Evening star., 1939-06-11
BY Joseph S. Edgerfon.

ticularly in Germany and Russia, the
sport is financially supported by the ma
tional governments.
The first production model of new
all-metal, sailplane, carrying one pas
senger in addition to the pilot. has just
been delivered to the Soaring Society.
1t will be flown at Elmira and will be
piloted by Mr.. Wightman at air meets
in all parts of the country and in demon
strations between meets. The passenger
carrying feature will make it possible for
Mr.. Wightman to introduce hundreds of
Americans to the thrill of soaring flight
In connection with its studies of the
regulations and of the proposal to include
glider instruction in its national civil
pilot training program, the Civil Aero
nauticS Authority is planning to observe
closely events at the tenth annual soar
ing contest at sElmira June 24-July 9.
More than 100 pilots and 40 gliders and
sailplanes already have been entered for
this meet.
1t. Stanley No. 1 Entry
1t. Robert M. Stanley, U. S. N. now
flying instructor at the Pensacola Naval
Air Station. is the official No entry for
the 10th annual contest. 1t Stanley en-
tered his own sailplane. which he de-
signed and built on the Pacific Coast last
year. During the 1889 contest at Elmira.
1t Stanley in borrowed sailplane.
without previous familiarization work..
flew from Elmira TO the National Cap
ital, an airline distance of ZIG miles, to
establish an unofficial American distance
record. In doing so he duplicated flight
a day or two earlier by Peter Redel of
the German Embassy Mr.. ,Reidel re-
Gently left Washington with his sailplane
for San Francisco to undertake the first
soaring flight across the United States.
as a goodwill gesture in connection with
the national contest.
Glider training was established on an
experimental basis as part of the regu-
lar naval flight training program at
Pensacola several years ago by Comdr.
Ralph S. Barnaby, president of the Soar
ing Society of America. Official reports
to the Navy Department have testified to
the value of glider training in improving
the aerial work of student aviators and
in reducing the time necessary in basic
air instruction in powered aircraft
The Army Air Corps also has desig-
mated. representatives to attend the Ell
mira contest. The S. S. A. expects in the
near future to seek Air Corps co-opera-
ton in the promotion of soaring in Amer
lea as an adjunct to the national air de-
fense program. The Air Corps also is
studying the possible use of two-place
soaring craft in connection with its own
flight training program at the Air Corps
Training Center, San Antonio, Tex,
somewhat as the Navy has done at Pen
sacola.
Gliding and soaring at Elmira is based
chiefly upon the presence of ascending
air currents due to the upward defect
ton of winds striking the mountain
ridges. American soaring enthusiasts,
however, now are beginning thorough
exploration of thermal soaring" which
depends not upon mountains, but upon
rising currents of warm air in fiat coun-
try. A national meet is being held in
June at Wichita Falls, Tex, which is to
be purely thermal soaring meet. Un-
der rather poor conditions last year at
Wichita Falls Levin Barringer made
210-mile flight, which is record for
thermal soaring in this country. The
world record of 405 miles was made by
thermal soaring in country similar to
that around Wichita Falls.
Last years flights from Elmira to
Washington were made by combination
of thermal and slope soaring, as the
use of rising wind currents over noun
tain slopes is termed. Riedels trans
continental effort, obviously, will involve
both types of soaring.
Mountain gliding and soaring, how
ever, will not be neglected under the