Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-02-22
AVIATION
BY JOSEPH S. EDdERTON.

of their insistent refusal to climb to
decent attitudes in accordance with
solemn naval orders.
When preparations were begun for
anti-aircraft practices the T4Ms gently
but firmly defied all efforts to push them
up to the desired 8,000-foot altitude.
Bending throttles and putting pilots on
reducing diet proved of no avail. Final
ly, in desperation. 1t was decided to
abandon naval practices entirely. The
seaplane floats were removed and wheels
substituted. Now the old planes climb
| to 5000 feet. The result Is that the
pilots are collecting new wrinkles.
When the old planes, with their
wheels, go out to sea now, distance OF
some 10 miles from shore, the pilots
must put their faith in engines, radio
and floating gear, knowing full well that
! failure of any Of them is going to mean
a wet aviator.
Now that the Navy squadron has
gotten into tropical waters for Spring
maneuvers, aerial navigation has be-
come the all-engaging topic of CONVEX
sation. When sights were taken and
worked out in the PSI and TAM type
planes based on the U. S. S. Wright,
first results were startling. AS the
pilots began polishing off the rusty
places, however, they became more
adept at "effecting the marriage of the
elusive bubble and the galloping SUM-"
says a report to the Navy Department.
and Guantanamo Bay again resumed
its normal location on the earth'S sur
face"
AnacOStia Busy.
The Anacostia Naval Air Station has
been maintaining well-filled schedule
during the so-called Winter months Of
January and early February. Business
has been picking up for the flight test
section, which worked 50 hard last Sum-
mer 1t ran out of work for time.
The new motor test stand. housed
in concrete and metal structure near
the cline is ready for action. A
frame for the torque stand has been
manufactured and assembled by the
mechanical force at the station. The
torque stand is the base upon which
the motors are mounted for testing.
The fixed ring upon which the engines
are to be mounted for trial has been
rugged so as to project the base OF the
engine some half foot from the frame
of the stand and so avoid interference
with the flow Of cooling air past the
cylinders. q source of much irritation
TO engines and test crews which have
to cope with less we'll furnished torque
stands.
Shutter controls are being expert
mented with on one plane. Prelim-
mary performance tests and rough
water trials have been made with an
experimental patrol boat from the
Naval Aircraft Factory. The little
Looming submarine plane, previously
mentioned, in the language Of the
street, is getting the works"
Drag" Study Completed.
An aerodynamic investigation of re-
duction of drag or wind resistance, a
most comfnendable piece Of research
from the viewpoint Of those who must
fly airplanes, has been completed with
highly technical, but none the less in
teresting. results. The experiments in
volved the installation of many items
of fairing and streamlining to clean up
bad angles which interfered with the
smooth fiow Of air about the plane in
flight.
Lieut. Matthias B. Gardner, the Ma
tional Capitals most outstanding ma
tive-born aviator, who has come to
rank as the Nays foremost acrobatic
pilot, in addition to struggling with the
griefS which come to the operations
officer at the Anacostia station, has
completed a series of experiments in
volving the determination of accelera-
tons which may be expected when
engaged in inverted acrobatic flying
including the inverted pull-out, invert-
ed snap rolls, outside spins and out