Omaha daily bee., 1919-04-05
ENDURANCE BIG
ESSENTIAL IN
/. TRANS-SEA TRIP

About Airplane Flight Across
Atlantic; Must Be Made
In T'Wenty-four Hours.
BY ROBERT WELLES RICHIE
Universal Service Staff Correspond
ent.
London, April 4.-(Speeial Cable
Dispatch -An amazing ecmbina-
ton Of the human with the mechan-
ical machine alone will spell sue
cess for the transatlantic flight now
contemplated, according to Major c.
c. Turner, long distance flight ex-
pert In the British air ministry, In
terviewed by Universal Service to-
day. H.
Since the attempt by Harry Haw-
ker with a two-seater from New
foundland is reported likely to be
made any day, | sought comments
from eminent British aeronautical
experts. All agreed that whoever
makes the initial attempt must have
daring comparable to that of six
teenth century explorers. Major
Turner said:
"Hawker and his navigator. Com
mander Mackenzie Grieve, arc con-
fronted with perils no smaller than
those faced by Cabot and other early
adventures crossing the Atlantic.
They require amazing physical and
mental endurance-in short-the
whole problem i. that OF endurance
on the part both of pilots and the
engine.
THE present record, I believe, Is
"a hours and II minutes in endur-
ance flights. -t
Over Optimistic.
~ believe Hawker is over opti-
mistic in his statement he will make
the fight from coast to coast in ~
hours. Aside from the human ele-
ment, the thing equal in Importance
is the engine. An engine which will
carry on "a hours without hitch
at top speed must be perfect in
every detail
Remember in Z trans-sea flight
there is no way to repair 4 faulty
engine except dropping into the
waves, and that spells failure for all
except the flying boat. Even a fly
ing boat would be unable to rise
from a rough sea,
"After the question of the endur-
ance of the pilots and the engine re-
mains the problem OF keeping the
course. The compass course having
first been calculated with respect to
the strength and the direction OF the
wind, will have to be kept, but this
does not insure safety unless the
amount of drift can be ascertained,
and the wind estimate may be unre-
liable. knowledge of the stars Is
of very little help in night flying.
"Grieve's knowledge Of the steam
ship tracks will prove invaluable in
keeping a direct course. At night
time the glare from funnel can be
seen at long distance, and the air
adventures will carry flares to sig
nal ships, so the latter will report by
wireless their passing.
Hard to Keep Balance.
zone curious feature will have to
be guarded against. 1t i. we'll known
that pilots flying at any time over
water are greatly troubled by loss
of the sense of balance. With the
flat plane below unvarying in its
contour, the pilot does not have any
object by which to make eompar-
ison Of his relative parallel with the
sea. This gradually becomes weary
ing, and the only correction possible
is to concentrate the mind and the
vision upon the instruments in the
cockpit. =,
"Grieve, who is not thought as
experienced pilot as Hawker, will
have to relieve the latter at the
wheel when WEAKNESS overcomes
Hawker.
"Don't gather from these remarks
that | am unduly pessirnistic. | am
only setting forth the manifest dit
ficulties and / believe Hawker's
i chances are most hopeful. In tact,
I see no reason why, before mid
summer three or four transatlan-
tic flights should not have been
achieved.
Il believe that one OF ootn Oh lne
admiralty's newest and greatest afr
ships-the R-33 and R-34-will Sue
coed in the initial attempt"
Expects Success.
C. Handley Page, the inventor,
said to Universal Service tonight:
Il expect the first flyer starting
from Newfoundland will successful
Nv cross if the weather is in any
degree favorable, but he must make
the trip within "a hours, because he
is unable to rely on continuous en-
CINE performances above that.
1.-THE rivalry between British and
American flyers will develop an in
teresting sidelght, namely the rela-
tive values of the Rolls-Royee
and Liberty engines. All Brit
ish entrants are equipped with Rolls
Royce engines, while all Americans
have Liberty motors. The trans
atlantic passage never will be Sc
cure until airplanes are equipped
with sufficient engines to permit one
being cut out at any time"