Evening star., 1932-10-02


BY January l every transport pilot
in the United States must qualify him.
self in instrument flying if he is to sit
at the controls of transport plane en-
gagged in scheduled operations. He
must spend a minimum Of 25 hours in
blind flight training and must be able
to pass a rigid Department Of Com
merce flight test under the cover" in
order to qualify.
After January there will be no pilot
flying passengers, express or mail in
regular scheduled air transport oper-
ations who is not thoroughly qualified
by training and experience to fly safely
in the thickest fog or clouds nature can
brew. ANY transport pilot holding an
air transport rating will be able to fly
for hours if necessary without seeing
anything but the instrument board of
his plane.
Inability to fly in thick fog in the
past has cost the lives of scores of
aviators. many of them flyers Of skill
and experience. Development of the
ability to fly in fogs which blotted out
all trace of the horizon and all points
OF orientation has been long and grim
Struggle Today, thanks to science, the
ability to fly with absolute safety in
the thickest of fog. day or night. has
become the commonplace. Every trans
port pilot can do it and must do it If
he is to continue as transport pilot.
Ground fogs which shut of the air
ports still are barrier to flying oper-
ations. Very few pilots have landed
safely in really thick fog. Two United
States Army officers have made true
instrument landings in hooded cockpits
which prevented them seeing anything
but the instruments before them. De-
partment of Commerce pilots have done
the same thing at College Park, Md.
Progress Made Against Fog.
Fog landings have been made but
they still are in the nature OF very
rare and highly dangerous feat. Even
against this menace, however, man is
making certain progress. 1t is entirely
possible that before many years have
elapsed pilots will be able to make alb
solutely blind fog landings regularly
and safely at the main airports pro-
viding special equipment for this type
Of operation.
The sending of weather maps by tele-
graph for the benefit OF pilots who
must depend upon swift relaying OF
accurate weather information now Is
possible and Department of Commerce
tests have been so successful that such
service may be established soon on a
regular basis.
If this service Is instituted airplane
pilots on the main airways will be given
a complete picture of weather condi-
tions at brief intervals, with hourly
radio reports to supplement the charts
with specific information during flights.
Regular tests in which weather maps
- fod fDrnl1Cl,
Of automatic telegraph printers, have
been carried on since last Spring by
the Weather Bureau and the Aero
nautics branch of the Department OF
Commerce. Maps compiled at central
point at 8 o'clock were made available
at all receiving stations before o'clock,
These charts, like those printed and
distributed daily by the Weather Bu.
reau show barometric pressures, wind
direction and velocity, temperature
visibility, ceiling and general conditions,
such as clear, cloudy, overcast, thunder
storm, rain or snow, at the various
points from which reports were col
lected.
Maps Sent by "Teletype."
The transmission Of the maps Is ac-
complished on q regular automatic tele-
graph typewriter printing on sheets
Of paper instead of tape. The nfor.
nation is sent from master map and
reproduced on blank map sheets prop
eriy keyed into the receiving type
writer's.
Though q definite program has not
been agreed upon, owing to the neces-
sity for rigid economy, automatic sheet
type telegraph typewriters are being in
stalled instead of the tape-type ma
chimes at many of the Department OF
Commerce airway stations so as to make
possible the installation Of such service.
It has been decided that II the serv-