MAPPING OUT THE AIR

Evening Star, Issue 16559, 19 October 1917, Page 5

MAPPING OUT THE AIR

INTERNATIONAL ROUTES SUGGESTED. The ramifications of the British Empire scheme of air routes are endless, because branch lines can be established from any ipoint, and all of Europe can be covered. The advantage of tlie British Empire, and so of all the Allies, is in the fact that nearly all tho important centres of traffic are British territory, or, in other words, the British Empire can provid-j a whole scheme iu itself. In a suggested plan Russia, Italy, France, and Greece supply what the Empi'e omits; Leipzig alono. of German territory, appears, and that can bz avoided if necessary. Both the German and the British plans, take account of the necessity for regulation. If Gcrmai.y follows her normal method the whole concern may be taken over by the Government, and no trouble can arise between competing companies, merged interests, individual flyers, and other conHi ting interests. In fact, the German Federal Council presently will discuss a general series of regulations for air traffic, including such questions as imperial mails, lauding stages, Customs oflicers, and police. Tho British traditions of liberty and of individual enterprise make any such blanket regulation hard to conceive. In fact, tho first problem which Britain has to solve is that of the ownership of the air. Lawsuits have established the landholder's proprietary right to the air abovs his property. How far up does that right extend? Lord Montagu ot Beaulieu proposes to establish a limit by law— 2,000 ft, or noarly half a mile. The level above that he reserves for commercial vehicles!, flying with silenced engines and at a speed r.o greater than 80 miles an hour. It is not generally understood by laymen that aeroplanes losi speed as they go up, and that above 15,000 ft, for example, the ordinary biplane has Jost more than 30 per cent, of its. driving power. Incidentally that is why the new triplancs are so valuable, as they have the full speed of a biplane at these great altitudes. Because commercial planes, which will correspond to freight trains, will want to economise in gasolene consumption and will be comparatively slow at best, they are assigned to the 2,0004,000 ft level. The" /Zone abovo the ordinary commerce level would be for general air traffic, ordinary flying, and express baggage. Planes there would fly at 80-120 miles per hour, also with silent engines. The zone from 6,Cooft to 10,000 ft would be for the official planes of cacti nation, such as those carrying naval, military, and civil forces, police planes, and all others authorised by the Governments (participating in a special air convention drawn up before the lines were begun. Tho ordinary mail sen-ice would also use this level. Above 10,000 ft Lord Montagu would internationalise the air. Here would pass tho very fastest planes, carrying special i delivery letters, Government despatches, and all goods, passengers, and messages which demand immediate transportation. A business man in a hurry could, mount to this level and reach London from New York before his partner, starting by train from the American metropolis, could reach Chicago.

Lord Montagu's proposals have been met •with great enthusiasm, but aerial experts have criticised his scheme of levels, because of the difficulties with atmospheric conditions. A fog blanket, for example, might occupy a whole level, and make all traffic impossible. But generally it is accepted that the police planes—very swift things something like the Sopwith " pups" now used by the British Army, and mounted with a macTiino pun—would have the right to fly at all levels, and would be able to swoop down upon an ofTeiHler on any level. In iplaco of the local constable, the aerial police would take the registered numbers of planes breaking the speed limit, and might sweep up alongside an errant piano wiih a request to report to the police station the next morning.