Evening star., 1924-06-22
LISTENERS.1N HEAR
PLANE TALK TO LAND
Aircraft, 4,Co0 Feet Up, Carries on
Conversation Here
With WRC.
TEST rs NEW DEPARTURE
Lieuts. Koontz, Bruner and Wright
in Demonstrat ton.

A new epoch was written into
radios brief but rapid developing
history last night, when two-way
conversation between an observer in
an airplane flying over Washington
at an altitude of 1000 feet and Lieut..
L. l.. koontz of the Army air service.
sitting in the studio of WRC. was
picked up on an antenna atop the
Tivoli Theater and rcbroadcast
through the station Of the Radio
Corporation of America to thousands
of radio fans Despite unusually
heavy static, which periodically made
the conversation virtually inaudible,
the rebroadca sting test-the first
ever conducted between night
flying airplane and a radio station
was distinctly success.
Picks Up Plane.
Hello, Wright take ii for grant
ed that you're in the air. TO ahead.
Lieut. koontzs opening signal flashed
to the observer i'll the plane, which
was then headed in the direction OF
Alexandria. Va
Lieut.. Wright replied by giving the
position of the ship and describing
some of his observations from the air.
After the plane had circled over
Alexandra and was headed back to
Washington, Lieut.. koontz told the
observer that some enthusiasts at
S3rd and Mckinley streets had planned
to set off flare as the plane neared
Chevy Chase and urged him to look
for the signal.
Talk Is Rebroadcast.
The two-Way conversation at first
was continued about twenty minutes,
both the broadcasting station and the
plane transmitting on wave band of
469 meters.
The difficult feat of rebroadcasting
then was successfully conducted.
Lieut.. Wright in the plane began
transmitting on $50 meters-a wave
band out of range of the average ra-
dio receiving set The signals were
picked up on the special antenna and
receiving set on top of the TlVoil
Theater, opposite WRC. and rebroad-
cast from the radio station on wave
length of 469 meters.
Lieut.. Wright kept up a constant
conversation, interspersing his de-
scription of the varying position OF
the plane with facetious remarks
about the weather in the clouds
which at the time. were heavy with
rain. On one occasion, Lieut.. Wright
told the sweltering radio fans on
terra frma that it was cold up
here" that if he did not come down
soon he would have to build fire
to keep warm. (The radio audience
however, was not awars that Lieut.
Wright wore d golf suit)
Plane IL Lighted.
The plane, high in the clouds, bu
discernahle at all times while oVel
the city, was picturesque in the sky
with a green light on the lower til
of its right wing, a red light on the
lower tip of it's left wing, and a
white light on its rudder. which
formed a perfect triangle of light
Hundreds of persons on street cor
ners, roofteps and other points OF
vantage viewed the ship on it's night
course.
After circling the city several
times, the plane landed at Boiling
Field at 1906 O'Clock. completing the
most extensive night cruise ever
taken over Washington by an air
craft. In landing, the plane mar
rowly averted turning on its nose
when it struck sand pile. Maj
Beverley, flight surgeon at the field
and an ambulance, with the motor
tdling, were standing ready, awaiting
an emergency which was anticipated
in view of the difficulty in landing
at night, coupled with Lieut.
Burners unfamiliarity with the land
ing field. Preliminary to landing the
pilot shot two pistol lights, followed
by several parachute flares in order
to definitely ascertain his location.
Up 1000 Feet.
During the planes course over the
city it flew almost continually at ar
altitude of 1000 feet. Once Lieut.
Bruner shot the ship up to 5000 feet
but became submerged in the heavy
rain clouds and descended to the
lower altitude.
Walter Tesch, chief engineer al
WRC, had charge of the rebroadcast-
ing feat. A special antenna, erected
on the TiVoli at right angles to the
one on the towers at WRC, was useC
to pick up the 750meter signals
transmitted from the plane. The re-
ceiving set on the theater was of the
simple honeycomb inductance type
A double wave trap also was EN-.
ployed to eliminate the signals which
were being transmitted from WRC a.
the time on the 469meter band.
Signals Are AnpIifed.
AS the 75o-meter signals were
picked up on the special set on the
Tiyoli, they were amplified and
flashed across the street to the broad
casting room of WRC and again am.
plified before being rebroadcast The
transmitter used on the plane was
rated at a power of 100 watts and
embodied all modern radio equipment
The receiver on the plane was of the
superheterodyne type.
After landing, Lieut. Wright sair
that the static was so heavy that h,
could barely hear the signals broad
cast by Lieut.. Koontz from wRC
Lieut. koontz also found il Difficult
at times to hear Lieut.. Wright's voice
due to the atmospheric disturbances
The tWo-Way conversation test wa,
heard by broadcast listeners in Mary
land and Virginia, as well as those il
Washington. One fan in Brandywine
Md, called WRC on the long-distanc
telephone to tell the officials that tn
signals were coming in fine"
MESSAGE FROM PLANE.