Viewing page 38 of 69

This transcription has been completed. Contact us with corrections.

August, 1931         U.S. AIR SERVICES       27

[[margin]] I wonder if Hirth was planting seeds for the reeping of to-day's Nazis'! [[?]] J 1940 [[/margin]]

Let's Go to the Elmira Soaring Meet!
HATTIE MEYERS BARNABY

THE biggest event in the life of glider pilots is due to come off the first two weeks in August- The National Soaring Meet, at Elmira, N.Y. During the past two years many of those interested in aviation have turned their attention to motorless flying; in other words, gliding and its ultimate, soaring. Last fall the few who were cognizant of, and were able to use their knowledge of, this new and interesting form of locomotion were present at the first meet of this kind ever held in this country. Lieutenant Barnaby, who holds the first F.A.I. Soaring license in the U.S.A.; Wolf Hirth, the famous German soaring pilot and instructor at Germany's Wasserkuppe; Hawley Bowlus, who taught the Lindberghs to glide and build the first American soaring plane; Dr. Wolfgang Klemperer, one of the world's first soaring pilots (a friend and contemporary of Tony Fokker), and very few others, constituted the nucleus of this more advance and more scientifically interested group of glider pilots.

You all have read of last year's soaring events carefully recorded in the aeronautical magazines, but here is one of the biggest events that they left out. This was the loss from sight of Jack O'Meara as he soared down behind a range of mountains- and failed to appear after a reasonable amount of time had elapsed. Several of us were talking as we watched (I being the woman present probably was doing said talking). Wolf Hirth had got in a comfortable position on the ground (to rest the good leg that has to work so hard to make up for the leg he lost, not in flying in the German Air Forces, but on a motorcycle) and the conversation turned into more general thoughts than concern for Jack O'Meara - excepting Hawley Bowlus and myself. Time was "fugiting" and no O'Meara. Woman-like I was stewing. Bowlus and I were about to hop into my old but dependable Pontiac to get to a place where we could ascertain whether O'Meara was still in the land of the living, crippled or whatnot. (Good lil old word that - whatnot). 

The least we could do was go down to the airport and get a plane to patrol the mountains and take care of developments from then on. Hirth quietly got up, threw his thoroughly chewed grass away, called for men on the shock cord, and in a few seconds he was shot off the mountain top into air that only the most skilful and experienced soaring pilot could possibly have stayed up in, let alone soared in. The air was positively dead. We all held our individual breaths as Hirth skimmed the mountain tops and also disappeared from sight! Suddenly the sun glinted on the beautiful natural finish of the graceful wings of his Musterle (names after his wife) as he barely skimmed the mountains, coming back to us. His voice called "O'Meara all right! O'Meara all right!" from some distance off - then he circled over us, landed quietly, gracefully, near his take-off point, climbed out, pulled another weed, ruminated a bit, and that was that.

Two people look out through the same bars
On sees the mud, one the stars

As Hirth and Bowlus stood kidding each other, arms about each other's shoulders, both just nearing thirty, my mind flew back to 1918 - the World War - these two boys then, just verging on manhood; and now fourteen years later, the German boy comes here, gives generously of the art that he knows - soaring - and, quick to recognize a situation, uses his finesse - and it took finesse - to go find out if our American boy was in need of help. So those of us who have long contributed to aviation see the fulfilment of the ideals we started with - aviation hopping the barriers of Race, Religion, and Creed with its annihilation of Time and details to a perspective of Tolerance - just as surely as our planes hop the highest mountain tops, carrying mail and people closer and more quickly into contact with each other. If you have never been on the mountain tops how can you appreciate the valley below?

THIS year Hearth and O'Meara will not be at Elmira. Hirth is back on the job at his Wasserkuppe, teaching, giving to perpetuity the jewels of his big heart and keen mind, and Jack O'Meara is representing the U.S. at the German Soaring Meet. Dr. Klemperer is gravely ill and will be greatly missed. These men have left so much of themselves that is infinite, however, that Elmira will savor of them. There will be enough of the original nucleus to guide activities, there will be more participants, better equipment, the necessary time saving factors have been more clearly anticipated, and no doubt there will be participants of the opposite sect (as Ring Lardner says) in this year's events, plus lotsa enthusiasm.

In other words, about this time of year the covered wagons of 1931 (trailers equipped with gliders, we hope their own tools, shock cord, maybe a Dowd release, and we implore you, your own barometers) will head for Elmira, N.Y. and unless I miss my guess young Haller from Pittsburgh will show the cock-eyed world a soaring plane that will soon be within financial reach of everyone. If only a few of this year's glider graduates retain their present satisfaction and zest I know of several families that are going to be fed on beans until Pa or Ma gets a soaring plane for the meet in 1932. So grab that old flivver, see America first en route to Elmira, and have the time of your like at the soaring meet. I may be wrong but - it's simply wonderful!

First Air Mail from Australia to England
THE first direct air mail from Australia to England was landed at Croyden, at 2:28 P.M. on May 14, 1931. Leaving Sydney on April 24th and Darwin three days later, a machine, piloted by Air Commodore Kingsford-Smith, was flown to Akyab, in Burma. At this point it was taken over by an Imperial Airways liner and flown to England via Karachi, Persian Gulf, Iraq, Egypt, Greece and Central Europe. The journey of 13,00 miles was thus completed in 20 days, a saving of two weeks as compared with the ordinary transport.