The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1928-06-21
CHAPTER XVIII

CdAFlER AN1ll
Altogether, about 81 lives have
been saved by parachutes in Gov
eminent service. In every instance
the jump took place because of
fog, engine failure while fly
ing over unfavorable country, col.
lision of planes or other very def.
mite emergencies. They say in the
service that any flyer who jumps
to save his life becomes a member
pf the Caterpillar Club" This is
because the parachute is made ell
tirely of silk, and silk comes from
caterpillars. All the 81 members
of this club feel that their lives
have been saved by the silkwor:n
caterpillar!
There is a saying in the service
about the parachute: eff you need
it and haven't got it, you'll never
need it again." That just about
sums up its value to aviation.
For two of the last days we were
on tactical maneuvers with the
other branches. Half of our num-
Der were assigned to defend the
bombers and observation planes,
while the other half attacked them.
When we met, a lively combat en-
sued and the air would be full of
pursuit planes in every conceivable
position each trying to get on the
tail of an enemy plane without be
ing first shot down itself.
AT night in the barracks we
would argue about which side won
the war, but whenever one of us
would demonstrate to the enemy
that he had been shot down in bat
tie, another would interpose the
claim that he had put the at
lacking ship out of commission sew
eral minutes previous to the COM
bat.
When graduation day arrived
eighteen of us remained of the one
hundred and four cadets who start
ed the course at Brooks year be-
fore. We were presented with our
wings and commissioned second
lieutenants in the Air Service Re-
serve Corps. That night we gave
a farewell dinner in San Antonio
and for the last time assembled to-
gether.
The next day we departed from
Kelly.
went by rail to st. Louis and
took an o. KS Standard out for a
transforming trip in Illinois, Mis-
souri, and Iowa. The Post Office
Department had just advertised a
number of contract air mail routes
for bid, one of which was between
st. Louis and Chicago by way of
Springfield, l.. 1 decided to barn
storm around the country until it
was determined which bidder would
be assigned the contract. The Rob-
ertson Aircraft Corp. had placed a
bid and offered me the position of
chief pilot if they were successful
in getting the contract.
After returning from Iowa
flew on several flying circus dates
and made a few short cross-coun-
try flights to nearby cities.
On June second, while testing a
commercial plane built at Lambert
Field, l was forced to make a sec
ond emergency jump. had flown
the ship for a few minutes the
previous week and on this occasion
was testing it for various maneu-
vers. had completed everything
except tailspins, but when l at
tempted right spin the plane re-
fused even to start, so after a Sec
ond attempt with the same result
/ gave that up and tried to the
left. The ship fell in easily and
when / reversed the controls after
a half turn, came out at once.
/ then put it into a second left
spin and held the controls in a
spinning position during two com
plete turns. When / reversed them
they had no apparent effect and US
ing the engine was of no assistance.
After trying for fifteen hundred
feet to bring the ship out of the
spin, rolled over the right side of
the cockpit, and, since I had jumped
only about three hundred and fifty
feet above the ground, l pulled the
rip cord as soon as the stabilizer
had passed.
The chute opened quickly, but
while it was functioning had fall
len faster than the spinning ship.
On it's next revolution the plane
was headed directly towards the
chute. How close it had passed will
never be known, for the risers,
leading up from my harness were
twisted and swung me around as
the ship passed. However, less than
twenty-five feet interviewed he.
tween the wing and my parachute.
1 watched the plane crash in a
grainfield and turned my attention
to landing. "A strong wind was
drifting me towards row of high