New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1911-07-04

CUT 5 PERFECT FIGURE 8'S
Also Carried Passenger Around
Statue of Liberty, but Fails
TO Win Pilots
License.

Harry Nelson Atwood Of Boston. made
a worlds record for accuracy in landing
on wheels in an aerOpane at Governor s
Island late yesterday afternoon II was
during his attempt TO win a pilots
license from the Aero Club of America
Atwood made five mathematically per-
feet figure SIS over the reclaimed ground
ard above the bobbing. Historically
shriekng tugs of the harbor. and landed
Just nine feet from where he had started
thirteen minutes before. This perform
ance beat his own record OF nine feet
six inches made last month at Waltham,
Mass
He did not get his license from the
Aero club of America He could not be
blamed for feeling pretty bad about this
failure. Earlier in the day he had car
ried. for the first time In history. a pas
senger over the Statue of Liberty. The
man with Atwood was Lieutenant J. f.
Fickel an experienced passenger in a aero-
planes. and Fickel several hours after
| it happened vividly recalled having
missed Miss Liberty's upraised hand by
| only five feet.
So Atwood had Fickel's enthusiastic
confirmation of the fact that the Boston
wonder could fly the Burgess-W Wright bi-
plane and. like carrier pigeon, find his
way back home.
| Atwood wanted the license of the
/ Aero club of America SO that lot Of
| lis relatives who haven't gone out Of
| their way To see him i'm the air could
see it proclaimed r neat script, all
bound round with wOollen string. that
| one Henry Nelson. of their name had
been observed by duly authorized repre-
/ sentative of the Aero Club of America
Iand-'to whom It may concern etc.
Also. it took five gallons of gasolene
! To make those nine figure IS last night,
and. taking it by and large. it was Il
| bitter experience 10 the rising young
man to fail to get what he went after.
| The club was efficiently represented
Ibv Major Samuel Reber. The rules re-
ouire that the contestant for q license
must hy two sets Of five figure SIS in a
closed circuit Of not less than five kilo-
metres C3l niles in length, at an alti-
tude Of not less than 100 feet The
aviator must land within 100 feet Of
whore ne started.
! 1900 Feet Over Statue Of Liberty
! Atwood made the first set Of SIS, land
ed within nine feet Of his starting point
and then began on the second section Of
the test He thought he had made five
figure SIS i'm strong wind from the
southeast. so, just for good measure, and
because the ferryboats We're crowded
and all the wilted passengers forgot the
heat i'm the beauty of the sight of the
gauzy thing against the setting sun, At
wood flew To an altitude of three thou
sand feet directly above the Statue of
| Liberty: flew SO high against the wind
across the island that the sound of his
motor was not heard; continued over
Euttermlk Channel. To the ecstatic ac-
acknowledgements of the great whistle Of
thei ! import Il Holt liner Verdi. arriv-
ing from Buenos Ayres. and on over the
chimneys and crowded roof tops of
South Brooklyn.
He was now two thousand feet high.
And then his motor stopped. Ills pro-
pellers reyolved listlossly
IA nerN. thing tu do said the spec
Continued on third page.