Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1934-10-14


by authorities at the major racing meets.
No, you wouldn't be exactly bored ii
you saw Roy Hunt, commercial test pilot,
give his famous dead stick" show.
Which simply means that he performs
almost every conceivable stunt known to
aviation with his ignition switch cut on
entirely-in other words with his motor
dead.
Or Atcherly, noted English acrobat"
doing his series of "crazy flying" ma
neuvers. He struts his stuff at ire
mendous speed, sometimes as low as 10
feet of the ground; in fact. he has been
known to place one wing on the ground
and spin around on this single nm, while
the rest Of the plane looks about as
precarious to spectators as would tiny
tot hopping around on one foot atop
Skyscraper.
What, you've never seen either Atch-
erly or Williams in action? Then my
humble advice is, "go up and see 'em
some time" You'll be surprised and
probably shocked. AS for myself, I've
been stunning ever since early World
War days-don't believe there are more
than a handful of us old flying war
horses left who actually are in active
service today. Yet, frankly. get Just
about the same thrills today that
did when gymnastic flying was in its
infancy. There's life in these ancient
bones yet.
But is there any sense to this mad
cavorting through the blue heavens? Is
it, after all, worth risking your healthy
neck for? That's what most people want
to know. They're inclined to regard
aerial acrobatics as an unnecessary
adjunct to worthwhile aviation pursuits,
something INDUCED In by scatterbrains,
something to be discouraged If possible.
What's my answer to this? Here It's:
Actually aerobatic maneuvers have two
very serious, separate and distinct pur-
poses. The first Of these is concerned
with the testing of airplanes. BY that
7 mean the flight test of the expert
mental type, or first issue, Of each Of
the newest designs. The second purpose
is for the training of pilots
Now, highly maneuverable test plane,
equipped with an accelerometer or grav-
ity indicator, furnishes all the known
facts about stresses and strains. This
data is the aviation engineers guide at
all times. Such a plane land this Is
a point most folks don't realize) always
is dived, jerked, kicked, rolled, spun on
its back-in fact, put through the entire
list of stunts while meantime the instru-
ments record the exact effect Of all the
loads as they fall on each Of the planes
parts. The result is actual knowledge
instead of theoretical, with which to
guide the manufacturer and his engi-
neers regarding how the ship will stand
up under every conceivable stress and
strain.
As FOR the importance Of stunting for
- the training Of pilots, the average
person may see no hard and vast dis
tinction between the term "pilot" and
the words, person who hys a plane"
But in the vernacular of aviation there's
o vast gulf between the two. Here the
term pilot signifies all the attributes
that go toward making an excellent
6yer. He's one who watches his instru-
ments, handles his plane and motor, in
fact, attends to every mechanical detail
Of flying accurately, but entirely sub
consciously.
Yes, the truth is, pilots learn safety
through being as much at home upside
down, in a steep bank, vertical dive or
other eccentric position as they are IN
normal, level flight. Is 1t any wonder
acrobatic flying is a regular part Of
41iolaf TRAINING in the Navy ARMY md