With the Aerial Experimental Association's Second Aeroplane.

Progress, Volume IV, Issue 5, 1 March 1909, Page 157

With the Aerial Experimental Association's Second Aeroplane.

The firbt aeioplane of this Association was descubed (with an lllustiation) recently in PRO<>RkSS, and its flight of oIS leet chronicled. It came to gnet thiough the buckling of the tail mciteual, as described at the time. A new one, known as "White "Wing," has been constructed by the Association, and though it has not managed to fly moie than IUU7 feet, and that with one ''touch," it is spoken ot with gieat lespect b> the cuticfa ot the Ameiican side, who find m it some \en tjootl points, ab one might expect tiom connection with the m\enti\e genius ot J)i GrahamBell These ma\ be lecogmsed m the deseuptiou (Scientific Amei'ican'b) we publish; but it i& also recognisable that theie me many detects .such as the need ±01 example oi a special tiack for enabling tie machine to use. From the published description we take the following: — Beside the horizontal rudder 111 fiont for controlling the elevation of the aeroplane and maintaining its fore and aft equilibrium, theie is the usual \ertical niddei for side steenng in the middle ot the box tail, while in addition to this the wing tips aie pnoted honzontally about their forwaid edges and made to moie up and down slightly 111 turning a coiner by means of a cord which runs thiough pulleys at the reai comers, of the upper plane, and which is attached to the aviator's body. The instmcthe leaning to one side of the a\iator in making a turn is thus used to set the wing tips propei ly. The new aeroplane has double superposed surfaces There are two distinethe features in the design. The first is the general principle and anangement of the truss which supports the two surfaces, and the second as the shape of the surfaces themselves. In this machine the truss differs radically from ordinal y designs, being a double bowstring truss, which was found to h.ue stiuctmal advantages iner the flat budge design common]} used. The other featiues which distinguish tl c machine fiom tho usual type of double-deck machines lie in the shape ot the suppoiting surfaces, which are very much like a bud's wmg in plan, tapering toward the tips, and at the same time deci easing in cun ature A wooden propeller is used, with an eight<*ylindoj 40 hoise-power Curtiss air-cooled motoi The piopeller's diameter is G teet 2 inches. The pitch is about equal in diameter. At about 1,200 R.f M., with the motor de\ eloping 25 horse-power, the propeller develops some 245 pounds thrust. The aeioplane is 42 feet 6 inches long from tip to tip, and 4 feet deep at the outside panel. It has a total suppoiting suiface ot 408 sqiuue feet, while its weight is 431 pounds. In flight, the lateial stabilitj of this machine wa& remarkable. In appearance the machine is the same as the first built by the Association, which was illustrated in one of our recent issues.