BALLOONING.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 595, 25 August 1909, Page 7

BALLOONING.

-. CLEMENT.BAYARD STRIKES A TREE. CAR FALLS IN THE SEINE. HAD PREVIOUSLY BEATEN RECORDS IN ALTITUDE. (Dy Telctrrapp.-l'rcsi /IsaqalfUlon -Oouf r|*t>t I (Rec, August 24, 10.50 p.m.) Par|s, August 24. Disaster overtook tho French dirigible balloon, Clement-Bayard, after she had made a buccessful trial trip prior to delivery to Russiq. The airship had beaten tho altitude records, haying attained 1500 metres (163 P yards), and was descending at liaisons. Laffitte, on tho left bank of tho Seine. In doing so it was caught in a squall and struck a treo. Tho car became detached from tho gaseijvelope, and fell in the Seine. The four occupants swam to safety. WHICH BALLOON? A CLEMENT-BAYARD FOE ENGLAND. M. Clement, the designer and builder ot tho airship, built some time ago a Clement-Bayard i\o. 1. which was reported to have made very successful flights m Paris. Then ho began Clement-Bayard No. 2, on much bigger and improved lines; and it was announced in Juno last that, through private effort (particularly on tho part of &. Arthur du Croslan option of purchase had been secured for {lie British bovernraent over Clement-Bayard No. 2. A run through English flies shows no indipation of a Clement-Bayard No. 3, nbr of a dirigible balloon of this type Lelng under construction foe' ltussja. The question therefore suggests itself, in spite of tho language of tho cablegram: is the Clement-Bajard that has come SX! th . e nl « h 'P which *as intended for Britain. A point of coincidence was that 3f. Clement hoped to catty out his trials and bo ready to sail aordss the Channel from Pans to London just prior to tho end of August. Airship Described. ■ j Mr. Arthur du Cros made in Juno tho fol-, winLf,i ato 1 !e 1 ( " T . ho a iFVB »iH bo of 227,501) cubic feet pppacitj, failed with t«o propellers driven by h,o motors of 220-h.p. each. ■ hhe will bo ablo to carry 25 patsengefs, at a! ankS'journey" 1 ' Mu,phes ° f potrol fw \ "Tho airship will be of tho shape of a fish, or torpedo, tho envplqpo aboi,t gqoft. long,/and the car stretching almost from end to end nderneath it. The propellers will be at tho ?<m {»« envelops is cotton'and rubber, toe balloon is of the non-rigid lyne similar to that w,th which the Brit,s been experiment,- all along. Presumablythm" (oro, it 15 that which our Army favours No price has been fwd for the airship, for until "it hUn6eK * lU DOt PrOddtsd' Voyage' to London. "Whilo the airship i S '$ 0 ha\e a lifting during lie Pans-to-Lohdoli voyage-a crew sufficiently strong to work her and 'no more ',Tho inventor will ho one member o 'tho' .oonI).nt Sh ? n •" anotl,e , r - is vorv ' confident of success and he is prepared to list tho exmtence 6f he airship, 'to p say nothing •<NoVhit e T " f - * ,n »«!'. on the chahee 'flor have I any doubts myself. Of course we mKt have reasonably good atmosXrm 6hall sel * ct a toly caln, day •With, for Choice, a 20-mil 6 breeze m our avpnr, -We shall have plenty of weight carrying power to snare. Most of it will bV»4d {or oarrv, nff ptra stpte, of petrol/' * will Z »S.« to i Th ? Ti ™. s '" ths ™ »wp TC.-i -4 nof n,to B e tn<-r correct, however Zfcf? hi 1 * V a nov ™ { S|1 'P' bv the design of the frame and,the car manv of ho 5S3 U Ml f T l "™',* 'associated m'l , »'„! K... Cl a njent.B nr ard ««(> Ims proved - satisfactory,; wid , the wit be far mora »fwfqllv. enginnd. She should thus hav™ li.gher speed, ■ grower carryipg power, pnd Kidor range of octipn." " . '