IT IS ONLY GRAVITY

Lake Wakatip Mail, Issue 3970, 14 October 1930, Page 7

IT IS ONLY GRAVITY

SECRET OF THE GLIOER'S POWER When Isaac Newton watched the historic apple tall downward instead ot upward' he did not realise that the very Loire responsible tor bringing that fruit to the ground would one day provide the motive power tor men to soar above the earth (writes •!. W. Ik .n tile ' Daily Pictorial ’). it is tin* “gravity motor” of today which has pioneered aviation and is 're 'ponsihie tor that rapidly-growing pastime of gliding. Gliding is comparatively new to Australia. but in the last twelve months chibs ini re been formed in all States, and almost daily this fascinating sport of cruising silently and gently through space is gaining adherents. The Gliding i'lnh of Victoria is only in its infancy, and much time must rt necessity b > spent in elementary work with the ; hnplest forms of gliders or sail-planes. The enthusiasts behind the moveawnt, however, confidently look to the day when, like the more advanced experts of Germany and America, their “ gravity motors ” will take them thousands of feet into the sky and teach ncm the thrills and wonders of smooth!v moving through space with

tin* effortless certainty which hitherto hints alone have known.

For the pilots of these nnpowered planes have remained alolt tor as long as eighteen hours, climbed above 7,000 feet, and travelled more than 100 miles. Unlike the aeroplane, with its roaring man-made engine, which has torn a

;creOching path through the sublime solitudes of space, the glider has gently cast itself upon the bosom oi the wind and allowed the natural elements to .-.each it the true mysteries of the upper air. The man who many hundreds of •,-ears ago strapped wings to his hack md jumped off the ton ol a high tower was not so great a fool as those who ■•.till smile thoughtlessly at his tragic effort to pioneer aviation. He would not have been as surprised is many are to-day to see a man strapped to a pair of wings take off from a hill and without any motor •limb steadily to tour or five thousand foot, circle about gracefully among the ■kinds, swoop gently for several miles ■arthward. circle again, and then start o rise* once more, until after several hours’ enjoyment of the greatest ot all Measures he returns to alight as gracefully as the seagull on the beach. The seeming impossibility of climbng to 7,000 ft without mechanical aid s after all so simple that the only wonder is that more people have not ,ried to jump off towers during the last civ centuries.

The glider of the type at present hung used in Australia is built for in■fructional purposes, and is conse(iiently more solid and heavy than those used for climbing. These elementary machines are used merely for gliding from a hill to the fields below.

The more advanced type of sail-plane is much lighter and obtains its lilting power from the rising air currents. Alter taking off from a lairly high hill rise pilot of the sail-plane, while gliding gently earthward, manoeuvres a bout in search of rising currents. These he knows how to detect by means ol instruments and also the behaviour of his plane.

He also knows that on a hot clay a rising current will bo found over sandy beaches, while small hills, against which wind is blowing will provide upward blasts.

The pilot, once having found an ascending current, maintains his forward speed by means of bis downward gliding angle or “ gravity motor,’’ while the greater strength of the upward air current gradually carries him higher above the earth.