The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1918-06-06
GEORGE HALDEMAN
WRITES INTERESTINGLY
OF FIRST FLIGHT ALONE
IN AIRPLANE
Continued from Page 81

L
cause they had been flying couple
weeks before | got here. Believe me,
tell you | did my durndest when
in the air and when making the LAND
ings, because | knew how every one
watches a ship with a white rag on
the tail and | sure didn't want to pull
off any boneheads.
1t sure is great to be alone in a
ship | have had no feeling of I'M
safety as yet; it's great and wonder
fully exciting. | know you would
like it,
Certainly | hope you get to come
through Memphis some time while |
am here and if you could come
through some time the first part of
July when | get farther along in my
flying | might be able to make flight
then that would be interesting for you
to watch because by that time / hope
! will be through my stunts.
You know a part of the regular
course is to be able to do couple
successful loops, two tailspins, three
wing-overs, side slip and skid
and they must all be done within 80
minutes after you have left the ground
and must all be completed at an alti-
tude of over two thousand feet.
1t is pretty hard for civilian tC
get a chance to ride in an aeroplane
they are mighty strict about it, but il
I am lucky enough to get my COM
mission O. X. might be able to gel
a ship and take you up for ride.
Believe me | would sure like to and
expect if once got you up in the all
I would have to introduce you to q
loop or a tail-spin or something of the
sort just so you would know what
one was.
don't blame Mr. Pope much; if
were he an aeroplane would be {
mighty attractive mode of convey
ance from home to the farm
was talking with one of the mel
on cross country trip yesterday. The.
took a trip down to some place in Ar
kansas about 81 miles from here.
took them one hour and twenty min
utes to go down, going with tn
wind, and about one hour and fort,
minutes to come back, coming agains
the wind, so you see one can go mos
any place and it takes no time to ge
there.
One of the captains from here goe
up to Kansas City quite often in
ship and it is not considered such
long drive.
1t does look mighty expensiv
though. A ship goes up and is onl
up about two hours and forty minute
and it burns a tub full of as-abou
% gallons.
There is a big gas tank on the fiel
which holds about $50 gallons and
sure keeps busy filling the machine
with gas.
AS you say, present aeroplane
are pretty expensive articles, but
believe it will be only very shol
time before they will be very niue
more economical than at present
These Curtis planes are built 0
somewhat the same principle of
Ford car-in that the Curtis built
good cylinder motor and are stayin
by 1t just as Henry is staying b
those four little peppers under tn
hood. Curtis planes are being use
at flying fields all over the countr
and man can right now fly aroun
over the U. S. most any place an
would always be able to get repair
and parts at any of the fields Tn
planes we are using cost the govern
ment about $500 as | understand il
| think one would cost civilia
about $1,000, which really is not S
bad. OF course it costs about SIS DC
hour to keep plane in the air bl
when you consider that every hou
you are in the air you can travel b.
tween IS and 100 miles, it isn't $
blamed expensive,
OF course you are liable to ha,
breakages and the like but of all til
accidents | have seen here, they ha,
practically all been due to careless
ress on the pilates part or either Il
engine is not in good working order
But | think the planes do mighty we
they are in the air day after day. a
day long and I tell you that is ha,
Eyss%asa~.srNjls s~eeA t,a~sssJ1,a,