Pullman herald. [volume] (Pullman, W.T. [Wash.]) 1888-1989, 1917-11-30
STUDENT AVIATOR
IN FIRST FLIGHT
Former College Student Describes
First Two Flights in Army
Planes With Student
AviatOrs

a letter describing his first two
flights was recently received by the
parents of Oliver Lindsey, a student
aviator in the army aviation camp at
Bellville, Ill. Mr.. Lindsey was last
year student in the elem entary sci
ence department and enlisted early
last spring in the aviation corps of
the army. The letter follows:
Il have put off writing to you a
few days SO that | could include in
It. an account of my first flight A
student aviator named Maupin, who
is a friend of mine, asked me if |
would like to go up with him and of
course | was there on the dot at
$50 to go up. We went up in an
eight-cylinder Curtiss and stayed MP
for 10 minutes. We were up about
1900 feet and went about ID miles
n two big circles around the camp.
Everything below looked just like a
big checker board with some of the
squares Of odd sizes and shapes.
We flew over two coal mines that
are near the camp and circled over
one and watched a freight train
switching cars on the side track near
one of the mines. All hills, bitches,
and buildings appeared to be flat,
and large trees looked like small
er than they are. We only hit a
cloud once and then for about three
seconds we were covered and envol-
oped by vapor.
Il had a sense of perfect conf
dence and the only time | was scared
was when we started for the earth.
We fell as fast as though we had
jumped from some high building out
into space. He asked me if | was
scared and | said no. | had given
up all hopes. He saw how | was
scared and still liked it. so he gave
it the gas and we went up again
and took another dive. whenever
we wanted to talk he would turn off
the gas and then we could hear each
Other) We came down and when
about 80 feet above the ground he
pulled the wheel back toward him
50 it would level out and flew at this
height for a little way until it set
tied to the earth with just a slight
jar.
Il took off the leather coat and
the goggles which we have to wear
when going up in an army plane and
started for my quarters. A Stand
ard plane landed and stopped about
80 feet from me. The pilot was an
other student named Neister As
this was the first day they were let
ting the students take up passengers
he offered me ride. They felt
pretty proud to be trusted with the
lives of fellows worth at least 500
each in what has been spent on us
without considering our training. |
was game and got another coat and
headgear and went up with him. /
could hardly believe that within 10
minutes of my first flight | was get
ting another. | have been in the
army six and a half months now and
this is the first chance l have had to
go up. | would have gone up before
but for the red tape one has to go
through to get to go up with a
licensed pilot. Here they merely
took my name. rank, and number of
the squadron to which | belong.
well, we stayed up 16 minutes
this time and went over a town by
the name of Shiloe, which is about
three miles from camp At one time
| asked him how high we were and
he turned off the moter and diyed
while l repeated it. He said: "Oh,
only about 1900 feet. I'll take you
up llllO INC IlOuuS lcWr I1C puliCd
the wheel back and we climbed for
about four minutes. BY this time
couldn't see anything except the
plane and the other fellow on ac-
count of the cloud we were in. Then
he made five dives, turning off the
motor to go down and turning it on
again to come back up. The longest
one was when we went down out the
cloud. | never felt so light in all
my life. We had a kind of bunny
landing, as we bumped three times.
Although the second flight was
in a lighter, cheaper machine, with
only four-cylinder engine, it was
| the best, as he is more neryy than
| the other fellow. He promised to-
take me up again as soon as he could
| do the loop and tail spin" well
I r,s.r