The Springfield herald., 1911-08-18
ATWOOD MAKES
LONG FLIGHT
FROM ST. LOUIS TO CHICAGO IN
S HOURS AND 4e
MINUTES.
DISTANCE OF 286 MILES
BREAKS AMERICAN RECORD FOR
SINGLE DAYS AERoPLANE
FLIGHT.
Western Newspaper Union News Service.

Chicago.-Aviator Atwood's flight
from ST. Louis to Chicago establishes
a new American distance record for
single day.
Total distance, travelling in air line.
2S6 miles.
Actual flying time. hours and 46
minutes.
Time from start to finish, including
delays for two stops. 10 hours and IA
minutes.
Average altitude, 500 feet.
Beats by 13s miles best previous
American record of 14S miles made by
himself in flying from Atlantic City to
Baltimore in July, 1911.
II he keeps up his first days rec
ord. Atwood will cover the 1,460 miles
from st. Louis to Boston in seven
days. instead of ten days. as planned.
BY flying the 2S6 miles from st.
Louis to Chicago with only two inter
mediate stops and in an actual flying
time of hours and 43 minutes. Harry
N Atwood of Boston believes he has
set a pace that will result in his
establishing a new record on his flight
by aeroplane from st. Louis to New
York and Boston.
Atwood appears to have broken the
American record for a single days
flight. The best previous American
record was made by Atwood himself
when he flew 14S miles from Atlantic
City to Baltimore July 10, 1911.
The best International cross-country
record is held by Andre Beaumont.
4O1 miles in single day, but in this
instance he made three landings.
while Atwood landed only twice be-
tween start and finish.
Atwood in Burgess-Wright bi
plane left ST. Louis at sos a. m He
landed in Chicago at G:19 p. n His
total time between St. Louis AMI Chi
cago. counting the delays occasioned
by the two stops, was ten hours and
fourteen minutes.
Atwood's descent into Chicago was
thrilling. Sailing in from the south
west, a lone speck in the clouds, he
made direct for the downtown district.
and for time hovered unnoticed in
the distance over the skyscrapers.
Suddenly the crowd noticed the on
coming stranger and voice shouted,
That's Atwood from St. Louis
Immediately the vast assembly was
in ,f hp
air men sailed out to meet Atwood.
Coming steadily onward Atwood
steered over the aviation field and cir
cled around it while several u: the
machines listed in the meet followed
behind as an escort.
Once around Atwood descended
gracefully. touching the ground for the
first time since his stop at Pontiac,
ILL.,, ninety-one miles from Chicago.
Originally setting ten days as the
maximum time for completing the l AGO
miles to Boston. Atwood believes by
the pace he has set he will be able To
materially reduce that estimate. He
had not expected to reach Chicago SO
soon, but favorable veal her and the
excellent condition of his machine in
duced him to shorten his stops.
His first stop. which was made at
Springfield, n!nety-eight miles from ST.
Louis, after two hour and twenty
five minute flight, was to fulfill n
promise.
Instead of remaining there Until 9
p. M, he got away two hours earlier
He was scheduled to stop at Bloom
ington, H.. but the crowds assembled
at his proposed landing place there
were so dense he could not nd a
clear space to land in, so he swept
low and shaking his head negativel?
at the people. continued.
AT Pontiac he descended TO .eplen-
ish his supply of gasoline and lubri-
eating OIL
All that was suffered by the man
who thus sailed through the air at A
speed greater than that of an express
train was slight buzz in his ears.
caused by the chugglng of his engine.