Evening star., 1925-11-30


fins" The Navy officer said he had
examined great many DH ships
from 1919 to 1929. and after numcr.
Gus objections from Mr.. Reid was
permitted to testify that 1" had not
seen any cases of serious deteriora-
ton of the DH planes in storage.
Ships are Repainted.
lie said il often was necessary TO re
veneer the fusilage and repaint the
framework, and that usually improve
ments We're introduced In ships being
overhauled so that they were actually
in better condition when they We're re
issued than previously.
Comdr. Richardson revealed that il
was he who recommended the use of
the Looming amphibian planes for the
Macmillan party. He said he became
officially interested In these ships in
1879 and saw them under construction
at the factory. He defended their use
in The Arctic expedition. pointing out
that their hulS were constructed from
sheet duralumin over wooden frames.
with special longitudinal structural
members and outside pattens. He
said that this construction made them
much safer for use in ice-infested
regions than the ordinary planes with
wooden hulls. lie told of having op-
Grated wooden hulled Scaplanes in
the Delaware River when II was filed
with mushy Ice and cited bu, one
instance OF hull being damaged.
Studied Ship Carefully.
over the objection 0: Mr.. Reid
Comdr. Richardson explained that he
advised the selection Of the Looming
ships for the Arctic trip only after
he had given due consideration of all
their qualities. including their ability
IN landing on land or water and their
provisions for excellent visibility for
the pilot. He added that a very en-
thusiastic report regarding these
planes had been received by Admiral
Moffet from the inventor. Mr.. Loen.
ing. and all these matters were taken
into consideration in making the Sc
lection
Mr.. Reid examined the report and
declared he had no objection TO its be
ing admitted as evidence
Did the report influence you in rec
onmendinS the plane for the Arctic?''
asked Maj. Gulliou.
Yes. " replied Comdr. Richardson.
Was ii favorable or unfavorable?"
Mr.. Reid objected. declaring the report
showed the plane was designed for use
In Hawaii and Panama "He would
like to shove it through as being good
for the Arctic region" added the de
fense counsel
Maj. Gullion then withdrew the
question.
Gomdr. Richardson detailed the
Navy Department experiences with
amphtbian type planes. which. he said.
dated back TO 1914. AS the amphibian
" pc. inhis opinion is the only one
suited Tor Arctic work. giving the
dual advantage of landing on ground.
ice or In the water, he said he would
recommend that it again be sent on
such an expedition.
Quizzed on Accident
The questioning changed 10 an acci.
dent that occurred TO a similar type
Looming amphibian at the Army Test
station In Dayton Ohio, in which the
stabilizer collapsed in ordinary flight.
Comdr. Richardson said he received
report from the Army that a fitting
had failetl and half the horizontal stab.
lllzer had collapsed. On receiving
his report, he testified. he examined
the plane and determined what tvpe
Or alteration or repair should be made.
L his information was sent to the ma
val aviation section of the NIacAiiIlan
d
The message was produced, but was
IN code, and was not given an exact
translation. Comdr. Richardson, how
ever, summarized the message TO the
erect that the fitting had failed under
vibration in normal flight and sug.
eested that the anchorage fitting for
the beam be increased to certain di-
tnensions. He also cautioned the avia-
tion detail to keep d careful watch on
the plane before each flight. The
of the fitting or widening
OF II might help. he also suggested.
Only limited facilities for repair were
with the expedition. the witness added,
Reid Objects to Query.
When the examination was turned
to the PN9 and the type of plane
Amundsen used on his Polar dash a
lenethy argument ensued due to Mr..
Reid's objections. The witness admit
ted his knowledge of the Dornier-JVal
was obtained from the catalogue of
the manufacturers and various for
elSn and American publications. He
was unable to give a comparison Of
the two planes. Col Mitchell in his
direct testimony, declared the Dor.
nfer-Wal was far superior to the
PN-9.
The subject then turned to racing
planes, and Maj. Gullion drew from
the witness, after much difficulty
owing to numerous objections by the
defense. that it Is not dangerous to
use hiGh-speed racer more than once
Recalling the transatlantic flight
or 1919. in which the witness took
part, Maj. Gullion questioned him on
the plans for guardships. Comdr.
Richardson said these vessels were
placed r-t nd
planes were lost, despite this short
distance between stations.
Says Own Plane Failed.
Turned over to Mr.. Reid for cross
examination. Comdr. Richardson said
the plane which he piloted, the NC-3
was forced down in the Atlantic 40
miles southwest of Horta, Azores, and
was on the water 55 hours while trv.
ing to make port under it's own power,
which it finally succeeded In doing
he said his flight was a failure, but
the NC-4 made success by getting
to the end.
The witness then was subjected TO
a rapid fire of cross-examination on
racing planes, and when Mr.. Reid
asked him If racer was as good
the second year as in the first Com
missioner Richardson replied:
1T is ridiculous to think they could
be worn out after only 10 or 90 hours
in the air."
Mr.. Reid questioned the witness
on his first hand knowledge of flying
racing planes and competing in a
race, but the witness was unable to
give an expert answer, as he had
neither flown a high-speed plane nor
in a race. He agreed