Missouri Valley times. [volume] (Missouri Valley, Iowa) 1874-1931, 1911-09-21
W; lb,4,- Wright
on Auiation--

1t is hardly necessary TO mention the
qualifications of the Wright brothers as
critics of aviation affairs, for they have
not only the honor of being the men who
made heavier than air fight possible. and
who themselves demonstrated the posi-
bility but they have been constantly at
work since they first put aeropanes on
the market trying to improve present-day
machines to an extent that will make
their general use practicable. 1t will be
profitable, therefore. to consider Wilbur
Nright's views ON the big flying contests
IN Europe during the past season. Mr..
Wright has just returned to this country
amer an absence of several months. He
said that while he went abroad to look
after the Wright patents he found time
TO enjoy himself and make an occasional
hight. He went up few times with Cap
tam Arlington at Berlin Just to see how
the Wright machines were working.
Did you attend any of the big meets
over there?" he was asked
No. Meets don't interest me- said Mr..
Wright II am very lttlc interested in
the purely sporting side of aeronautics.
we are working ahead in a practical man
neq. without catering 20 the sensational.
believe in doing things. however. where
a flight can be made properly and without
any unnecessary risks. OF course the
sporting side of 1t appeals to great
many, but believe the sensational flights
hurt the art They do not work toward
maintaining Il healthy interest in aero
nautics, or help in a practical develop
ment of the machines.
Mr.. Wright was asked what he thought
of the recent International circuit avia-
ton race which started and ended at
Nincennes, near Paris
That was. in no stnsl test of what
'he machines or the pilots could do" he
said. ut was merely a reckless sporting
event In which the men bet their lives
against certain amount Of money. 1T
was u gamble with death. Beaumont the
winner. narrowly escaped being killed.
His motor stopped at time when he
was in a position where he could not have
landed without counting almost sure death.
ny some freak his motor started when he
was within few feet of the ground and
saved him from being dashed to pieces.
lie might have had funeral instead OF
the $4,000 prize
Mr.. Wright said that the contestants in
the International circuit race had me-
chanics scattered all over England and the
other countries through which their course
lay. and consequently they could rebuild
q machine and change the motor over
night II they wanted to. "'rhis condition
of things certainly afforded no test of the
uuraDlllty oil the engines or the power OF
the machine, and is the sort of thing which
we discourage" said Mr. Wright Such
sensational events are exploited in the
papers to the detriment of the art. What
the average man-not the daredevil or the
can do with an aeroplane is the
problem we are concerned with
The spirit of coinnercialism is killing
aviation there. The only reason for the
long flights. which are being made at
present, is tine advertisement of some
newspaper or other commercial venture
and not The idea of further perfecting the
flying machine. In great many cases
there is no profit in these meets, for the
or flying machines, and I
think that I am correct when / say that
there is not one of them In France who
is making any money. 1t costs too much
to build and fly machines In these races
Even though the prize may be one
amounting To thousands of dollars it all
goes to one man. and when there are 20
or 50 competitors in n race the expense of
all of them far overshadows the amount
OF the prize. The French government
alone is Keeping aviation alive. 1T has
bought more than 200 machines, and is
financing experiments which the manufac-
turers could not carry on themselves.