Evening star., 1911-08-13
OMIT LONG FLIGHTS
Aviators at College Park Prac-
tice Landings Only.
NO SPECTACULAR STUNTS
Operators Yesterday Confined Strict
ly to Business Program.
GUsTY AND UNCERTAIN BREEZE
Long Trips Contemplated, With Bal
timore and Annapolis Among
Objective Points.

Objective Points.
Nothing but landings was the record
of the armX at the College Park aero
drome yesterday. Only two official ma
chimes were out, the Wright and the
Burgess The latter has been as
signed to Lieut.. Milling, and both he and
his former pupil, Lieut.. Kirkland, made
flights in ii. Lieut.. Arnold, with the
Wright, first flew alone, and then took
with him Capt. Chandler, in charge OF
the station, and an aviation pupil. Lieut.
Kirkland has won his pilots license, so he
can no longer be considered In the pupil
class, and is allowed to make flights
alone.
But landings were the things that were
practiced all Of yesterday afternoon. The
air was not particularly good for flying
early There was a breeze-not much.
but gusty and uncertain. Aeroplanes can
fly in high wind better than in an un-
certain one, and as there was need for
landing practice, the whole time was de-
voted to it.
Are Taking No Risks.
At the Wright school in Dayton some
of the instructors have flown in as much
as a forty -ive-mile gale, but nothing OF
that sort will be attempted at College
Park for some time TO come.
There were no cross-country flights by
the aviators yesterday. but there was
plenty of flying close to home base. When
Lieut. Arnold and Capt. Chandler came
down for the last time there had been a
total Of twenty flights for the army, and
Paul Peck, the Rex Smith aviator, then
brought out his machine and added
three flights to the score. It was there
fore about the busiest day those at the
park have ever experienced.
1t Is intended, when all the conditions
are favorable and the motors are work
ing well, for the army men to make some
longer cross-country flights. Baltimore
and Annapolis are both objectives tina,
have been discussed, but no attempt has
yet been made to set a date.
Capt Beck in Chicago.
Neither of the Curtiss machines was
brought out. Capt. Paul Beck, the Cur
tiss aviator, has gone In his private ca
pacity to participate In the big aviation
and his prospective pupil, Lieut.. Frank
Kennedy. will await his return. He will
then be trained in the school machine
that is now at College Park, and then
VIII be promoted to q racing machine,
for which the army has contracted and
which is equipped with a sixty-horsepow-
er engine, said to be capable Of making
seventy-five miles an hour
One feature of the new Curtiss ma
Ia
Will be the two-mans control. Heretofore
the Curtiss has been a one-man machine,
so far as the operator was concerned. II
there was passenger he sat behind the
operator. The machine was controlled
by post surmounted by an automobile
wheel. Rocking the post back and forth
controlled the eievating devices and turn
ing the wheel operated the rear rudder
In the new machines, the rocking post is
hinged in the middle so that it can be
handed from operator No. / to operator
No. Q who sits beside him.
This two-man control has alrea-y been
installed on the hydro-aeroplane. known
for short, as the triad" that has been
built for the navy. 1t will be put or
the future army machines. Lieuts Ely
son and Towers. the naval officers, have
already been trained In the use OF the
joint control.
For Land, Water or Air.
The name triad" does not come, as
many think, from the fact that the ma
chine Is a three-decker. There was 6
| triplane used when Curtiss was first de
veloping the hydro-aeroplane. But it /.
| now regular two-surface machine, ane
| called the triad" merely because il
runs on the land water or air. 1t is q
fairly fast machine, too. in spite of car
| rying floats. for the naval officers have
| flown 1t sixteen miles over Lake Keuks
| In eighteen minutes, carrying the two
operators. The navy is convinced of tn,
| need OF speed in an aeroplane. a view t
which the army Is not yet wholly con
verted.
1t is intended to make a number o
military experiments at College Park a
| soon as all the pupils are we'll in hand
| There are to be photographs taken from
aloft and military observations and re
ports made to determine just what cal
be accomplished by the aeroplane IL
scouting and topographic work. Bomb
dropping experiments are also to b.
made. though this is regarded az a sec
ondary matter. because nobody in eithe
| the army or the navy expects the aero
plane to be much Of an offensive wa
arm, and the chief use of bombs will
| probably be incendiary. to fire the stor,
| depots and supplies Of an enemy.
Target Practice Omitted.
1t is not expected that any target prac.
tice against aeroplanes will be attempted
at the Park. but the navy has done some.
thing In this line already with box kites
and towed balloons, and is planning to dc
| more during the autumn target practic
of the fleets. The practice of the navy
! SO far has been with small army anc
automatic guns against kites on co.
wards of wire At this height the targets
/ have been rfddled, but it is recognized
that teh aeroplane at 5000 feet elevation
I can do all the observation it wants en-
tirely out of range of a ships guns. TIL,
F.. army has developed a gun that can bs
trained at high angle for use against
aeroplanes, but there has been nothins
official given out about this weapon ol
; the success attending it's use
/ One Of the very essential things as al
adjunct to aviation both in the army ant
navy is a compass by which the aviato,
| can fly. 1t has been said that such g
| compass was actually in use and that on,
| had been taken up by Lieut.. Arnold a,
! College Park. This was untrue Their,
| has not been such q compass built, efthe,
here or abroad, much as aviators woult
| like to see it.
When Aeroplane Is Aloft.
| When an aviator is aloft the aeroplan
| OF course. is carried out of a straight lin
by whatever cross wind is blowing. Thi.
Is called making leeway' in a boat. L
&c b~,,-1