Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1919-03-16
EDDIE R|CKENBACKER
TELLS HIS OWN STORY
Famous American Ace Gives Init
mate Account Of His Expert
cnCcs I'm War in Air.
RACING PRACTICE VALUABLE
""t His Chance to Try as Fighting
Piiot by Proving lie Was Not an
Indispensable Feature OF Training
Field at Issoudun.
hi CAPTAIN EDWARD Y. HICKEN-
hacker, ID. -. &.

Nh at lSSOuuuh.
III CAPTAIN EDWARD Y. HICKEN-
BAtKEH. ID. y. g..
IN officer who had the Joo Of giving
preliminary examinations TO the young
men who wanted 10 fly once complained
~ me mat two answers to his we'll
meant questions got to be eNaapcrat-
inSIy common.
me first was TO the effect that the
candidate didp't know anything about
aviation, but had always dreamed OF
doing ii. The second came when he
vas asked IL he knew the names OF
tEntins airplancs Owe" n France.
Usually. according 10 this officer M,
said Eddie Rickcnbacker' and stopped
The examiner was sure IL proved
lht the average American youth read
ne sporting page OF the newspaper
racing automobile drivers name
caught his attention even In the war
news and stuck, ana | got the benefit.
mad been q baseball player IL
would nave been the same way
mention the matter here because.
as II happens when started in | was
ne nose boys knew nothing OF
aviation and had only dreamed Of IL
went over to France as a ciiaur:
ieur. after trying 70 get up ii flying
uh't "hich the government refused
;" ne Interested IN for reasons that
now see we're entirely good. though
uid not see II 30 clearly then. once
over there. would NOT lie; them res,
Until they gave me a licutenant's com
mission and sent m. to Tours 20 see if
! could learn TO iy
PRACTICE IN DRIVING
RACING CAR VALUABLE
learned pretty fast. Long practice
~ IRVING racing at 100 miles
an nour or so gives hrst-cIass train
hE IN control and in judging distances
81 hiEh speed. and helps tremendously
IN getting motor sense, which is ratbc,
nv I'tI OF your engine than he. 4
OF lit thing you gc, through your
~|n.S ana nerves rather than simply
Hohr ears. All this is "A mart of The
pnysicaI equipment OF handling air
plane. and il makes lot OF differ
enc. II the fellow with The stack knows
now 10 make a turn at-lO0 rnil.s an
hour. or TO allow for passing another
fellow at, twice that. The proof OF this
thht after FIVE and a half hours Qua!
n Tnh an instructor they let me solo.
Bui because ] was good mechanic
nhu Knew about motors they sent me
!ssoudun TO be engineer officer. Be
ing engineer officer: | never had any
cording 10 rulr but | took W. a shin
whenever l could and learned that
way.
ms FIRST I'APEHIENCE
IN TRYING TAI. SPIN
remember when though, It vas
tine 20 Try willie or tail spin. I
rh." what | was supposed TO do
, hnsw you put the sick over and
seen anybody du il. | went up about
1000 feet got of some distance from
me held and flew around there for
every Bit OF thirty minutes irving IN
get up my nerve TO try the trick. bur
TOO scared to begin
1T last | said TO myself. What's
the matter with YOU; You've go, TO do
ms. and threw the stick. She went
INTO the spin all right, but | had her
bach TO neutral after just on. whirl
ana l tell you ! WAS glad when she
la, I
took twenty minutes TO make up nv
nina 10 try again. II was only on
me 'hird day that ] went nt the job
win any confidence and let her do
real spin
Tina; is stu more or less the way
icel about doing new stunt. after
all the flying have done at the front
since When you try a new thing.
you are never quite certain how the
machine will behave, and though
ability 10 get out Of anything as long
as you have the altitude. there is =
sort OF hesitation both in the ma
crime and in you. The trouble is
You do not know what the strains
VIII be on either
MANY INSTRUCTORS DID
WORK BUT MISSED CREDIT
The next thing was 10 get away
rom issoudum. The men who had
instructors know how hard II is TO get
away from field when they've got
YOU tied down 10 job there. Those
fellows are the ones that have nv
sympathy, because they have done
the work and missed the credit.
They have staid home-sind not
ticularly hot place down in Texas.
most likely-staid there and made
aces when they were themselves the
st stun OF which aces are made, and
OF them. coming back here now with
rs many ribbons and decorations
and Huns to their credit as any OF MS
Instead, they have stuck on the job
full Of dangers and responsibilities
with little chance OF promotion and
none OF lighting ~ of fame. And,
iainly they were stuck. Because
pilots had TO be trained in hurry. a
very large number OF pilots. and the
very best men We're none too good
for the task of training them
! was not an instructor over there al
lssoudun. But even an engineer
be too good. do not think was
still. when asked to go to the front
the c. o. said could not be spared.
So eonspired with the medical
but | did. got myself sent to the
hospital for two weeks and at the
end of that time | went to the c. o.
and told him that it had been proved
cause the other fellow had done the
job better than had. He could not
deny 1t and he let me go.
GOT HIS CHANCE TO
TRY AS FIGHTING PILOT
That gave me my chance to try my
luck AS IL lighting pilot. I have had
extraordinarily good luck Every man
who has been flying for any length of
time at the front and is still alive
has had good luck. But fighting i'm
the air is not sport. 1t is scientific
murder. The men who have learned
their trade go at it that way. and as
long as they do go at it that way
they have an excellent chance to ac-
emulate victories and survive never
theless. The experienced lighting
pilot does not take unnecessary risks.
His business is to shoot down enemy
planes. not to get shot down. His
trained eye and hand and Judgment
are as much part of his armament
hig chine nd "a,