Evening star., 1936-07-26


In various stages Of progress.
Through its program. regarded
prospective private flyer and to the
industry as q whole, the bureau Is
seeking to improve sirplanes Of the
private owner type from the stand
points Of utility, cost, comfort and
safety.
The development program was in
stituted as one Of the first major
new projects of the present Bureau
of Air Commerce and already was
under way when the bureaus develop
ment section was created in July, 1884,
to take charge Of the work.
From the start the bureau has
sought to bring about the development
Of worthy new types Of airplanes by
drafting specifications for airplanes
which would meet rigid standards Of
safety, economy and ease Of operation,
leaving the actual designing and con-
struction to be accomplished by firms
and individuals.
Although obviously, a somewhat
clumsy procedure, this method has
worked quite well. First Of the new
airplanes to be undertaken, the Ham,
mond Y was delivered to the bureau
last April, after nearly two years Of
intensive design, construction and re-
construction work. Orders for rs air.
planes of this type, for the use Of
Bureau of Air Commerce inspectors.
have been placed with the Hammond
Aircraft Corp, Ypsilanti, Mich.
The Hammond is Q low-wing pusher
monoplane with Q nose-wheel type
landing gear. There is no tendency
for the airplane to nose over, and 1t
can be landed safely with q minimum
Of technique. 1t can be landed at Al
most any speed within its range. 1t
can be flown at full speed to a land
ing and the brakes applied immedi-
ately without danger of ground loop
ing or going over on its nose. No
rudder is required and it can be taken
off or landed under favorable condi-
tions with the use Of the throttle
alone. The pilot and passenger enjoy
exCepClOndl Visibility.
Second of the new airplanes is the
Waterman tailless, built by Waldo
Waterman at Santa Monica, Calf =,
and flown here, as was the Hammond,
by John H. Geisse, chief of the de-
velopment section Of the bureau. Re-
ceived last August, the Waterman still
is in the development stage. The
Waterman also is pusher mono
plane, with three wheeled undercar-
riage similar to the Hammond.
The third and most conventional
in appearance of the four new ships
is the Curtiss- Wright coupe. built at
Robertson, Mo. It is of all-metal con-
struction. unique in small airplanes,
and has the conventional type of land
ing gear. 1t was accepted by the
bureau last December, being flown
here by Eugene L. Vidal, director of
Air Commerce.
The fourth airplane is the least con-
ventional, in many respects, of the lot.
II is the Weick WI, characterized as
the guinea pig" of the program. In
that 1t has been the laboratory speci-
men for the testing of many theories
Of design and construction. The Weick
was started as an independent under
taking by Fred Weick. q member Of
the technical staff of the National
Advisory Committee for Aeronautics
at Langley Field, Va, and some Of his
associates there. It Is q high-wing
pusher monoplane with the nose wheel
landing gear.
One of the two airplanes soon to be
delivered Is the Arrow model F, low
wing, open cockpit monoplane Of rather
conventional design but powered with
q Ford V-S automobile engine, geared
down to a ratio of almost to !. While
the engine is very heavy In relation
to horsepower produced, as compared
with modern aviation engines, 1t COM
pares favorably as to the weight-horse-
power ratio with the famous OX-5
World War aviation engine which was
so widely used In civilian flying for
years following the war and which
still is found in operation.
The second of the ships scheduled
for early delivery is direct-drive
autogiro, with all flying controls oper-
ated through the overhead rotor. 1t
is readable" clutch being provided
to deliver power from the engine to
the wheels for operation as an auto
mobile.
The bureau also Is testing other
types of automobile and airplane en-
gines, including new two-cycle types;
drives between engine
and propeller to replace heavier and
most costly gears, and various anti
freezing carburetors and devices for
breaking up ice formation on propel-
lers and wings.
A N AIRDROME control tower, con-
structed in front of the operations
Office at Boiling Field, stands as tes-
timonial to the increased military air.
plane traffic at the local Army post.
The tower is Is feet high, with an
8-foot platform, and Is equipped with
a radio remote control system, a Sig
nal Corps directional wind indicator,
Office telephone and airways control
light for controlling air traffic.
Its location near the edge of the
flying field in front of the building
line, is ideal for night flying control,
as it gives the operator In charge an
view in all directions, 1t
was explained.
The tower was ordered as q result
of the last-minute rush to qualify Air
Corps pilots in night flying during the
closing days of the past fiscal year.
Toward the end of the month 1t was
found necessary to carry on flying
operations every night so that officers
on duty in the War Department might
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