, 1913-09-27
THE MEN WHO WE'RE SACKED"
British War Office Blunders.

Truly me WtllIllSl3 OF tIIG DliiS9 l. re-
venges. Five years ago the War Office
abandoned Lieutenant Dunno after he had
carried out a series Of experiments in flying
for them.
900 " and r. remarked Lieutenant Dunno
on Monday, "wero both sacked at the same
time" In the case OF The lamented Colonel
Cody The War Office had to award q PRIZE
OF 5000 to the machine which it had pre-
viousIy tossed aside as useless. Now the
War Office has been compelled, after endless
DELAYS, to order two Dunno blpIanes but
not before the secret has beeu sold to France.
Some months ago, utterly discouraged by
the treatment he received at home. Lleute-
naut Dunno took a m%onoplane over to France
and was welcomed with open arms us an IN
yentOr of The highest rank. The directors Of
the N~ieuport Company were so delighted
that a member of the firm came to East
church to see the Dunno bipIane, which IS
on TIE same principle of automatic stability
rs the monoplaEe. THIS Gentiemau, Nj.
Fclix, after q flight in the brpIaue, was SO
enruptured that he performed II GaIlic war
dance round the machine and instantly teIo.
graphed to his directors to come over aud
SEQ it.
Having had no training in the British War
Office, the directors, with that foolish prompt
ness and enthusiasm which shall never pene-
trato to Whitehall, came to Etslchutch and
examined the machine. Immediately then
one desire was to take 1t back to France.
The Dunno bipIane is unique. 1t is shap-
ed like Il broad arrow, the planes being set
so far back that the eXtremjties make pruc-
tical y two tails. The machine has no eleva
tor and no rudder of the kind used III all
other aeIop}auos. Steering is effected by
l4,, 80. tl,,iI.. - On, ,I,,,4 80 ,t,
matte. The machine flies by Itself, and no
CAST of any force can, it is claimed, destroy
Its equilibrium.
1t is y strange story, that of the Dunno
aeroplane, and one that is by no means ere
ditable to British administration Lleuto-
pant Dunno, inspired by Mr.. H. G.. Wells,
she novelist, commenced the study Of avin-
ton in 1901 In 1906 he made a model
which formed the subject of experiments in
which the War Office then took great inte-
rest. A biplane followed and was completed
u year later. The experiments, for the sake
of secrecy, we're carried out on the Blair
Athoil estate, belonging TO the Duke of At
holl, a remote and desolHte spot in Perth
shire.
At this time the Marquis of Tullib lrdine,
son of the Duke of Atholl aud now chairmln
of the Royal Aero Club, had already taken
an interest III Lieutenant DInne's work.
Henco the site for the experiments. Lieu
tenant Dunno was not wealthy enough to
afford an elaborate police guard for his ex-
periments, and the c~rofters on the Blair At
holl estate were put on their honour not to
allow strangers to come near the secret aero
drome.
Right we'll they performed their task. For
many months they watched night and day,
and anyone coming near without q pass sign
ed by the Marquis of TuIlibardine was very
effectively chased from the spot by High
landers with clubs.
But suddenly in 1908 the War Office de-
cided there was no future for aviation, AMI
Lieutenant Dunno, with his machine, which
had even then performed with extraordinary
success, found himself deserted Helped,
however, by the Marquis of Tullibardine.
who formed the Blair Atholl Aeroplane Syn
dictate, he still went forward with his expert
nents.
Two or three years passed, during which
the British War Office remained to all APP
pearance Ignorant Of Lieutenant DUNES