Catoctin clarion. [volume] (Mechanicstown, Md.) 1871-1940, 1919-08-21
FLYING UPSIDE
DOWN THRILLING
Becomes Dangerous Only When
Caught in Bank Close
to Earth.
SENSATION IS DESCRIBED
Pub Of Motor 10 80 Strong Aviator
Never Knows He Is Out Of Normal
Position Until He Is Able
to See the Ground. ..


New York.-Flying upside down in a
bank of clouds or fog, as Captain AL
cock and Lieutenant Brown found
themselves doing on their journey
across the ocean, IS not at all uncom
mon or particularly dangerous. Hun
dreds Of aviatOrs who We're serving on
the western front in the allied armies
experienced this sensation time and
again in both their scouting and bomb
ing work,
Acrobatic flyers think nothing Of it.
1t becomes dangerous only when they
are caught In Il bank close to earth.
As an American acrObatic flyer who
was serving in the British army on the
Flanders front explained to a New
York Herald man ut the beginning of
the last Belgian-BritiSh drive:
'It's az easy as falling off log"
He was dwelling romantically on the
beauties of flying around in cloud
bank
EVERY once in q WHILE" he ex-
planned, "when you are $4,000 or $4,000
feet up, yon will run into great Pile
vi lttNy ttouuS tiut tulI tltV "i''S
world into fairyland. 1t lies be-
fore you, great bail of downy, spark
ling mist. It looks almost real enough
for you to step right out of your ma
chine and walk around. Some of these
cloud banks stretch for miles, like
great white world. There are noun
tains, chasms, rivers, lakes and cam
yons running all through them.
Zoom Over the Top.
"Just as you come to the great
cloud you suddenly pull back the old
Joy stick and zoom down the other
side, perhaps into lake-that is, 1t
looks like lake. Then you come to
a succession of hills or mountains and
you go looming up and then down
like big roller coaster.
"Then you will run into great
break in the clouds just like cam
yon. The white. fleecy banks rise to
the right and left of you for hundreds
of feet, with the pure blue sky over
you and more white, glistening
clouds under you. For mile after mile
you will follow around in these high
walls, Just as clearly defined as the
walls Of the Grand canyon. Some
times you travel straight away for
miles; then you will come to a sharp
angular turn and shoot around it In
q vertical turn. 1t Is all like a dream
and no artist ever painted more al
Turing fantasy in white and blue.
Sometimes the canyon will close in
front of you and you dive straight into
the clouds or you may be going
around. Often you will follow around
until you lose all sense of direction or
balance. You think you will dive down
toward earth and see where you are.
You push over the JOY stick, but the
old bus does not answer-just keeps
on going and becoming more cranky
every moment. Then you know you
are flying upside down or perhaps with
your body almost horizontal, There is
just one thing to dO-let go of the
Joy stick and the old bus will tumble
out of the clouds. You may come out
finding your head straight down to-
ward the earth, or horizontal with it.
Then 1t Is an easy matter to fiatten
out and travel on.
Travelling Upside Down.
"You do not realize you are upside
down because you are fast in the ma
chine and the motor is roaring tre-
mendously and pulling hard right I'M
Ger you. There is no danger when fall
ing out of the clouds-after your first
tumble. 1t is the first that always
makes man wonder what has hap
rened to his machine, but as soon as
he Is out In the clear he realizes what
has occurred and he never forgets 1t,
with the result that he Is prepared
for the situation again at any time.
"All danger in this situation has
been practically eliminated now, for
they are making machines stronger and
stronger every day, and they seem to
be able to stand almost any shock or
test to which you can subject them"