The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1919-06-18
A|RPLANE RADIO AND
COMMANDED FLYING
Prio to Entry Into War the Army
Had Devoted Much Attention to
Development.


Previous to the entry OF the United
States into the great war. the problem
OF airplane radio development had
received considerable attention from
the army 1t was in August. 1910.
the first wireless transmission from
airplanes was made. Two months
later, at Belmont Park. l.. I. an audi
ence of thousands witnessed the spec
tacle of eleven monoplanes in flight
This spectacle Of eleven monoplanes
grouped in a single fight presented at
once to the military minds of army
I officers present vision of the great
engine of war of the future, the air
| fleet BY giving its commander a
voice. military tactics and naval tao
tics could be carried into the air.
applied and extended into three d.
mansions without limit. With wire
less telegraphy already a fact. and
wireless telephony almost a fact. the
path which lay before these officers
was clear.
In the years following, while the
worlds attention was attracted TO
development of the art Of flying and
development Of the design of aircraft.
the development Of the airplane radio
was carried on through series of ac-
plishments very interesting to the
military minds engaged thereon.
These may be summed up az follows:
1911. Message transmitted from air
plane to ground by wireless telegraph
| over a distance of two miles:
1912, This distance increased to
| fifty miles;
1915, Program OF development de-
finitely begun at the aviation school
at San Diego Cal; airfan type of
driving the wireless power plant on
| fhe airnfa ~ tho n n m i'll ny n ri nj
developed and adopted: dictha phone
taken into the air, record Of speech
made in flight in the noise of the
m otor. the record studied. and officers
convinced the idea of the telephone
was entirely practical.
| 1916, Radio telegraph transmission
| from an airplane successful over 14o
miles of distance. movements of air
planes flying on cross-country tests
| from San Diego to Los Angeles and
! return reported to the commanding
officer of the school by radio from one
OF the airplane means devised for re-
| ceiving wireless messages in the rear
| OF the otor of the airplane in flight;
: ra9s, messages transmitted between
| airplanes in flight; the lead weight
! on the end OF the trailing antenna
eliminated. thus permitting airplanes
to fly in close formation without dan
| ger OIL aCC1GenL from same, dlTDIane
radio telephone constructed.
| 1917, January and February. Eff
cheney Of the airplane radio telegraph
| greatly improved. the human voice
transmitted by radio telephone from
airplane to ground.
The trained military air force com
| manded by the voice OF it's com n1ander
and the airplane radio telegraph for
observers use in reporting his ohser-
vations were the definite goals sought.
Contemporaneous with this develop
ment was the commercial development
Of the radio telephone for ground and
ship use conducted by engineers #
the American Telephone and Tcle-
graph company This development.
eliminated In a successful test of
long range radio telephone transmits
sion from the naval radio station at
| Arlington to stations thousands OF
miles nway.
In May, 1917 stems were taken to
combine the experience OF these com
mercial engineers who had developed
the ground wireless telephone and
those OF the army who had been do
v1loping the airplane wireless. This
was done with n view to PRODUCING an
airplane radio telephone in practical
form in the shortest possible time.
which would give a voice to the com
mander Of the air fleet The problem
was given TO the aforementioned en-
} rineers and an aviation oflcer who
had been conducting the army devel
opment was detailed to bring to them
the benefit OF his experience and the
viewpoint of the trained military man
and aviator. Six weeks later the air
plane telephone was fact. Further
development continued. informal dem
orstrations were given high officia Is
from ime to time, and In October,
1917 a long range test was made of
the apparatus
In this test telephone commune
cation was carried on between air
planes in flight up to twenty-five miles
apart and from airplane to ground
up to distance of forty five miles.
Reports of the American apparatus
we're received by American officers
abb cad with skepticism. Accordingly
the same aviation officer who had
been working with the scientists on
this rob,vln was sent abroad with all
available apparatus.
Upon arrival there, comparative
tests of the American and the foreign
apparatus were made, demonstrations
given ana a definite airplane radio
program determined upon. This pro-
gram was outlined by cable 20 the
| nIlGO states anu sent complete IN de-
tail by the officer who had brought
the American apparatus and conduct
ed the demonstrations abroad.
II In the meantime the development
in the United States had continued and
orders We're placed for the apparatus
in quantities. In February, 1918, con-
ferences were held at Dayton, Ohio,
at which officers returning from
abroad representing radio, arm ament,
heated clothing and other airplane
accessories. presented the air pro-
gram of their several specialties for
| consideration in connection with the
| equipment of airplanes and the
mounting of same.
The development OF voice COM
manded flying proper was definitely
begun at Gerstner Field, La. in May,
1915 An officer familiar with mill
! tary tactics. aviation and airplane
radio was sent to that field for the
definite purpose OF placing in the air
a fleet drilled and manoeuvred by
the voice of its commander.
| Tentative drill regulations were
| worked out step by step progressively