Evening star., 1928-12-30

4 w NC OCOAl 1AA OROA AAA OAAAA
country. An autogiro or wind
mill" plane, as developed by Juan
de la Cierva, has been teSt-flowr
at Philadelphia and probably will
| be taken to various parts of the
country. The startling new Burn
ELI high speed monoplane, which
it is claimed, will carry 20 pas
SengerS at a cruising speed of 150
miles an hour and which may be
pushed to a maximum speed Of
ITS miles. is ready for test flights
Chance Vought has announced a
siX-pasSenger high-Speed plane.
The big Patrician transport and
the widely heralded Fokker quad
ruple motored 32-paSSenger mono
plane will be seen on the air.
ways.
Army Flyers to Be Busy.
The military aeronautics people
also contemplate a program of
widespread activity the next IL
months. The Army Air Corps has
ennounced plans for the greatest
demonstration of all branches of
military aerOnauticS ever held, in
cluding exhibitions in various
parts of the country, followed by
combat maneuverS involving all
available Army planes in the
country. Construction of the two
Navy 6,500,000-c cubic foot dirigi-
ble.s, each of which will carry five
pursuit planes in its hull, is to
begin soon.
The aeronauticS branch of the
Department of Commerce on Jan
uary l will begin the long awaited
rating of United States airportS,
placing the municipal landing
field for the first time upon a def
mite status as a public utility.
It is regarded as likely that during
the coming year some form of
airport traffic regulations will go
into effect at the more congeSted
aerial centerS. Chicago already
has been compelled to station a
traffic policeman at the municipal
airport to prevent collisions be-
tween incoming and outgoing
planes, so heavy has become the
traffic there.
The year also will bring, in all
probability, new aeronautical
legislation on the statute books
of the various States. There has
been considerable agitation for
adoption by the States of a uni
form code Of aviation laws and a
number of States have patterned
their laws after suggested
standard. So rapid has been the
growth of aviation, however, and
so complex the problems which
have arisen and which could not
have been foreSeen and provided
for by law few years ago, that
revision of many State codes is
as urgently needed.
Scientists are working with the
radio wave as possible means
of overcoming the fog menace.
The year undoubtedly will see
great strides made in the direc-
tion of an accurate, reliable radio
beacon service along the principal
airways, by means of which pilots
may fly blind" through the
denSeSt fog. The problem of land
ing in fog, one of the most serious
facing aeronautics today, is being
attacked by many able scientists.
The development of true altitude
meters, which work on the prin-
ciple of the rebounding radio
wave used in deep sea soundingS,
has been one of the outstanding
achievements of the aeronautical
laboratories recently. Further
work along this line will be con-
tinued during the new year. Other
scientists are working with fog
dispensing mediums and fog
piercing lights, but so far no en-
tirely practicable solution in this
direction seems to be in sight.
Weather Obstacles Overcome.
Aside from fogs, weather con-
ditions are becoming less serious
an obstacle to commercial aero
nauticS, as the result of intensive
studies of meteorological condi-
tionS, more accurate upper air
forecasts and vastly improved
methods of keeping pilots posted
on atmospheric changes ahead of
them while in flight. Equipped
with all of the aids which have
been pressed into service recently,
there is scant likelihood of any
pilot flying into even the most
sporadic storm without warning.
Although the year now closing.
eliminating in the celebration of
the twenty-fifth anniversary of
the first airplane flight, has been
the most remarkable in the his
tory of aeronauticS, next year,
the beginning of the second
quarter century of flight, probably
will make the achievements of
this year seem puny by compari-
son.