Wauwatosa news. [volume] (Wauwatosa, Wis.) 1900-1948, 1918-04-05
AN INTERESTING LETTER.

Extract from letter written by S. L.
Wheeler, Gerstner Field, March 18,
1918:
This afternoon | had two more
rides, making a total Of three hours
in the air so far. | learned to make
turns this afternoon and my instructor
says that can handle the machine all
right in the air now. Tomorrow | will
start learning how to take off and
make landings. | am very fortunate
that there are only three of US under
this instructor. We get more time
than lots of others. Ralph has not
even been up yet.
Flying is even more wonderful than
! imagined. And still have one more
thrill coming when this fcg clears up
and i ran see the world at ? glance.
We are in the last throes of the
"Norther" that struck Thursday.
When you climb into the airplane,
you fasten yourself into the seat with
broad belt that holds you securely in
place and yet can be fastened and un-
fastened Instantly The instructor
climbs in ahead of you and fastens
himself in the same way. Before you
are few instruments-not many in a
Curtis and down below is the rud-
der bar upon which you place your
feet. The other controls are all OPP
Grated by stick-the SOY stick"-a
little heavier than broom-stick,
which comes up from the floor be-
tween your knees &c q point where
the hand can readily GRASP IL. If you
push it forward, the ship will dive;
if it is pulled back, the ship will
climb; pushing to either side tips the
ship to that side, so that if you are
already tilted, you push the stick to-
ward the vertical and the ship will
follow and straighten up.
The machine ''taxis" on its two
wheels and a stick which trails along
under the tail Riding along the
ground is very much BUMPER than
riding in a Ford. You taxi out to
the starting point and turn into the
wind. One last word and the instruc-
tor throws the throttle open. The en-
CINE starts with roar and reaches
its maximum speed almost at once.
The plane gathers speed and bumps
faster and faster across the ground
! Then there comes time when there
are no bumps and you realize you are
supported on air. The ground sinks
away and smooths out until it looks
like a taut canvas painted in shades
of green and brown. 1t sinks still
more-you do not feel that you are
rising. The hangers come into view
below They look like models we have
all seen in museums. The streets
painted on the canvas ground are far
too regular to be real and the little
buildings set precisely along the roads
in perfect symmetry can be nothing
but toys. Now we are turning. The
world swings around while the plane
! tips far over in. banking. Although
/ we can see straight down over the side
of The tilted ship, there is no feeling
OF danger, no tendency to fall out.
The plane is perfectly banked for the
turn. Now we hit "hole in the air.
and the plane falls several feet while
we hastily swallow our ''innards."
Then we strike compressed area and
the plane bounds up while we feel as
if we weighed ton. We are now OPP
posite our starting point and with a
breathless swoop dart down to land.
The engine slows to idling and the
only sound is the rush and scream of
the air about the wires. The ground
fairly rushes up. Its irregularities
become more distinct and with relief
you feel the plane level out. Softly,
gently, it settles to earth and once
more bumps along to stop.
Of course, such a flight around the
field would not take five minutes and
we really do much turning, and cir
cling over the country before we land.
We crossed landing field once where
two or three planes We're taxing
along the ground They looked like
wounded beetles crawling toward a
\ hole.
Saturday, while we were up,
looked upward and saw bird flying
/ backward toward our plane 1t took
several seconds to realize that the
bird was flying ahead while we were
| overtaking it.
Some days it is bumpy and sometimes
it is not. The first time up, the air
rolled in waves and the plane be-
haved like light canoe on long roll
ers. Saturday, we dropped and rose
irregularly in very ierky fashion, but
to-day, the second time up we hardly
met a bump and the first time up this
afternoon, we found only few.