Evening Star Newspaper, November 17, 1929, Page 104

10 BY EVE GARRETTE. s S the public beginning to Icse its fear ol / parachutes now that America has defi- / nitely become air-minded? Is the day near when people will think no more of jumping off into space and drifting peacefully to earth, borne up by a bit of silk and cord, than they do today of briskly donning a lifebelt as the ship begins to sink and diving nonchalantly off into the ocean? Nearly every one has complete confidence in life-preservers; they know that they cannot sink to a watery grave with lifebelts about their waists. Air enthusiasts are saying that what is true of life-preservers may also be said for the parachute. Now that the sirplane is as surely a means of transportation as the ship, the parachute, once the plaything of daredevil circus performers and balloon-jumpers, has come into its own as a foolproof and dependable means of escape from disabled aircraft. Aviators point out that para- chutes of the best design are safe. They seldom fail to bring their riders down from the sky in comfort and safety. The next step is educating the public. Yet it would seem, from all accounts, that the public insists upon educating itself. It refuses to be deprived -of a thrill that is as simple as hopping off a fence but far more exciting. OT long ago a young salesman out of a job but with a secret affection for aviation wan- dered out onto the flying field at San Diego, Calif. Somebody suggested that he might get a job selling parachutes. - Only, of course, he would have to have had personal experience with his particular brand of merchandise. The young salesman wrestled with the problem for two hours; to try a parachute jump and get a job, or refuse and miss out on what might be a big chance. He decided to make the jump. A pilot took him up 1,500 feet and circled the field in a cabin monoplane. The prospective parachute salesman was rigged up in his harness and pack. When they got back over the field he crawled through the dcor and stood on the step, nervous but determined. The windstream nearly pulled him off, but he gripped the handle with a clutch of iron. At the signal from the pilot he dove off headfirst. There was no terrible downrush. More like a slow-motion-picture sensation. When he pulled the 'chute ring a mass of white flashed past his head, caught the wind and immediately opened out. He noticed at once the silence—the roar of the airplane motor was gone—he was all alone in space, drifting quietly earthward under a white canopy. He bent his knees slightly as he approached the ground, according to instruc- tions, and soon landed, safe and sound. From that moment he was an enthusiastic, cocky parachute salesman. Out at Roosevelt Field during the Summer there was a regular epidemic of parachute- jumping among women. One girl who had never been up in an airplane in her life took her first ride aloft, properly safeguarded with a little parachute pack on her back. She decided to try it out without bothering to announce her in- tentions to any one. Her first parachute jump was so successful and interesting to her that she has become an ardent aviatrix. In October a 15-year-old schoolgirl supplied a crowd of 12,000 at Roosevelt Feld with a real thrill in the course of a parachute-jumping con- test in which she was entered. After diving from her plane, the girl's foot became entangled in the shroud rope. She was unable to release the parachute until she extricated it. Twisting and fighting, she fell 1,500 feet before she was able to open the parachute, 500 feet above the ground, and land unharmed in the midst of the excited watchers. Her mother, who was present, fainted when she saw her daughter fall, Of- ficials at the field said that the jump was per- fectly safe, that the fact that the girl got herself out of a slight difficulty vindicated the judg- ment of her parachute instructor. She had al- ready made four jumps under instruction, it was stated. For years it was believed that a man would become unconscious during a long fall in the air or have his senses jerked out of him by the shock of the ‘chute opening if he waited too long before pulling the ring. But all that has been disproved. A discussion Mitchel Field in 1924, started over this theory at Sergt. Randall Bose, Parachutes, . which once were consider- ed only the play- thing of daredevils, have become, the life preservers of the air. who was something of a daredevil, determined to find out the truth. “Hope you live to tell us what you learn,” one of his buddies told him. “I'll be baving beans for breakfast when the daisies are sprouting over youd’ Bose replied. Bose went up to 5,000 feet and dropped 1,500 feet before he opened his 'chute, a big stunt in those days. He said that things began to turn black just before he pulled his ripcerd. But he didn't lose his nerve. Next time he went down 1,800 feet before rounding up. The jerk nearly broke his neck, but there were no ill effects. This record didn't stand Jong. In 1925 Sergt. Budreau went up at Selfridge Field and hopped off at 7,000 feet. He fell 3,500 feet without a twinkle of silk above him. Those looking on began to turn sick and groan before the chute opened out. Even then they figured the terrible tearing effect of the wind would split the canopy into rib- bons, But it didn’t. AST year three aviation machinist mates in the United States Navy determined to break the world’s record for a free fall. Their names were Whitby, Morgan and Craw- ford. On April 4, 1928, these three fellows went up from the Navy air base at Pensacola, Fla., one after the other. Crawford fell 2,800 feet before he pulled his ring. Morgan, an hour later, boosted the figure to 3,100 feet. Whitby, the last, jumped out at 5,100 feet and had the nerve to hold his ring until he had sailed down 4,400 feet! That was a new world's record all right. Whitby was considerably shaken up by the shock, but neither he nor his companions were hurt. Whitby said afterward: “I wanted to see what spinning would do to me. I knew I'd have plenty of time to experiment between the going over and the moment I pulled up. I jumped so I'd tumble over in front somersaults. I quickly found that by kicking my legs I could control my movements, I changed into a flat spin. After enjoying that for a bit, I kicked myself into a tight spiral, head down. “By that time the earth was coming up pretty fast. It was a grayish blue, I guess, because I was shooting toward it at such speed my eyes didn’t work any too well. But I could see the ships on line before the hangars and a lot of little black bugs in front of them where the gang was watching me sail down. “You mightn't believe this, but while I was spiraling slowly with my head pointed toward the sod, I also noticed the barracks. and I actually picked out the window of my room! “By this time the hissing of the air in my ears had thinned to a shrill whistle, Then my hearing suddenly went dead. Had something to do with my blood pressure chang- ing, perhaps. The doctors had a lot of ideas about it all after I landed. “I decided to pull the ring, so I kicked my- self into a somersault and when I was next in a feet-first position I gave a yank. I remember THE SUNDAY STAR. WASHINGTON, D. C., NOVEMBER 17, 1929, "T'eaching #he Young B Mind to Parachute. Dozwn Goes the High-Jumper, Rip Goes the Cord, Out Spreads His Umbrella-Like Life Preserver and He Floats to a Safe Landing—It Is Becoming Commonplace, The utmost care and skill are required in packing a parachute, for the life of the jumper is at stake. I was surprised to see how green and how near the grass on the field looked at that moment. “But I didn't forget what was going to hap- pen. I didn't exactly brace myself, but I was all prepared when the shock of opening came. It seemed to jerk me right up into the chute. My liver splashed so hard against by backbone that it was sore for days afterward. The report the chute made when it cracked open was heard all over the field. “I came down pretty fast, but I had my feet braced and pointed out like Babe Ruth sliding home. At that, I went head over heels when I bumped. But I wasn’t hurt a mite. Next morn- ing my legs and arms were black and blue from the jolt the harness gave them.” Incidentally, that 4,440-foot drop of Whitby's took 30 seconds—a long time under the circum- stances. One of the most thrilling and novel plights which a would-be parachute jumper has ever experienced occurred to Harcld Williams at Mo- T hanks to Public Air-Mindedness. bile, Ala. He owes his life to the skill and daring of his pilot and a friend, who performed one of the most remarkable rescues in modern aviation annals. ‘Williams attempted to jump from a plane piloted by W. A. McDonald, a Mobile aviator, but his parachute became fouled on the lower wing of the plane. As he hung from the plane the youth tried to pull him- self back to the wing, but without success. Duke Ressler, who happened to be flying nearby, saw the youth's predicament. He returned to the flying fleld and secured a 200-foot rope, which he took aloft with him. Finally he maneuvered to a posi- tion above McDonald and dropped the rope to him. McDonald paid out the rope to Williams, who tied it about his body. The pilot then banked the plane from side to side and pointed the nose of his ship upward, throw- ing Williams into a position where he could grab the tail skid. McDonald made a perfect lande ing and the only injury that Wile liams suffered was a bruised shoul- der, received when he was dragged along the ground in landing. It requires nice judgment to teach men and women how to use a parachute. Pupils vary so much that each one is a different prob- lem. A 10-week course is long enough so that the work doesn't have to be hurried or the pupil scared by rushing him into the final test. There are no extraor- dinary physical requirements. During the first two weeks the candidate is taught how to take care of a parachute pack; how to pack and fold his canopy; how to make up his shroud lines and tend to ordinary repairs. His last bit of study is on the physical laws that govern parachuting. Usually the student’s first jump is a lift-off, two men making the jump at the same time. Having a pair seems to buck them up. Each fellow is thus put on his mettle. Each takes his place on opposite wings. At 2,000 feet the pilot levels off and gives the sig= nal to pull the ripcords. The chutes trail out, inflate and lift the pair into space. From this altitude the descent takes from one and one- half to two minutes. Next comes a tree fall. The pupil sits on the extreme end of the wing. When he gets the signal he falls forward into the air. His body revolves in the direction of flight. At the completion of the first turn he is supposed to pull the ring. The old scheme of counting three has been abandoned. Some men lack a sense of timing. One fellow made his first jump from 2,000 feet. He didn't pull his ring until he was only 300 feet above the ground. His instructors thought he was just scared and got him to go up again the same day. Three times he fell to the 300-foot level before he opened his parachute. The men on the field almost had heart failure watching him. He was speedily boosted out of the para= chute section after that.