Evening Republican, Volume 16, Number 213, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 5 September 1912 — WATER FLYING GAINING FAVOR IS SPORT [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

WATER FLYING GAINING FAVOR IS SPORT

THIS IS BECAUSE HYDRO-AEROPLANE HAS GREATLY REDUCED ELEMENT OF , DANGER IN AVIATION

JUST now when it has become apparent that the aeroplane entails too great a risk for the sportsman, inventors of flying machines the world over are-turning their attention to the hydro-aeroplane. This comparatively new air craft has given a fresh impetus to the business side of flying by reducing the element of danger so that the aviator may feel It prudent to go for an air sail without first making his will. Although the water plane! did not come into use until about 18 months ago. It has rapidly gained in popularity •rom the fact that It has not been the

cause of a single fatality or serious accident. It is true there have been plenty of spills and duckings and counterparts of accidents in which aviators have lost-their lives in land machines, but the pilots of the water machine have buffered nothing worse than a wetting.

There have been some striking illustrations of this. For instance, on February 10 Hugh Robipson while flying at Antibes, near Nice, France, started out to give a demonstration In rough weather. When he attempted to come down the shore was crowded with spectators and was forced to descend on the water. As he was about to settle a big wave rolled up and hit the tail of the machine, pitch lng him out head first Robinson escaped with a drenching. Two real’s before John B. Moisant was killed in Just such a fall on land. While making a flight of 370 miles along the Mississippi river Robinson’s motor stopped out over the river. He reached the water, drifted Bh’oreward and was towed back to the starting point by a boat. It is this margin of safety that makes the hydro-aeroplane popular with the sportsman, who heretofore has hesitated about taking up flying for the reason that the sensation did not Justify the risk. Aeroplane builders both in Europe and America have awakened to the situation and are turning out machines fitted with floats or hydros. , The aeronautical \ organizations throughout the country have been impressed with this clean record,of the hydro-aeroplane and are doing their utmost to promote thus form of flight. As a schools are being established along water-fronts to supplant the aerodromes on land. This alone should insure a liberal patronage when it is considered that the Aero Club of America and its affiliated clubs alone have a membership of 8,000 and the Aeronautical of New York has about 300 members. On a rainy day last May Mr. Collier, with Walter Brookins as plot, flew from Seidler’s Beach to the flagship Washington, anchored off Ninety-sixth street, to deliver an invitation to Admiral Osterhaus to attend the Aero show then in progress of the Grand Central Palace. Previous to that Admiral Osteahaus had contended that no flying machine was worth more than ten cents, but he completely changed his mihd. The 32-miles was made ip 30 minutes, good speed being made on account of a following wind. By motor the trip requires two hours and by train upward of an hour quarter.

Overwater flying about. New York is not an unusual spectacle. Thousands of persons almost daily for two weeks last winter watched Frank Coffyn in his Wright hydro-aeroplane skim the surface of the water of the bay from the battery, drift into the air with a moving picture machine, hurdle bridges, circle Miss Liberty, spiral over ferryboats and drop back on the water with the ease of a gull. He had one or two mishaps, but was always towed back safely. The nearest approach to real danger occurred when on one of these flights Coffyn dropped his camera in

the water several hundred feet below. The machine fortunately did not hit a ferryboat and consequently there was only the loss of a camera. It was while making these fights that Coffyn demonstrated the feasibility of communicating with ships in case of emergency. He flew down the harbor and overtook the Italian liner Axona and landed a passenger Without the slightest difficulty. Coffyn afterward said he could have caught the boat 60 miles outside York, just as easily. r It would also seem that the water machine would be valuable for lifesaving purposes along the coast. During the Chicago aviation meet last August an aviator lost control while flying and was pitched into the water. Three-quarters of a mile away Aviator Hugh Robinson was performing circles in a Curtiss machine. Seeing his fellow flier in distress, he flew to the rescue at a mile a minute, reached the spot, landed on the water alongside the submerged aeroplane and offered to give the plot a lift. Ail this in less than one minute. On another occasion Naval Aviator Herbster while carrying a passenger over San Diego Bay had some mishap in alighting and turned over. This was about half a mile from the shore. Long before motor boats could reach the dpot Harry Atwood had launched his machine from the beach and In less than a minute was to the rescue of Mr. Herbster and his passenger. Neither was hurt, and both preferred to stay by their machine, which w'as upside down in the water, until a motor boat came to tow It to shore. A Hammondsport physician who had received an urgent ? call to see a patient across Lake Keuka, not being able to get a boat at once, found an aviator to take him there. The patient was in a serious condition, and the time saved was important This n?w aircraft is not limited to the water. It can fly at a speed of 60 miles or more, skim the water at 60 miles and run over the ground at 35 miles. It therefore marks the conquest of three elements —air, water and earth. The hydroaeroplane is essentially an aeroplane equipped with floats to take* the-ptaee of wheels. Almost every builder has his own ideas for a hydro, and. hardly any two are exactly alike. America is far ahead of Europe in

lmatter rs hydroaeroplane*, •* much so that this water plane may be said to be an American invention. While experiments were conducted m Europe since 1905 only one machine the Fabre hydroaeroplane, as much as left the water, and it was wrecked afb er a few’ short trials. That was in 1910. The first complete success was attained by Glenn H. Curtiss in the early part of 1911, and for nearly a year he practically had the field to himself. The Idea of the hydroaeroplane, however, seems to have originated with William Kress, an Austrian inventor. After 27 years & experimenting he completed a machine fitted with cylindrical floats of aluminum which were tried out at the Unter-Tull-nerbach chantiers in 1898 and 1901. It never left the water. In 1902 and 1903 the Wright brothers made some experiments, but they were terminated by the breaking of a dam near Dayton, Ohio. Other inventors followed, but without any propounded success. Among those notably were Parseval, Dufaux brothers. Archdeacon, Gabriel, Voisin and Bleriot. The last three collaborated in their experiments, Voisin acting as pilot of the machines, which were tried out over the Seine river. In July of 1905 Voisin was trying out a Bleriot in which the pilot was seated in a cagelike apparatus. The machine became submerged and for some seconds he was fastened underneath, the water. He did not like this experience and after that the machines were flown over land. Then in. 1911 along came Glenn H. Curtiss with a satisfactory solution of the problem. It was not until January, 1911,

that a hydroaeroplane was ready for trial. The first tests were failures, and for two weeks daily the machine was set afloat to undergo some new change, some knowledge being gained from each test. Assisting with the experiments were Lieut. Theodore Ellyson of the navy and Lieut. Paul Beck, Lieut. John C. Walker, Jr., and the late E. M. Kelly of the. army; Hugh Robinson and C. C. Witmer, aviators of the camp. The men wore bathing suits usually and no one thought anything of wet clothing or cold feet. The success which came January 26 was a surprise even to Mr. Curtiss. On this day the machine was taken out for its usual inspection and much to the delight and surprise of Mr. Curtiss, the pilot, it leaped into the air. The success was electrifying. Thu spectators ran along the beach shout ing and the ships that caught sight of the man gull sent exultant blasts. This event marked the success of a new flier. There were daily flights thereafter, with and without passengers. The navies of the world were quici: to recognize its value as an auxiliary If had hardly attained success tefeve the United States navy acquired aD hydroplane for experimenting aad if has since added others. An aviation section In charge of Capt. Washing ton IrvJng Chambers has since been established at Annapolis. Other nations failing to develop a relia-ble aeroplane iollowed in line and ordered machines from

CURTIS HYDRO-AERO-PLANE TAKING THE WATER

FRANK COEEIN ELYING IN HYDROPLANE