The sun., 1919-04-28
NC PLANES LIMITED
TO AZORES ROUTE
Navy Filters Cannot Carry
Enough Fuel for Direct
Trip to Ireland.
WOULD HAVE TO DESCEND
NC-3 Fails to Rise From Water
With Heavy Load Under
Three Motors.

The reason the Navy aviators plan to
to fly across the Atlantic by way of
Newfoundland and the Azores rather
than by the direct 1900 mile route from
Newfoundland to 1reland-a reason
which no naval officer at the Rockaway
air station or at Washington will ad-
mit-is that the big NC type Of seaplane
cannot carry enough oil and gasolene
for its four motors for trip to the
British Isles direct.
This Is apparent from figures In the
possession of THE SUN, the reliability
of which Is vouched for by an aviation
expert who Is we'll acquainted with the
NC type. The figures Indicate that the
Night to the Azores Is feasible, but that
IL the Observation-Disclosures flight is at
tempted the NC planes must descend to
the surface of the ocean at least once to
replenish their fuel supply.
Commander John II. Towers, who Is In
charge OF the preparations for the flight,
tacitly admitted yesterday that he is
striving desperately for a greater range
of flight when he explained that a tryout
OF the NC-3 without propeller attached
20 one of her four engines was FOR the
purpose of testing her ability to rise with
q heavy load under only three of the
-FOUR S25 pound motors. The plane
failed to rise from the water in the test
Lifting Ability of NO Type.
Empty. but including her four engines
various mechanical installations and
water in her radiators, the NC boat--the
four of the type are practically alike
weighs about $4,000 pounds. The great
eset gross load. that Is. load including
her own weight, which she has been
able to life from the water Is 29,500
pounds. Therefore her useful lifting
ability is 1880 pounds. The weight Of
the crew of FIVE reduces this to 1850
pounds available for oil, gasolene. water.
food. navigating instruments, flares, SC
The four Liberty motors consume alto
gether about $50 pounds of fuel
roughly 100 gallons-an hour of opera
ton at rapid but not topmost speed.
To make a journey Of 1900 miles the
planes would of necessity fly at a speed
Of less than eighty miles an hour. and
possibly as low as seventy. 1t Is not
possible to fly at top speed-ninety-five
miles an hour in the case OF the NC
boats-because OF the heavy load car
ried. the necessity for preventing the
burning out of parts or other damage
to the engine. and the necessity for, trav-
.elllng at an economic rate OF speed in
order to use the least possible amount
of gasolenS
The NC-3 cast Of her moorings three
times yesterday afternoon, and her first
two flights, under the power OF four en-
gines, were successful. She was heavily
loaded. not only with gasolene, oil and
q crew OF eight men, but also with sand
ballast arranged in her hull. Despite
the load. she planed easily along the
water but in the take off, she re-
quired more than a minute of fast speed-
ing against the wind before she rose
from the waters of jamaica Bay. '--
On her last trip mechanics renewed
the propeller OF the front engine of the
tandem suspended over the hull In the
centre OF the ship. The NC-S skipped
over the water at n lively pace under
the blast OF the three propellers remain
Ing, but did not develop quite enough
kick to get off the water
In Air Only About Two Hours.
The NC-3 has now been in the air In
the course OF It's career OF less than n
week only about two hours During an
hour and half of this time. In a flight
made early last week one of the en-
gines refused to run on account OF car
buretor trouble. Apparently Commander
Towers Is satisfied as TO her ability to
make a nonstop flight of twenty hours
however.
1t Is practically certain that the Nc
boats will not start on the first leg of
the transocean flight until. the end of
this week or some time next week The
NC-4 will be completed within few
days, and the Nc-1 should follow her
within n day or SO more, p
The success OF The NC boats was due
TO the achievements Of the NC-l last
fall. At that time she was equipped
with only three motors, but now she has
four. on Novembe. ?. two days be-
fore the armistice, Comma nder Richard
son took the machine from Hampton
Roads TO Rockaway at a speed of seven
ty-one miles an hour. She has left the
water on three engines with a gross load
OF more than $4,000 pounds. on November
81 she startled the United States and the
rest Of the world by flying with fifty
one passengers on board.