The Washington times., 1915-03-15
BEACHEY'S DARING
!. THRILLED CAPITAL.
Aviator Who Met Death Yester-
day Was in Washington in
September.

Lincoln Beachey, whose plunge to
death in San Francisco Bay yesterday
followed a daring exhibit fight before
thousands at the Panama Pacific Expo-
sition, thrilled Washingtonians as few
aviatoTs ever have when he made a
series of sensational flights here last
September.
At that time, when he looped the loop,
made thrilling glides, awaited upside
down, and in general gave everybody
from the President down new sensa-
tions, Beachey was styled the most
daring of American aviators.
This reputation he continued to hold
until yesterday. when the monoplane in
which he was riding, refused to- orespond
to his direction, and the machine and
driver dropped $500 feet into the bay.
The force of the fall was so great
that the machine and its during oper-
ator were buried in the mud pf the bay
in forty feet of water. After two hours
the machine and mangled body of the
aviator were recovered. Beachey was
entangled in the wires of the wrecked
monoplane. All the bones in his body
were broken.
First Here In 1906.
Beachy's first visit to Washington
was in the summer of 1906, when he
made the first dirgibe flight ever ac-
complished here. Arising i'll Luna Park
in a cigar shaped dirgible, Beachey cir
cled the Capitol and the Monument, and
alighted on top of the Munsey build
ing. The success of this flight, how
ever, was followed by Beachy's first
accident in the air. At Baltimore, in
the following September. his balloon
caught fire several hundred feet above
the ground, Beachey escaped with slight
burns. For another year he continued
ballooning, experiencing many danger
Gus hazards.
the Capital was in May, 1911, when he
Circled the Capitol dome
The last series of sensations to WASH
tngton folk came less than six months
ago, when. on september % last. he
astounded every spectator by his daring
exploits in midar. His first landing
on the polo field in Potomac Park was
so spectacular that thousands thought
he had fallen into the river and had
been killed.
Then followed a series Of Beachy's
well-known stunts" including tho
death dip. or vertical glide; the spiral
glide and the Dutch roll During one
of his sensational flights he struck
stantly. During the day Beachey
amused President Wilson and his
household and convinced army and navy
experts at the state. War and Navy
building that air navigation had de-
veloped greatly since the first invasion
of the skies.
Bcachey announced in May, 1918, that
he would never take another fight.
Back At Game.
Six months later he was back at the
game. and his first fight resulted IN an
accident at .Hammondsport, n. Y.
where his machine swept two girls from
the top of hangar, killing one of them
and seriously injuring the other.
Within a month, however, Beachey
was looping the loop in his aeroplanc,
flying upside down, and cutting spirals
in fashion to thrill even those who
had watched Pegoud. On one occasion
he was seriously hurt while trying to
drop his machine on an automobile
driven by Barney Oldfield.
There was apparently no limit to
BeaChey's daring, and his faculty for
deVising new ways of riskinG his life
was almost unCanny. His success
seemed to convince him that the aero
plane had finally become as safe as any
other motor craft.
a year ago this month BeaChey went
TO France to study the aerial capers of
Pegoud and returned to his country
with new stock of thrillers.
His exploits We're too many to be
Catalogued. He hunted ducks from an
aeroplane, flying over the Potomac and
dropping to the water to pick them
up. He played the ghastly joke OF
pretel ding TO fall into the gully at
Los Angeles where Arch Hoxey met
his death He masQueradcd as a woman
in wig and skirts and cut capers in the
air before amazed crowds at San Fran
cisco and Chicago In 1912 he was de-
barred from the army's flying field at
College Park. Md, because his tricks
were too dangerous.