT
Young Aviator Scars Over
City Before Breakfast on
Way to College Park.

Paul Peck in his ~Rex-Smith ma
chine this morning completed the third
of the series of exceptional flights made
here during the last twenty-four hours.
Peck arose early, to beat the crowd
TO IT" and, unhindered, made a beauti-
full start. Twelve minutes after he
left the ground near the Speedway
bandstand, he alighted at College Park
Peck stole a march on the curious
persons who hindered his return trip
to College Park Sunday afternoon, by
arising with the sun today. Only about
a dozen Onlookers had assembled when
he prepared to make his start back
TO the park, but hundreds were counting
on going down to see his start this af
ternoon.
Arose With the Birds.
Peck arose with the lark, and without
his breakfast went TO work oiling and
polishing his machine. At 7:l5 every
thing was in readiness for the start.
The young aviator headed his machine
upward, and after attaining an altitude
of 1000 feet he struck a "bee-line" for
College Park. His landing there was
perfect.
The air was crisp and delightful"
said the young flyer. "and, gee, it made
me hungry. The trip was fine, not the
slightest thing happened to make me
feel one bit uneasy"
Then Peck hurriedly slipped away to
the home of a friend and enjoyed a good
breakfast.
Persons going to work this morning
leaned out of cars, stopped on the
street corners, and scrambled about in
order to get a glimpse of the flyer as he
speeded across the heavens. The flight
was very pretty, Peck making most of
the good air conditions, although the
atmosphere was bit heavy. Soon after
making his start, Peck got his line"
on the aviation field, and like a big
eagle heading for its home on a mouR-
tain side miles away, he swooped
through the air at fifty miles an hour.
and made his landing with the skill of
q bird.
Two Other Flights.
Capt Paul W. Beck, Capt. c. Def
Chandler, and Lieut.. Henry II. Arnold.
of the United States army, thrilled all
Washington yesterday with flights
from College Park to Fort Myer and
return.
The most thrilling part of Captain |
Beck's trip to Fort Myer was his
short race with a fast Baltimore and !
Ohio passenger train on the way to
the city.
Promptly at o'clock, Captain Beck I
started in his machine and after cir |
cling the aviation field four times in |
order to gain an altitude of 1000 feet |
he started toward Fort Myer Hardly |
had he got up when the train came |
racing down the track from Balti- |
more. The engineer saw the airship |
and realized in a flash that he was in |
V!tcd TO race. He opened up the |
throttle and the locomotive increased |
its speed to a mile a-minute.
Captain Beck, away up in the air, |
and several hundred yards in the rear, |
headed his machine down the track |
and in minute caught up with the |
train and soon swooped past.
Captain Beck surpassed his own ex- |
peCtationS by maintaining an average |
altitude of $500 feet, both going and !
coming on his trip. He made the run
over in twenty minutes, and after a |
rest of thirty-seven minutes, started !
on his way back. He made this in |
eighteen minutes.
AHators Meet.
When Captain Beck reached Fort
Myer and his arrival was telephoned
to College Park, Captain Chandler and
Lieutenant Arnold started in al Wright
machine. Their flight was just as
spectacular as the one made by Cap
tain Geek, and just as they were maxi
ing their landing at Fort Myer, Cap
tian Beck was rising with his machine |
on his return trip to the aviation field.
Captain Chandler and Lieutenant Ar
mold took turns at running the Wright |
machine on their trip. They made the
flight over in p minutes and returned |
in 10. They spent . minutes at the
fort.
Captain Beck established several rec
ords yesterday. He broke his own rec
ord of 1,5OO feet in altitude, by climb
ing 800 feet, and after averaging $500
feet all the way. His trip yesterday
to Fort Myer and return was the first
ever made. In fev minutes after he
had left Fort Myer on his return he
climbed to an altitude of 1,5OO feet, es-
a new record in quick ascen-
slons in that space of time for army
aviatorS.
1t was announced by Captain Beck
after he had made the trip to Fort
Myer and return that he soon would |
make the same trip without a stop, and
that if successful in this flight he would
attempt to fly to Annapolis and back.