Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-03-23
LINDBERCH SEES GLIDING
AS BIG AID TO AVIATION
Low Cost and Ease of Operation Will
Place MOtOrless Planes Within
Reach of Large Market
BY COL. CHARLES A. LINDBERGH.

SllQcI UHGllS d IlCW 4tCA0 4OL
aeronautical development It
places flying within the reach
4 of the great majority of peo-
pie who never expect to be-
come professional aviators and cannot
afford the time and money required to
learn TO fly and operate power plane
of the present-day type. Due to the
low cost and ease of operation, the
glider and power glider reach larger
market than the service type of air
plane. They viii probably become one
Of the most important factors in pri-
mary training and the development of
flying activity in the future.
The effect of aviation upon life In
general increases with every new de-
velopment and application of its uses.
Each year 1t has a more direct bearing
upon the business and private life of
the average citizen. Regardless of any,
thing that may be said, or of temporary
advances or difficulties it will progress
almost exactly in proportion to its APP
plication in our daily life. Every new
use for the airplane increases our fly
ing activity. If we could fold the wings
of a plane and drive it through city
traffic to our Office door, then the pres
ent type of automobile would disappear
almost entirely. Aircraft production
would change from a few thousand to
several million per year and q person
who could not fly would be the ex-
ception.
Gliding activity win bring sub
Stantial advance in the Importance of
aviation. It viii form a means of
training for thousands of pilots from
school age up, and in training them it
Will create a much larger market for
power planes. More pilots mean more
men and women who will use flying
as a part of their daily lives. More
flying activity precedes higher produc-
ton, together with improved machines,
lower prices and a greater number Of
ways in which planes can be used
economically.
Teaching by Towing.
Glider flying is comparatively safe
as sport or as a method of flying
training: Il the beginner is under the
supervision of a competent instructor
while he is obtaining his initial ex-
perience. The greatest danger lies in
homemade gliders which are not prop
erly constructed and in inexperienced
attempts to tow them behind motor
cars. Accidents which are certain to
happen due to structural failure and
improper design IN these machines
should not lead any one to believe that
gliding is dangerous occupation.
The tow method of teaching glider
flying allows the student to become ac-
customed to his controls at such low
speeds that it Is hardly possible for him
to get into serious difficulty. To begin
with, he has only two control levers to
handle. Every maneuver is made by
manipulating these two levers. There is
no other mechanism to think about.
The student is not taken into the air.
Immediately. He is first towed back and
forth across the field at 10 or is miles
an hour while he becomes accustomed to
steering. This eliminates one Of the
controls and allows his entire attention
to be devoted to the rudder alone. Later
the towing car Is driven q little faster
and the student is able to raise the tail
OF the glider. He still is unable to raise
the machine from the ground, but he
can control the angle OF the wings by
raising or lowering the tail In this way
he accustoms himself to controlling the
glider in everything but banking before
leaving the ground or going more than
IS or 20 miles an hour.
Flies Close to Ground.
After this preliminary work, which
should not require more than two or
three hours, the student Is towed at a
speed that viii allow him to ny about
dve feet above the ground, 20 to 80 miles
an hour. At this altitude he can learn
to land properly and completely master
his controls. If he makes an error the
tow car is slowed down or the tow rope
trlpped, and the weight of the glider is
so light that it will settle to earth with
out damage even though the controls are
not properly manipulated. AS the stuL
dent becomes more adept he may climb
70 hundred meters or more before
cutting loose from the tow rope.
:. 1t Is short step from the glider to
the power plane. A glider reinforced
by small engine and propeller is call
ed power glider and 1t is difficult to
oiferentiate between a power glider and
a light airplane. The student who takes
his primary training on a glider has the
advantage OF knowing how to maneuver
without motor power and will have a
inner feel of his plane than the one who
mas always had powerful engine to pull
him out of difficulty.
The Principle of Soaring Flight.
The soaring glider or sailplane diff
1ers from the training type in that 1t
Is OF lighter construction and better
streamlined. The present American
record holder has a span Of so feet,
weighs less than ITS pounds and, with
q l6O-pound pilot, has a wing loading
OF about 1l2 pounds per square foot.
Soaring gliders have remained aloft on
wind velocities of less than 10 miles
an hour. Being light in weight, they
W
AS sport soaring takes second place
TO none It is not difficult for the
amateur to learn, yet to take advantage
OF every ascending current requires long
experience and a great amount Of skill.
Soaring In the air might well be COM
pared to sailing on the water; the rudi-
mentS OF either may be learned within
q few hours, yet lifetime might be
devoted to their study.
The principle of soaring fight is
the same for glider or buzzard. 1t is
dependent on rising currents of air.
These currents may be formed by wind
passing over a hill or they may be
due to heated air over a hot field or
desert. On the windward side Of hill
or mountain range there is an ascend
ing current; on the lee side 1t Is de-
Scending Air is ascending over warm
areas such as dry fields, cities and
deserts. and descending over green
fields, forests and bodies of water. All
of these conditions and many others
must be taken into consideration by
the glider pilot.
Hills Offer Best Conditions.
The best conditions for soaring are
found around cliffs and hills which lie
at right angles to the prevailing wind.
In high wind velocitieS it is possible to
maintain soaring flight on the wind
ward SIDE Of almost any obstruction,
but in lower velocitieS 1t is necessary
to have more ideal conditions. A wind
passing over a line of hills will permit
soaring up and down their entire
length. In good velocities the glider
can soar several hundred feet above
the crest.
The efficiency of the glider depends
very largely upon its speed and gliding
angle. To remain aloft the glider must
be in an ascending current, which is
carrying it up at at least the same