Evening star., 1927-11-05
FLYING WITH GEN. PATRICK
BY MAJ GEN. NJ. ". PATRttk.
Chief of the ArmT Air Corps.
The Advancement of aviation.

n
| December il next will mark the
tventy-fourth anniversary of the birth
| of aviation, for on that day in 1903 the
famous Wright brothers were the first
to fly in an airplane propelled through
the air by it's own power. What tre-
mendous advance has been made in
the science of aviation in this brief
7pan of Il quarter of a century. Avia'
ton has become n p..ent factor in
both peace and war. Its amazing
achievements OF late have virtually
eliminated conservative thought on
aviation future possibilities.
The mart the airplane played in the
World War. and subsequent develop
ments in military airplane design since
fhat time. has convinced every one of
the fact that no war of the future can
be successfully waged without air
power: that the country lacking this
essential would be entirely at the
mercy of an enemy equipped with an
adequate air force. The science or
war has undergone many changes with
the advent of the military 3irplane,
| and the various components Of an
Il .
find it a most valuable and indis-
nensable ally. The feeling of security
from invasion and attack which may
have been harbored by virtue of dis
tance between countries. and which
may have folfnd justification in years
past. is now no longer entertained by
thinking men,
Planes Influence i'm Peace Time.
As mighty as the airplane has
proved itself in war, its influence IN
peace time pursuits has been many
times more powerful. The alrplane
has revolutionized the transportation
problem Distance has been annihi
lated. oceans have been crossed by air.
continents spanned and. with the eN-
ception OF the South Pole, there is
hardly any locality In the wide world
where. the hum of the airplane engine
overhead has not been heard. Avia-
ton has brought the countries of the
world into closer relation with one
another.
Let Us briefly summarize some of
the startling developments in the. air
plane itself. The first airplane flight
by OrviIe Wright lasted but II sec
onds Last Summer two German aNia.
tors took the sir in an endeavor to es-
tabish new endurance record. They
succeeded and landed after circling
around in the either for a trifie over
81 hours.
Along in 1908 and 1909 the speed of
the airplane built by the Wright
brothers averaged about 40 miles an
hour. In the Schneider Cup race re-
Gently held in Venice. Italy, a British
aviator. plotting "A seapiane, averaged
speed of asl 669 miles an hour. Thus
within a span of two decades the speed
of an airplane has increased seven
fold. 1t :s not unreasonable to as.
sumo that this same airplane. ira MS
formed into land plane. and hence
offering less head resistance, could
average a speed of ) miles a minute.
Army's First Acquisition.
The first airpiane secured by the
United States Army was powered with
four-cylinder engine. developing %
horsepower. Several years ago there
was assembled at Dayton, Ohio. an eX-
perimental bombing plane, equipped
with six Liberty engines, which de-
yeloped over 2 400 horsepower This
huge leviathan of the air was success
fully flown on a number of occasions
ard several world records were estab-
iished with it in the matter Of speed,
altitude and duratio carrying a use.
ful load
The world is well acquainted with
the several long distance nonstop
fights made during the past Summer
and with the navigation instruments
and other aids 10 flying, which have
tended TO eliminate the uncertainties
which prevailed In the past in connec.
tion with flights over localities devoid
of landmarks.
To outline in detail the many &C.
complishments Of the arplane in civil
pursuits would be 2 Iaborious task
Mention is made. however, of some of
| the most outstanding ones. In agri-
culture the airplane has eased the
| burden Of the cotton planter and the
farmer sowing wheat and alfalfa
crops. Using the airplane 10 spray
poison powder over cotton and alfalfa
fields has opened up opportunities for
aSricuiiurists TO insure their crops
against the ravages Of parasitic in.
Sects with a minimum Of time, la bor
and. expense, Experiments conducted
in recent years of equipping airplanes
with gelanti-coVered glass slides and
flying them through various air cur
rents to catch wheat rust germs have
ena bled agricultural officials to trace
the source Of these germs and to in
stltufn measures TO eradicate their
breeding places. II is safe To say that
! in a few years wheat farmers will en-.
JOY immunity from the ravages Of a
wheat destroying parasite which
caused them much grief in the past.
In Hawaii the 'airpla ne was employed
as the means Of scattering tree seeds
over stretch of territory almost i'm.
possible TO coVer on foot.