Evening Star Newspaper, March 2, 1930, Page 63

AVIA BY JOSEPH HE action of the joint con- gressional airport commis- sion in agreeing upon_an airport plan for the Na- tional Capital, which includes the use of ashington Airport and Hoover Field, comibned, as a municipal airport, with Gravelly Point designated for “future ex- pansion,” does not mean that the fight of advocates of Gravelly Point for the development of that area has been won entirely. The plan adopted by the com- mission is in the nature of a com promise, which was advanced by the Washington Chamber of Com- merce and Board of Trade when it became apparent that a stand for “Gravelly Point or nothing” probably would result in nothing. In advancing the compromise plan these civic bodies did not abandon their demand for Grav- elly Point in any degree. That development is insisted upon as the ultimate goal for the Capital. The compromise plan, as suggest- ed by the local trade bodies and adopted by the commission is sound and entirely worthy of sup- ort. e One of the chief objections to the Gravelly Point development was that the process of filling in the swamp area would take too much time. The compromise cer- tainly offers the moest sensible way out of that difficulty. With a temporary field in op- eration, the development of Grav- elly Point could be carried for- ward at a pace which would be the most economical and effective from an engineering standpoint. Gravelly Point must be a recla- mation project. The site now is covered with water to an average depth of something like 2 feet. If the filling of the area is rushed, it undoubtedly would be more costly a process than would a slower filling utilizing spoil from the normal river dredging opera- tions and from city dumping. If the program could be extended a year or two, enough money prob- ably could be saved in the recla- mation cost more than to pay for the development and mainte- nance of a temporary field. At the same time aeronautical de- velopment in the National Capital would not be blocked. The danger inherent in such a compromise is that the temporary field, wherever it is located, may through legislative inertia become a anent institution unless the Gravelly Point construction program actually is started at the same time. Gravelly Point and the tempo- rary field should be included as a single legislative proposal. temporary field is authorized sep- arately and in advance of the permanent airport, the National Capital's dreams of a model air- port will not be realized for many years, if ever. This city has learned a good deal since the World War about the permanency of “temporary” developments. Twelve years after the war, “temporary” buildings, put up merely for wag-time occu- pancy, still are in use, unsatisfac- tory and unsightly though they may be. The Capital wants no such “temporary” airport. If the compromise is to adopted, the District should sup- port a single legislative proposal providing for Gravelly Point and the temporary field. It should be insisted that the development of Gravelly Point be started immedi- ately, regardless of the adequacy or inadequacy of the site which has been selected to meet present aeronautical needs of the Nation- al Capital. There never has been more unanimous support for any local project than that for the develop- ment of Gravelly Point. One member of the congressional com- mission, which heard scores of expert witnesses on the local air- port situation, stated publicly that “on no committee of which he had ever been a member had the testimony been so mnearly unanimous as that urging the construction of the municipal air- port at Gravelly Point.” There is no site in or near the District which so nearly meets all the requirements for a model air- port as Gravelly Point. There are few cities in the world which have potential airport sites as good from every standpoint as Gravelly Point. There is ample testimony to this effect from experts in| every line of aviation. The Washington Airport-Hoo- ver Field-Arlington Farm site on the Virginia shore between High- way Bridge and the terminus of the Arlington Memorial Bridge should make a splendid tempo- rary field and could be made to serve the needs of the National Capital until Gravelly Point can be completed. From the standpoint of location this site is as near the ideal as one could wish. There are in ex- istence today all the necessary communication facilities between these fields and the city. No time and little expense would be in- volved in preparing them for im- mediate use, since there is a large amount of flying going on there regularly. Washington Airport, the larger of the two flying flelds, now is be- ing enlarged by the filling of swamp ground to the south and west. The approaches are being improved by the removal of the old Arlington Beach buildings along the river front. A first-class concrete, brick and steel hangar and an attractive terminal build- are being constructed. The sent improvement program is involve the expenditure of $600,000. Hoover Field, though smaller, is the older of the two fields. It once | was selected as a model for small air passenger terminals and has a brick administration building, two large hangars and partial lighting equipment for night flying. These fields are separated by Military Rocad, now the heavi- est-traveled road between down- town Washington and Arlington National Cemetery. Combination of the two fields would necessitate closing of this road. There will be considerable op- position from the Department of Agriculture to the seizing of the available 50 acres of its experi- mental farm for addition to this airport area. This ground has been improved after {ears of in- tensive cultivation. It has been If the| TION S. EDGERTON. studied and its capabilities are thoroughly known. Its deficien- cies have been made up patiently by studious fertilization and ad- dition of chemicals which it lacks. This soil could not be duplicated | for its present purposes within | several years, it is said. Moreover, | there are planting schedules for | this tract of land, part of a scien- tific research program, for several | years in the future. It undoubt- |edly would entail serious hard- ship and loss to the department 1if this area were to be taken for | airport purposes. On the other hand, agriculture has benefited from aviation and should be willing to make some sacrifice to promote the new in- dustry. Crop dusting by airplane | to control the boll weevil and other pests, and airplane patrols | to detect fires in national forests have saved millions of dollars to | the farmer and the country, and ithis field of activity is capable of further development. With the combined areas of Washington Airport, Hoover Field, | Arlington Farms, Arlington Beach (and the portion of the Military | Road between the flelds more. | than 200 acres would be available. | Diagonal runways of more than 3,000 feet and 2,500 feet could be | made available, the longer one in |the direction of the prevailing | winds. Across the field only about 12,000 feet would be avalaible, but |there are few deys when the | winds are in this direction, it is claimed. Hoover Field has been operat- ing flve years with a 2,100-foot |runway and scarcely any cross- (wind area. Washington Airport, when the present filling program | is completed, will have an all-way | field almost square in shape. With the long runway open |across both fields in the direction of the prevailing winds, a very good temporary layout could be made, from which it should be possible to operate all types of transport planes. This field, however, because of the lack of width, never could ob- | tain a Department of Commerce A-1-A rating, and for this reason | should not be considered as a per- | manent airport for the Capital. | Whether the Government should purchase the fields outright and operate them as a governmental | project, or should lease them, is a matter which can be worked out. It might be possible to op- erate the fields on a concession basis, as is done in a number of cities, leaving the present man- agement in charge, under regula- tions which would guaramtee the municipal character of the field. In the end, even after Gravelly Point is completed, there will be room for the continued operation of commercial fields on the Wash- ington Airport and Hoover Field sites for specialized services which | are better divorced from a munic- |ipal field. Student training and | other types of commercial work are highly undesirable at a field | which must be used for terminal | purposes, as would Gravelly Point. | Certain types of servicing, over- | haul and repair work also could | be kept away from the municipal field. There would be no necessity for closing out any existing com- | mercial fields because of the mu- nicipal airport development, nor | would this be at all desirable. | Engineers who have studied the Gravelly Point project are confi- dent that development of an ini- tial wunit, available for flying, could be completed under pres- sure within a year. Proceeding on a more economical and leisurely basis, five years should be ample to put all the necessary area in perfect shape to handle all fore- seen needs at that time. At Newark, N. J., and Boston, hydraulic-filled fields have been made available for use within the first year. The materials with which the Newark fill was made are inferfor in quality to those available at Gravelly Point, which is a great natural gravel pit, as its name implies. The fill for the Mount Vernon memorial boulevard now is being made across the west end of the proposed Gravelly Point airport area. It has settled with unusual rapidity into a good, solid fill, upon which construction can be undertaken before long, according | to the engineers. The Mount Ver- non boulevard is to be completed within two years. Certainly, if a paved road can be built upon filled ground in the Gravelly Point area within two years, it should be possible to operate air- planes off an unpaved field in less |than that time. During the next few years there | will be a large amount of good, | solid earth and rock excavated in the Mall area for Federal and | District public buildings. This material must be dumped some- where, and it might just as well be dumped at Gravelly Point as |anywhere else. This, together with the dredgings from the river | channel, can be used in the initial |area. Gravelly Point appears to be the ideal area for the National Capital's permanent airport. | Washington Airport and Hoover Fleld can be utilized to care for temporary needs. The compro- |mise program fostered by the Washington Board of Trade and |Chamber of Commerce and ap- | proved by the congressional com- | mission is a good one and should | receive support from Congress and the people of the District. 'PARACHUTES IN IDLE LIST. | Boeing Air Pilots Need Them Only in Bad Weather. In more than 8,000,000 miles of air- mail fiying over the San Francisco-Chi- cago and Los Angeles-Seattle contract airmail lines no Boeing pilot ever has had to “bail out” with his parachute, |it has been reported here. The Boeing pilots never wear para- chutes_when carrying passengers and | when flying the regular airmail with- out pacsengers, do not wear parachutes except in extremely bad weather, it is said. Plane Use Inexpensive. WIMAUMA, Fla. (#).—Robert Els- berry of this village doesn't think that flying comes high. He flew a new plane 1,140 miles, from Cleveland to Tampa, Fla., and spent only $23. That was for gasoline and oil and food for himself and a passenger., THE SUNDAY IGAPITAL AIRPORT WORK UNDER WAY Field Expected to Take Place This Year With Best in Country. With construction and grading proj- ects well under way, Washington Alr- Bridge, is expected to take its place this Summer as one of the best flelds of its size in the country. of the field is in accordance with the best_principles of airport planning as | developed in the recent international | Lehigh airports competition, it is said. | | The field has been planned with an | eye not only to efficiency of operation, | but also to general attractiveness and | harmony of appearance and the con- | venience of airplane passengers and spectators. i The new administration building, now under construction in the corner of the airport nearest Highway Bridge, is to be completed by April 1. It will be | of stucco and brick construction of | plans for this building have been ap- proved by the Commission of Fine Arts as in complete harmony with the plans for the beautification of this area in connection with the Arlington Memorial Bridge and Mount Vernon boulevard programs. ‘Will Have Waiting Room. ‘The administration building will con- tain passenger facilities on the first floor, including waiting room, restau- rant, ticket office and baggage room. ‘The offices of the airport personnel also will be located on this floor. A roofed balcony, & unique feature in airport ar- chitecture, is to surround the glass-in- closed control room on the roof of the building, giving spectators a full view of gperations in all parts of the fleld. The building is to be surrounded by a grassed terrace, which not only will protect passengers and spectators from dust, but will form a setting for the bullding and area of parking in this corner of the fleld, ‘The present administration building is to be razed upon completion of the new building. and grading of the field will bring up the level of the present administration building site, now one of the lowest portions of the field, several feet. The new administration building, as a result of extensive filling, stands on the highest portion of the field, the ground sloping away across the airport stream at the south edge of the area. Landing Area Square. ‘Though limited to a 100-acre tract, the Washington Airport area has been thoroughly studied to take best advan- tage of every foot of the avallable space. The landing area is to be approximately s?une, permitting all-direction opera- tions, ‘The mechanical operations are to be separated from the administration build- ing and public area. A 100-by-120-foot masonry and steel hangar, which will harmonize with the administration building, is being constructed several hundred yards from the administration building, on the edge of the field ad- joining the Washi n-Alexandria highway. The hangar will contain a re- pair shop and servicing facilities. Clearing of the approaches to the field is nearing completion. All of the field property up to the eastern edge of the field has been cleared and graded, and the clearing of a large portion of the old Arlington Beach tract along the river front has been completed. The Washington Air Terminals Cor- poration, which is developing the air- port, is spending $600,000 on the im- provement program, and it is expected that the airport, when completed this Summer, will stand as a model for air- passenger terminals of its size. port, at the south end of Highway The general design | to give natural drainage into a small | TAR, WASHINGTON D MARCH 2, 1930—PART FOUR This modernistic administration building, in keeping with the best modern traditions of airport construction, is to modernistic design and finish. ‘The | be completed at Washington Airport about April 1. The building will be of brick and stucco, rising above a ter- race and overlooking the entire flying field. The curved front of the top story will form a glassed control tower, from which all field operations will be directed. Plans for this building have been approved by the Commission of Fine Arts and the structure is to form one of the prominent features of the approach to Highway Bridge.—Star Staff Photo. FUEL OIL ENGINE PASSES TESTS | ON BLOCK WITHOUT TROUBLE Flying Experiments to Be Launched Soon at Wright Field With Two of New Type Motors. ‘The Packard fuel oil engine has come through official block tests with flying colors at the Army Air Corps materiel division test laboratories, Wright Field, Dayton, Ohio, and flight tests of two of the engines are to begin soon at the Ohio field. Development of an airplane motor based upon the Diesel principle has been one of the most eagerly awalted aero-| nautical achievements in the history of flying, and the Army tests of the Pack-| ard engine constitute one of the out- standing aviation developments of mxs,1 year. ‘Though the Packard Diesel passed its | 50-hour test stand run with unusual success, its acceptance by the Army is not yet assured by any means. The flight tests which are about to begin will put the engine to the acid test of actual performance. The flight tests/ probably will continue for many weeks and the Air Corps may reserve its final judgment on the engine until late in the Summer. Rigorous Tests. The Army Air Corps engine tests are as rigorous as any ever applied to an aircraft engine and are accepted by the | Depertment of Commerce as sufficient | for the issuance of approved type cer- | tificates, without which no engine can | be used in a licensed airplane in this| country. ‘The official Army announcement of the tests does not go into any detail. It has been stated merely that the en- | gine has successfully completed a 54- hour endurance run at rated power and that flight tests will follow. Behind this meager announcement, however, is one of the most important aviation devel-| opments of many years, The Diesel engine, which relles upon the enormous pressures developed with- | its cylinders and the heat resulting om compression to fire the fuel oil | fharges, rather than upon electrical | College Park Landing of airplanes through dense fog by radio beams, which will keep the pilot informed at every instant of his exact position with relation to the land- ing area, will be possible in the near fu- ture, in the opinion of officials of the aeronautical branch of the Department of Commerce and the Bureau of Stand- ards, as a result of more than a year of experimental work at the Bureau of Standards airplane radio test station, College Park, Md. The landings will be made entirely by radio. A small radio range beacon similar to those now in standard use on the air- ways, will mark out the direction of the runway for the fog-blinded pilot. Another beam will mark out on a plane at right angles to the directional beam the path to be followed in the glide down to the fleld. A third radio marker beam will inform the pilot of his prog- tess along the directional and gliding beams, showing him where the limits of the landing area are located. Many Experiments Tried. The aim of the experiments, it is ex- plained, is to mrmlt airplanes to land at an airport fog so dense that the ground is invisible. During the year of experimental work many methods and devices have been tried. “Each of the three elements of the landing system is being perfected by detailed study and trial flights,” it was reported by the Department of Com- merce. “Many technical problems re- main to be overcome. As the elements of the system are tried in combination some of them may be entirely altered. ‘The work has advanced to the point, however, where the bureau is convinced that it will be possible to give instan- taneous position in three dimensions to a pilot in such manner that he may successfully land in dense fog.” The pilot landing in fog, it was ex- plained, must be given instantaneous Information on his three co-ordinates in space. In other words, he must be guided to and along a suitable must know how far along this has gone and must know how is 'I.':?svei t(hz ground. information is given directive radio belcon,s:he lebc’!')n.d!l:r;.lll marker beacon and the third by a land- ing beam. The pilot receives the indi- cations of each by a visual instrument, :;d"!vge ox;ll‘rr;em bgy visual instrument, er or;rll — acon either by visual unway localizing beacos v guide the pilot ln(g the 11‘:1:‘ o?htfltnl runway, have been installed by the Bu- reau of Standards at College Park and at Mitchel Field, Long Island, where Lieut. James H. Doolittle, just resigned from the Army Air Corps, made his fa- mous “blind-landing” _demonstration, under auspices of the Daniel Guggen- heim Fund for the Promotion of Aero- nlx:l%o lll:sc )l',ean ge Park all three ele) the system have been lmufi’o%nslg: runway localizing beacon, marker bea- cons and landing beam. The first two are identical in principle, with the d rective-range beacons and marker be; cons developed for use on the Nation's alrways for guiding airplanes from one airport to another and for informing the pilot of his position on the airway. ‘Working on Third Element. The Bureau of Standards now is at work on the third element of the sys- tem, the landing . This beam intended to mark out a landing path LANDING OF AIRPLANES IN FOG BY RADIO BEAMS IS NEW GOAL Commerce Department and Bureau of Standards Perfecting Apparatus at is | of Test Station. which will bring the airplane down at the proper gliding angle to enable it to make a safe landing. ‘The landing beam, of 60,000 to 100,- 000 kilocycles, is directed at a small angle above the horizontal, the normal gliding angle. A simple receiving out- fit with visual indicator is used on the airplane. ,The airplane is maneuvered 50 as to keep the indicator always at a fixed point. When this is done, the plane is automatically at the proper gliding angle for landing. In one of the experiments at College Park the landing path as marked out by the beam began at a height of 2,000 feet approximately 3 miles away from the transmitter. At 1 mile the beam ‘was 240 feet high, at 1,000 feet 15 feet high and at 500 feet only 5 feet above the ground. | “It will be noted.” Bureau of Stand- ards officials explained, “that the slope | of the path decreases as the pilot ap- proaches the ground; this tends to fa- | cilitate a proper landing.” Proper Position Enforced. The curving path of the beam forces | the pilot, if he is to keep his indicator | in the proper position, to put his plane | in the proper landing position. As he | approaches the ground he is forced.to ! ull back on the control stick just be- ore touching the ground, coming out of the glide into the normal landing po- sition, with the tail of the craft down. Actual flight tests of the landing! beam have been made at College Park | with sufficient success to enable the re- search workers to predict eventual use | of the system for practical landings by | pilots who_ cannot see the ground or | anything miore than the instruments on | the instrument panel of the planes in WINTER VACATIONING BY AIR IS POPULAR Winter vacationing by air is becom- | ing increasingly popular among private | pilots and airplane owners, according | to H. R. Browning of New York, who | | stopped at the Anacostia Naval Alr Sta- | | tion this week on his way back home after a vacation flight to Florida in a :tlper-wmg Waco sport plane. “There were six or seven privately- owned planes flown by Winter vacation- ists at West Palm Beach and as many |at Miami” Mr. Browning said. “Thc construction of airports in cities and towns along the coast makes such a | trip easy and pleasant. I had no diffi- | culty at any time in obtaining service.” | A mile-square airport now is being | constructed at Savannah, Mr. Brown- | ing said. The field is being graded anc { will have a hard clay surface. At Day- { tona and West Palm Beach fields hav: ! been created by pumping up sand fron the ocean behind retaining walls. Th sand is water packed and makes ¢ | good landing surface without any fu: | ther treatment, he said. | Pan-American Airways, operating air- mail and passenger service to the West | Indies, Central America and South America, is doing a large passenger | sparks, as in the gasoline engine, is| regarded as much safer for aircraft op- | eration than any type of motor yet de- | vised. ‘The fuel oil used is non-inflammable {under ordinary conditions, virtually | eliminating the fire hazard, which now constitutes one of the greatest aviation risks. The complicated electrical igni- tion system of the gasoline motor, which causes most of the cases of engine fail- | ure, is done away with entirely in the Diesel engine. There are no magnetos, distributors, wiring or spark plugs to get out of order. There is no ignition interference to reckon with in radio operation. There are none of the other difficulties inherent in the electrical ig- | nition system. Economy of Operation. In addition to these advantages, the Diesel engine is far more economical to operate than a gasoline motor. Fuel oil costs but a fraction of the price for aviation gasoline. The weight which must be carried for equal mileages also is less, it is claimed. During the first public appearance of the Diesel engine last year Packard engineers flew the engine from Detroit to Langley Field, | Hampton, Va. s the power plant in a Stinson cabin monoplane, The flight was made at a fuel cost of less than $5, as against more than $30 for gasoline | for an engine of the same. power in the| same type of plane over the same route. The Packard Diesel engine is a nine- cylinder radial air-cooled motor similar | ;) in appearance to the air-cooled gasoline aviation engine, except for the ignition system and the type of air intakes. It| is understood that the engine develops 225 horsepower at 1,900 revolutions per | minute, For the flight ftests the Army will mount two of the engines in Army training-type airplanes. Department of Commerce requirements for approved- type certificates include 10 hours of flight tests, but the Army probably will g0_far beyond this requirément. Should the engine successfully pass all tests and obtain the Department of Commerce certificate for commercial use, a new milestone in aeronautical | progress will have been passed, in the | opinion of aviation authorities here. VARIED CARGOES ON AIR. Express Shipments Include ‘Talkie’ Movies and California Orchids. Alr express shipments over the West half of the transcontinental air mail route during the past few months have included such diversified objects as a ton of * le” motion picture equip- ment, spare parts for generators on an oil tank steamer disabled in San Fran- cisco Bay, California orchids for the Chicago market, lingerie from New York style shops for early Spring display, milinery and silkworms. | Nine companies flying contract air | mail routes now hold contracts also for the carrying of air express matter. The | National Capital is on the air express | system through the medium of the Clif- | ford Ball line, operating from Hoover Field to Pittsburgh and Cleveland. I AERIAL TRANSPORT STANDARD STUDIED Regulations to Add to Safety and Reliability Are Drawn by !.j‘.. gflxup. As a step toward increased safety |and reliability in air passenger trans- ipmfltnlk\n‘ the aeronautics branch of | the Department of Commerce now is drawing up and will put into effect, ‘“as soon as conditions will permit,” a standard of minimum requirements for transport operations. The requirements are being drawn to provide for the increasing growth of air transportation and will be appli- cable to all cperators in this country carrying passengers for hire on sched- uled services over fixed routes, it is explained by officials of the aero- nautics branch. “The requirements,” it was stated, “are being prepared with the co-opera- tion of the air transport organizations, and include complete radio equipment to insure two-way communication be- tween afrcraft in flight and stations on the ground and adequate ground organizaticns and facilities for the proper handling, maintenance and op- eration of the aircraft. This contem- plated action by the department is another step in the orderly progress and development of air .transportation and air commerce.” The acronautics branch, it was ex- plained, has established two funda- mental requirements to insure the maximum degree of safety and rella- bility in air transportation. The first requires that only airworthy craft shall used and operated by competent | pilots and the second requires the de- velopment of airways equipped with aids the navigation for day and night operations, including boundary-lighted intermediate fields, beacon lights, | weather service, frequent radio broad- casts of complete weather information, two-way rad'o communication with planes in flight and radio range beacons for cnnd\nlxM afreraft through “’f' ;tfiwlx;m or other conditions of poor visi~ y. To these two requirements it has been decided to add a third, which will make obligatory the full utilization of the air-navigation facilities and specifies that all aircraft engaged in the trans- portation of passengers for h're on scheduled interstate service shall be op- erated over fixed routes provided with these aids to air navigation, and that these aircraft shall be equipped to take full advantage of such aids. “Experience,” officials of the aero- nautics branch stated, “has shown that the department’s objectives can best be accomplished through the promulgation of suitable regulations, which, through their flexibility, may be readily kept abreast with the rapid progress of aeronautics, rather than by legislation which requires action by Congress.” In the interest of public safety and the development of air transportation all operators who establish passenger air lines in the future will be required by law to have all the prescribed facili- ties available before undertaking op- erations. If the Government has not already provided the necessary facili- ties, the company must establish them itself or await Government development of the voute in the ordinary course of its airway development program. | JOSEPH H. EHRHARDT, Seventeen, of St. Louis, Mo., winner of the new national indoor model airplane Notadept. aired the opinion that buildin New Correspondent Chosen. Here's some interesting news from Mr. C. B. Heinemann, who the column chooses, with all par- dons necessary, to appoint per- manently as correspondent of model aircraft news. A few columns back our forcibly appointed correspondent wrote in an interesting account on model planes from the toy fair at New York City. Judging from the fan mail in laudation of his article it may have been more than just “interesting.” “No new records for indoor flights were established at the na- tional indoor model airplane con- test, sponsored by the Aeronauti- cal Chamber of Commerce of America and held at the St. Louis arena last week, during the Inter- national Aircraft Exposition. “The contest was divided into three general flying groups—in- door hand-launched models, in- idoor hydro rise-off-water and in- door commercial fuselage flying models. These, in turn, were divided into the senior and junior groups. The junior group includ- ed all boys 15 years of age and under. A special sweepstakes event, open to all between 7 and 25, was held Sunday morning. An ;xmbltlon model contest also was eld. Senior Event Staged. “In_the senior indoor hand- launched contest the winners were as follows: First, Harold Dennison, 18, Marion, Ind., 337 seconds; second, Joseph Ehrhardt, 17, St. Louls, Mo., 308.2 seconds; third, Rurick Myers, 18, Chicago, IIl, 261.8 seconds. “In_the junior indoor hand- launched group the winners were: First, Kenneth Donzelot, 14, St. Louis, Mo., 261.3 seconds; second, Carl Fries, 14, Richmond Heights, Mo., 220.5 seconds; third, Charles Herr, 14, St. Louls, Mo, 185 sec- jonds; honorable mention, Robert Licklider, 14, St. Louls, Mo, 168 seconds. “All planes of the winners were of the pusher type and only young Dennison’s showed any variation from the usual “flying stick” type. His plane was equipped with an “underslung fin” directly under the wing. It was a beautiful flyer and in performances exceeded 4 minutes in each flight. “In the indoor hydro contest (rise-off-water) the senior win- ners were: First, Joseph Ehrhardt, 17, 8t. Louis, Mo., 162.5 seconds; second, C. Leja, 18, Chicago, Il 127 seconds; third, Ernest Mar- couiller, 18, Chicago, Ill., 120 sec- onds. “Young Marcouiller held the 1929 national all-round play- ground championship, but was not up to his usual standard in the hydro contest. “The junior hydro winners were: First, Andrew Mac -1, 14, St. Louis, Mo., 185 secorts:; sec- ond, Ralph Kummer, 14, St. Louis, Mo., 77.5 seconds. third, none, as only two hydros were entered. Sunday Contest Held. “The commercial fuselage ships were flown Sunday morning and, while no remarkable records were established, many fine ships were launched. -Some of these were fairly accurate as to scale, but such ships are seldom good in duration. Several entries rose and flew as if steered by a pilot, but as soon as momentum was lost they crashed into the seats or other obstacles. “One of the best of the flyers had bad luck. This was Joseph Ehrhardt, winner of one first and one second prize during the first day. His first ship buckled under the pressure of the motor nose plug and he hastily assembled another, only to have it duplicate Model Aircraft BY GEORGE W. WATERS. ISTER NOTADEPT, who writes about real planes and is even capable of flying them, will belittle no more. | The other day he confessed shamefacedly that the tiny model ship he boasted he could build and fly, for some reason unknown to himself, just absolutely refused to stay in the air. Thus ends the belittling of Mister Notadept. Maybe some kind little model builder will put him next to himself. But we've suggested that—he says he is going to have another try. Well, better luck to Mister Notadept, whose real name is being with- | held because of an urgent plea on the part of no other than Mister Mister Notadept is not the only “big bug” around town who has and flying little planes is a cinch. Well, nothing beats a try but a failure—maybe they’ll try! the catastrophe of the first. On his third trial he won second place. “The winners in the fuselage contest (rise-off-ground) senior group were: First, Casimer Leja, 16, Chicago, Ill, 1462 seconds; second, Joseph Ehrhardt, 17, St. Louis, Mo., 143 seconds; third, Ernest Marcouiller, 18, Chicago, 111, 26 seconds. “In the free-for-all sweepstakes contest, open to all between 7 and 25, the following were announced as winners: First, Harold Denni- son, 18, Marion, Ind., 380 seconds; second, Ernest Marcouiller, 18, Chicago, Ill., 262.8 seconds; third, Willlam Witman, 17, Memphis, Tenn., 259.4 seconds. “Young Ehrhardt was named city and national charnglon be- cause of the beauty of his ships and their splendid performance. Prizes Were Awarded. “Prizes were awarded to the win- ners, these including cups, wings, medallions, motors, kits and, in the city ail-round championship, a 12-week ground course went Joseph Ehrhardt. “The huge arena afforded ample height and width for the flyers, but several fine flights ended in disaster when ships crashed into hugh chandeliers or the suspended prize fight ring. Others crashed into the exhibition manual planes displayed around the arena. “Few ships of the freakish type were flown. In the hand-launched groups young Klein of Chicago flew a tractor with a “step down” tail assembly. This ship flew beautifully and on an even keel, but the tail asSembly was sus- pended several inches below the motor stick. “Several unique ships were en- tered in the fuselage contest. Some, however, were not new, but harked back to the early days of the Illinois Model Aero Club—old- est club of them all. One plane resembled the German war Taube and performed well, but was not good for duration. “The majority of the best flying fuselage planes were powered by means of the nose and tail ‘plugs’ in lieu of the usual removable motor stick. “The exhibition models, while generally referred to as ‘scale models,’ were not worthy of that distinction, and not one of these, including the winner of first prize, would have scored high in a real scale model contest. This is not said to disparage the beautiful work on these ships, but to correct the false impression that the dis- play was other than one of exhi- bition models just as announced by the management. In the exhi- bition contest first prize went to Joseph Ehrhardt of St. Louis, sec-~ ond to Ernest Pinckert of St. Loulis, third to Willlam Potthoff of Brentwood, Mo. Joseph J. Lucas, former national outdoor model flying champion, also acted as one of the judges, and Clarence Chamberlain pald the contest a brief visit Sunday morning.” Scale Model Contest. The District Model Aircraft League announces that models to be entered in the true scale model contest for workmanship must be delivered between 3 o’clock Thurs- day afternoon and 9 o'clock that night. They will be received by Natlonal Museum officials, where the meet is to be staged Friday and Saturday. To avold a mix-up of planes, each model builder will be given a receipt for his ship. After the flyer certifies that his model was produced by his own hands and is a reproduction of a real plane, he will be given a contestant’s button. The contest is open to all who wish to enter. DISTRICT IS TENTH, WITH 258 PILOTS California Leads, With 2,076 Licensed Flyers—New York Has 1,007. The District of Columbia, with 258 licensed airplane pilots of all classes, ranks tenth insthis respect among the | States, according to statistics of the acronautics branch, Department of | Commerce. There are 137 licensed avi- ation mechanics in the District, giving | the Capital fourteenth place among the States, The statistics show that on December 31 there were in the District of Colum- bia 59 licensed and 3 identified air- craft, aside from military planes of the Army and Navy. Of the 258 licensed pilots listed for the District of Columbia, as of Decem- ber 31, there were 190 holding transport pilot's. licenses, the highest type issied; 1 industrial license, 8 limited commer- cial licenses and 59 private licenses. California leads in civil aeronautics, ber of licensed aircraft. There are in California 832 licensed planes, as against 977 in New York. California has 390 airplanes bearing identification num- bers, but not licenses, while Illinois is second with 243. ‘There are 2,076 licensed airplane pllots of all classes in California, in- cluding 903 transport, 18 industrial, 179 limi commercial and 976 private. New York is second with 1,007 pilots. California boasts 1,461 licensed airplane mechanics, double the number in New York, its nearest competitor in this re- spect, which lists 733 mechanics. The States listing more licensed pilots of all classes than the District of Co- lumbia are California, Illinois, Michi- gan, Missouri, New York, Ohio, Okla- home, Pennsylvania and Texas. The figures show that there are 170 business out of Miami, Mr. Browning | championship, held at the Arena in St. Louis during the International Aircraft | licensed women pilots, of whom 11 are said, the terminal field there being onc | Exposition, with some of his models and prizes he won, which include the the busiest aeronautical visited during his trip, Metropolitan trophy. centers | Curtiss-Wright trophy, the Jefferson trophy, the Lindbergh medallion and the 143 private. There are 4 —Wide World Photo. transport, 16 limited commercial and women aviation mechanics, A the statistics show, except in the num- | MAIL PICK-UP TEST IS SET FOR TUESDAY Flight Demonstrations to Prove - Practicability of Device Sched- uled for Hoover Field. Flight demonstrations of a new type of airmail pickup device, which permiws the landing or picking up of mail by alrplanes in full flight and which may be used on the roofs of bulldings or aboard ships, will take place at Hoover Field at 10 a.m. Tuesday. The test will be witnessed by officials of the Fons Office and Commerce Departments, ¢(8- cers of the Army and Navy and weto. bers of Congress, ‘The plane to b: used in the demon- strations will be flown by Trowbridge Sebree, chief pilot of the Clifford Ball system, which gzernea the air trans) line between this city and Pittsburgh. Construction of the pickup “trap,” delayed by labor troubles and bad weather, was completed last week. The device consists of a cone-shaped metal chute with an opening 30 by 15 feet into which a cable hnnglng from the airplane is trailed in flight. ‘The cable is led into a slot at the rolnl of the cone, which is 30 feet long, and an attachment on the end of the cable engages the bag to be Plcked up and at the same time re- leases a trigger actuating strong springs which hurl the bag out toward the air- plane to take up the shock. Releasing of bags attached to the cable and low- ered from the plane also takes place in the cone and the releasing and pick- ing up may be accomplished during one passage of the cable through the cone, The pickup was developed by Dr. Lytle 8. Adams of New York, who will be in charge of the demonstration here. AVIATION NEEDS AIRCRAFT DRAFTSMEN COLUMBIA SCHOOL OF DRAFTING Send for Free Catalogue A3th and E Sts. NW, __ Metro. 5630 [