The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1928-01-09

of which both Georgia and Alabama
have their share.
had been warned before leaving
the field that the airline course to
Texas was over some Of the worst
flying country in the South and
had been advised to take either q
northern course directly to Min
nesota or to follow the Gulf Of
Mexico. This advice served to ere.
ate desire to find out what the
worst flying country in the south"
looked like. ! had great deal Of
confidence In my Jenny with its
powerful OX-5 engine. and 1t
seemed absurd to me at that time
to detour by airplane. Consequently.
i laid my route In the most direct
line possible to conform with my
limited cruising range with ~
gallons OF fuel.
The flight to Montgomery was
uneventfuI. landed at the Army
field there before noon filled the
fuel tanks ana took of again for
Meridian, Miss.
/ arrived over Meridian in late
afternoon and for the first time
was faced with the problem OF
finding suitable field and land
ing In It.
4 glance nearly everything nee
essary to know about q landing
field. He can tell its size, the
condition or the ground, height Of
grass or weeds, whether there are
any rocks holes, posts or bitches in
the way. ii the land Is rough and
rolling or flat and smooth; in short
whether the field is suitable to
land in or IL 1t would be advisable
TO look for another and better one.
In fact the success of a barn-storm-
ing pilot of the old days was meas
ured to q large extent by his art.
fuIness in the choice Of fields from
which to operate.
Often. in case Of motor failure,
the safety of his passengers, him.
self and his ship depended upon
his alertness in choosing the best
available landing place and his
ability in maneuvering the plane
into it. If his motor failure was
only partial or at high altitude,
time was not 90 essential, as q
plane can glide a great distance,
either with q motor which only
"revs'' down a couple of hundred
r. p. M. or without any assistance
from the engine at all.
The average wartime machine
could glide at least five times its
height, which meant that IL it was
five thousand feet above the ground
the pilot could pick a field to land
in five miles away with safety; but
il the failure was soon after the
take.off then instant decision and
immediate action was necessary.
Up In the Air
An. amateur, on the other hand
has not overcome the strangeness
of altitude, and the ground below
looks entirely different than 1t does
from the air. although there is not
the sensation, in an airplane, Of
looking down as from a high build.
ing. Hills appear as flat country,
boulders and bitches are invisible
sizes are deceptive and marshes APP
pear as solid grassland. The stu
dent has not the background of
experience SO essential to the sue.
cessful pilot. yet his only method of
learning lies in his own initiative
In U1SClIH6 ana SCL VICE
conditions.
There was no regular airport in
Meridian in 1923, and few fields
available for reasonably safe
landing. After half hours search
/ decided on the largest pasture
could see, made the best kind of a
short field landing l knew how
by coming down just over the tree
tops, with the engine wide open,
to the edge Of the field, then cut.
ting the gun and allowing the ship
to slow down to its landing speed.
This method brings the plane in
with tremendous velocity and re-
quires a much larger landing field
than is necessary. but until the
pilot has flown long enough to have
the feel of his ship 1t is far safer
to come In fast than too slow.
1t had been raining at Meridian
and the field was a little soft, SO
that when my Jenny" finally did
settle to the ground 1t had a very
HUNDREDS or
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