The herald-advance. (Milbank, S.D.) 1890-1922, 1918-06-07

r,,nninp an automobile Is ~ IWC SnAH
- far rs the machine and his controi OF - a,u
10 m,-]ium through, which or upon whicn "e
.,oves ore concerned. But the unrellaoliluy VI
the human mechanism must still De recAonSU
with. and that unreliability seems 20 De eisuOe'
I'm the air than 1t is upon the GROUND. - sone-
times results in strange and uneSpecteu "upp0"o
fnss.
n,ca IN a while n man in the best Of heaitn
.nf tho mink Of condition. who has passed Wln
high success every one Of the severe uesuS "
which aviation candidates are suD1ected, VINO nus
never tainted before in his life, will faint WniiR
he is in the air. One recent fatai accident " y
Texas field is supposed to have been due to- that
cause.
One pilot tainted and the plane fell to this
earth. but neither he nor the student with him
was hurt except for a few scratches ana cuHA
He said that he did not know why ne nainnedA
An TINT he knew was that Ne suddenly lost con-
seriousness, and did not regain it until he was
being hauled out OF the wrecked airpiane. ne
had never tainted before N his life.
Neither had another ysung fellow. TO whom
everything suddenly became a blank as his mo-
chine was sailing away through the blue. Do WINS
still sailing along easily when presently he came
to himself again with the feeling that something
had happened to him. Looking down, he coufo
see that he had covered a considerable distance
since the moment when ne had lost consciousness
He does not know why he tainted any more than
he knows why he did not spin downwar to prob
able death during those blank moments.
A British surgeon attached to the relay naval
mir service. DR.. H. Greene Anderson. whe has had
extensive experience at British flying stations,
has recently written some interesting conclusions
concerning these somewhat obscure causes Of
airplane accidents at training schools.
In the opinion OF Doctor Anderson. based upon
study and comparison Of the statements made to
him In such cases by a hundred student flyers.
there Is a brain fatigue not due to previous men,
49, - -hr-f~D ~A~Aen tho mo ~SOt nnNVcn Nn&0n
accidents. He thinks 1t is induced BY the impact
Ct overwhelming sensations upon the mind Of
the pupil after he Is In the air. The flying pupil
who is overcome by this form Of fatigue, says
Doctor Anderson, REACHES the stage where he
has the power neither to reason, decide, nor act.
A state Of mental inertia supervenes. This Is due
to repeated stimuli received by his brain III rnpid
succession in his flight. He feels alone; a sue.
cession Of errors occurs In the air; he feels he
cannot manage to control the a%irplane; fear does
not seize hin. but the enormity Of the whole
thing appalls him; he feels helpless. and a state
Of brain fatigue occurs In which he. In a st.lpor.
awaits events and takes little part in the air.
planes control"
This form of brain fatigue would seem to be
largely a result Of personal temperament. Doctor
Anderson thinks 1t responsible for "a fair pro
portion of accidents" among students In the early
stages Of flying, and he adds that student avia
tors who have suffered from 1t. II they escape
injury. are likely to give up flying.
There are many, many Of the unimportant &C
cidents, OF which nobody takes heed. But Of
fatal accidents, Notwithstanding the concern ovel
them manifest In some parts Of the country. th'
percentage Is no greater than should be expected
Is less than in the flying schools Of some othel
countries. and Is not higher than II Is In almos
any extra-hazardous occupation. And when 1t Il
remembered that this latter comparison bring
together figures representing men In the trainin,
stage with those OF skilled workers. It Is eviden
both that flying Is a safer game than 1t has thu
credit OF being, and that It will be a good plal
for the country to guard against hystsriA owe
the fatalities that do occur.