Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-10-08
ERA OF ROBOT PILOTS DAWNS
AS TEST FLIGHT IS SUCCESS
Mechanical Flyer Guides
Loaded Commercial
Air Liner.
Active Service Results to
Determine Extension on
Coastal Route.
BY JOSEPH S. EDGERTON,
Aviation Editor Of The Star.

NEWARK AIRPORT, N. j., October
6,-What may prove to have been the
dawn of a new era in civil aeronauticS
was witnessed here late yesterday after
noon when, for the first time, COM
mercial air liner was flown by me-
chanical pilot.
While the human pilot sat up on the
back OF his seat, out of reach OF the
controls. the robot, sensitive to air con-
oitions beyond the range of any human,
wrote in the skies a new page in the
chronicles of the air.
Before the end of this week, accord
ing to those in charge of the destinies
of civil aviation's first robot, "he" will
60 into active service on Eastern Air
passing through the National Capital
from New York to Miami.
Use to Be Extended.
II the mechanical Ypilct proves sue
cessful in active service, under all va
rietieS of weather, on a scheduled pas
senger run. his" metallic brethren will
gradually begin to take their places at
the controls of other Eastern Air Trans
, port planes until robots are doing a
large part of the flying of every plane
on the line.
Though none of the aviation leaders
who witnessed the tests here yesterday
believes that robots will supplant hu-
man pilots, they are convinced that
the metal aviators will do much to
increase the safety of aerial trans2or-
| heavy drudgery of flying large trans
port planes, leaving his mind and
hands clear for handling of the more
important tasks of navigation, study
ing of weather conditions and other
phases Of pilots job, which require
intelligent action, out of the reach Of
even the cleverest Of robots science
now can produce.
For yesterdays demonstrations and
for the first scheduled passenger flights
under mechanical control, to begin
this week. the robot has been installed
in a giant 18-passenger Condor. one
of the largest transport planes in use
on American air lines
Composed of gYrosccpes, sensitive to
the slightest change of position; cleo
trical switches. upon which the gyro-
scopes react: electric motors, which are
the robots muscles, and rods and pull
leys, which serve him for arms and
legs in operating the controls, the me-
| chanical pilot can fly plane with un-
erring precision in any Of the three
dimensions of flight
Plane Loaded to Capacity.
The aerial Metal Mike" demonstrated
his ability and skill here to the salts
faction Of large group of aviation
officials and reporters. With capacity
load aboard. the big plane was taken
of the broad cinder runway by Ralph
Lockwood, chief instructor and main
tenance engineer OF Eastern Air
Transport and one of the country's
foremost veterans of the air.
The mechanical pilot, incaSed in
metal, was installed on the cockpit
floor behind Lockwood and his co-pilot,
Johnny Armstrong, veteran Of the night
airmail run through Washington. Be-
A. Sperry, jr. Capt. Thomas b. Doe,
president of Eastern Air Transport, was
among the passengers on the trial
fight.
Climbing quickly to an altitude of
1900 feet, Lockwood pressed a switch
or the control column which put the
robot in action. Capt. Doe beckoned
Armstrong out of the pilots compart-
ment and Lockwood climbed out OF his
seat and perched up on the back-reSt,
out Of reach of the controls. The robot
was in command
1t was Immediately noticeable that
the plane steadied laterally. A glance
at the wheel which controls the anerons,
balancing the plane against uneven
gusts of air, showed that 1t was in
virtually incessant motion, twitching
uneasily from side to side as the robot
corrected for air differences too small to
be felt So rapid were the corrections
| and so quickly begun that no move
ment of the ailerons on the 90-foot
wings could be seen with the naked eye.
The plane rode as steadily as a boat
on still water.
Due to rapid installation Of the robot
/ for the tests, however. the elevator con-
| trolls, which control the climb and de-
scent of the plane, were not so sensi-
, lively coupled, and there was more EVIL