CREATING LOS ANGELES-MOSCOW AIR ROUTE

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 80, Issue 136, 10 June 1937, Page 10

CREATING LOS ANGELES-MOSCOW AIR ROUTE

Spectacular Progress Which Russia’s Pilots and Builders are Achieving in the Conquest of the Air. G iant Machines That Defy Arctic Storms and Fog. Parachute-Jumping the National Sport.

rpil E stand of the USSR at the last Paris Aeronautical .Show has again afforded a striking proof of the spectacular progress which her pilots and builders are achieving

in the conquest of the air, writes Andre Pierre. One went away from this exhibit with the conviction that Russia has almost emancipated herself from European and American technique and is, with her own means and materials, building first-rate planes to-day, which would stand comparison with the latest and best American, Italian and French models. One of the greatest attractions of the exhibit was the giant ANT-25, the monoplane with which the three celebrated pilots. Tchkalov, Baidukow and Bieliakov, had defied arctic storms and fog last summer. After a non-stop flight of 5,825 miles, out of which 3,100 miles were flown over the icy desert of the Arctic Ocean, they landed on a sandy and deserted island on the extreme eastern border of the Asiatic continent. The plane, built by engineer Toupolev, Russia’s leading constructor*and director of the Tzagui Institute, was equipped with an M.34-R motor, of the same type as the one used by the ace Gromov two years ago for his 7,700 mile flight over a circumscribed route. It is a 950 11. P. motor, adapted at the Frunze plant in Moscow to the special requirements of arctic flying. As such, it presents several special features among which is its unusually low consumption of fuel. Another of the exhibits, the ANT-35, was flown to Paris by Gromov, after his remarkable performance of last September, when he flew from .Moscow to Leningrad and back, almost 800 miles, in 3hr. 38min. at an average speed of 217 miles an hour, with seven passengers on board. This monoplane, also constructed at the Tzagui—which is the abbreviation for Aero-Hydrodynamic Institute —is built throughout of metal and is equipped with double gear and a complete radio installation. Its spacious and wellheated cabin provides comfortable accommodation for ten passengers. It is in a word a veritable “express of the air” in which the Russians place high hopes as a rapid means of transportation, for its stability in the air is perfect and its manipulation easy, even at very great altitudes. Maps and graphs enabled the visitor to appreciate the importance and difficulties of the long distance flights undertaken last fall by Levanevsky and Molokhov. They deserve special attention, even though they did not involve spectacular speeds or nonstop hops. But these flights were real voyages of exploration over virgin territory, and the material collected by the fliers is a precious contribution towards the conquest of the Arctic, upon which the Soviet Union has einbarked with grim determination to succeed. Levanevsky and his pilot Levchenko proved the possibility of establishing a regular northern air-route between the Soviet Union and the United States. They left Los Angeles on an American plane built under their direction and followed the west, coast of the Continent, through San Francisco, Seattle and Juneau, and crossed Alaska, stopping at Fairbank and Nome. From there they hopped across the Bering Strait, landing al Cape Wellen. Their Siberian itinerary ran along the Arctic, coast, to lhe mouth of the Lena, then upstream along that mighty river to Yakutsk, after which they headed westward for Moscow. They hail flown in all 11.806 miles, under most difficult meteorological and general conditions. 'The fact that their plane was equipped with the latest devices for the measurement of temperature, atmospheric pressure and so forth, enabled them to make exhaustive study of conditions, and also to gather valuable information regarding possible landing places, where if is now planned to establish air-ports. They

gave proof j’.rat .aring and resourcefulness when compelled to alight, on the stormy Pacific near Goose Island and when flying over the Altai mountains in a snow-storm. This flight would not have been possible without the enormous preparatory work performed in the past ten years in the Arctic regions, which are now covered with a net of radio stations and direction finders. At, no moment of this epic flight did lhe two men feel isolated, for their every message was immediately picked up and answered by a chorus of stations. A few days after Levanevsky’s landing in Moscow on September 13, Molokhov, the crack flyer who saved 3!) shipwrecked of the Chelyuskin two years ago, alighted on the Moskva River in his giant twin-motor hydroplane S.S.S.R. N.2, with seven collaborators on board. Without meeting with the slightest accident, he had flown .15,535 miles along the Arctic Ocean and Bering and Okhotsk Seas, starting from Krasnoyarsk on July 22. A glance at the maps shows the immensity of this itinerary. His mechanic, Pobiejimov, considered Russia’s best mechanic for arctic flying, was enthusiastic in his praise of the motor. “With such an engine,” he declared, “we could have covered twice that distance.’*

achievements of the young Russian aviation which is, however, doing well also in other fields, like that of high altitude flying. The best Russian flier of this kind, Kokkinaki, is convinced that the future of avihlion in general lies in the stratosphere, and since the Soviet Union became a member of lhe F.A.I. (International Aeronautical Federation) he has established a few altitude records with loads. Last. September, carrying a. 2-ton load, he reached an altitude of 37,505 feet. The whole flight lasted one hour and eight minutes. However, his record has since been beaten by another Russian pilot, Alexeyev, while quite recently the world record in this class, hitherto held

by the Italian Antonini, a Caproni pilot, was beaten by Youmachev. All these records were officially registered by the F.A.I. Moro recently the Soviet pilots have turned their attention to gliding, and made a few long-distance flights which have placed them in the class of world recordAbsolutely unparalleled in the history of aviation is Russia’s effort in the field of parachute jumping, the nation sport which enjoys tremendous popularity not only among the professions but among all classes of the population, thanks to the formidable propaganda of the Ossoviakhim and kindred organisations. The Red Army counts among its effectives several squadrons of trained jumpers, whose performance at the last Russian military manoeuvres aroused the admiration of all the foreign military missions. A regular war in the air was staged near Minsk and a special feature was the landing of a squadron of parachute jumpers and of numerous units of artillery on enemy territory, right behind the enemy lines. The whole complicated manoeuvre, from the moment of the giving of the order to the landing, was executed with fantastic rapidity. The sky was literally darkened with parachutes. Naturally the Russian constructors devote much attention to the improvement of the parachute devices, especially with a view to enabling the jumpers to choose the landing spot. The young engineer Pavlov, demonstrated the “paraplane” devised by him, which is a parachute with folding wings supported by a chassis of. duraluminum. He rose in a plane, attaining an altitude of 10,500 feet, jumped off, and, after eight seconds of a precipitous descent, unfolded his wings, which gave him the appearance of a giant insect. He executed a number of complicated loops and other manoeuvres with them during 128 seconds. Having descended to 2,790 feet, he got rid of his wings, which opened into a parachute and landed by t' os, while he manoeuvred his ow- ie and landed exactly at the spot losen. The reason why i kes such a tremendous effort in 1. lopment of her aviation is the immens.iy of the territory and the necessity of providing rapid means of communication without further delay. Russia has very few railways and practically no highways. For years to come, therefore, aviation is her only hope, not to mention the requirements of her defence in case of war. A new airport is being built at Toushino near Moscow, with a landing area of a diameter of 1.24 miles and a large hotel. The facades of the buildings will overlook the new Moskva-Volga Canal. It will be the starting-point and terminus of Russia’s three most important airways: MoscowVladivostock, Moscow-Tiflis and MoscowTashkent. All facilities will be provided for air-races and exhibitions. They are erecting stands for the public which will accommodate 200,000 people. Moscow’s old airport is on the Leningrad highway and will remain in operation. The Kossarev Flying Club, which is the aeronautical centre of Russian youth, is being enlarged and stands for 700,000 spectators are being erected on its flying-field. Numerous new hangars will be built in all larger centres, in view of the fact that the 1937 schedule calls for the enlargement of the air-fleets of all kinds. This brief survey of so colossal an effort shows that both in the field of military as in that of commercial aviation Russia’s progress has been an exceedingly rapid one. Her technical equipment is fully up to the requirements and can hold its own against foreign competition. But the most remarkable thing about, Russian aviation is undoubtedly the quality of its human material and the skill and courage of its pilots.