The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1918-02-01
BRITISH WARPLANE
TAO MILES HOUR
TRAVELS AT HEIGHT OF 1000 TO
5000 FEET IN HANDS or
DAREDEVIL Filler.

Correspondence of tho 1cilted Press.
London, Jan. 9.-Eyns at a speed
of so to 14O miles an hour and at
height of 1000 to 5000 feet in orc Of
the latest and fastest British battle
planes, a correspondent IF the Asso.
ciated Press inspected the outer AIR
defenses Of London on crisp morning
recently.
Few americans have any adequate
idea of the magnitude Of these det2nses
and their present high state of ericier.
cy. Millions Of pounds have been spent
On them and an army is constantly
employed in manning and maintaining
them.
\ motor car took the correspondent
to Somewhere in the outskirts Of Lon.
don,' where it passed through roads
camOutlaged by shrJbGery to a great
aerodron.e, one Of the nest in England
This aerodrome boasts several Ameri-
cans among its most efficient fliers Eut
it is not ermissible to give their names
Upon the party's arrival EnE,anG's
crack daredevil flier pat on a "shuw" "
This man, who looks more like a meek
wizard Cf the air pu- the machine
through n series of performance that
made even some of the veteran lters
Who watched from below hold their
breath. ] coping the loop, nose diving.
barking, VOlplanng to within q few
fa, Of the earth and then pointing the
nose Of the machine skyward for a rise
at express train speed were but a few
Of the moves this pilot went through
with his observer. When he cams
down the correspondent was taken M
In he same machine, but with another
pilot, for a ride through tho clouds
and brd's-eyc view Of the outer de.
fensos of this particular part Of Lon.
don.
Most Reliable Fighter.
This machine was a Fighter
This type Of machine mounting a syn.
chrlni2ed machine gun has carmel the
reputation Of being perhaps The most
reliable of the fighting planes turned
out by the British manufacturers. The
oiot on the trip was a young member
OF the Royal Flying Corps who was to
so 20 France the next week. The
night before this flight he had becd
up fighting with German Gothas at 4
height of between 1000 and 1000 feet
The machine rose to 5000 feet In ter
minutes. 1t started off the ground with
:, tremendous rush the instant II was
released As it rose smoothly, higher
and higher, the sensation was rathel
of the earth moving away from ttC
machine than the machine moving ron
the earth. There was a brisk wind-thC
pilot said it was blowing between .,
and so miles an hour-and the sky wa.
full of fast moving clouds.
The best view Of things below wa,
had at 1000 feet. Aerodromes witt
battleplanes ever ready for the German
raiders could be seen dotting the land
scape. Batteries Of anti-aircraft gun.
could be discerned here and there
The flight around the outer city wa.
made at an average speed Of eight,
miles an hour, over factories and sub
urbs, great arsenal a famous schoo
and town best known for its Ameri
can colony. Up aloft the weather wa
typical Of the New York autumna
day There was just a hint of fros
on the roof tops, which made then
show up more plainly than usua
through the light mist. All was quie
and peaceful in an area which tn
presence Of fthe Gothas would in al
instant transform into a battlefront en-
circled by the barrage from the ant
aircraft guns thousands of feet below
At llO Miles an Hour.
After completing the circle Of tn
metropolis the fighting plane slante
back to earth at $40 miles an hou
That's not really fast" remarked tn
pilot. "In actual fighting we ofte,
have to make 500 miles an hour an
the plane is built to stand that spee
without the slightest danger"