HONG KONG DAILY PRÉSS
Page
TUESDAY, MAY 26, 1936.
NO BAN YET ON THE FLYING FLEA"
MINISTRY
STATEMENT-
Landon, May 8. The small "Flying Flea" gera- plane is not yet to be banned in Britain not even temporarily wrties a correspondent.
When I inquired at the Air Ministry yesterday whether, la i view of representations made by the Air League, any suspension of the permits of "Flying Fieas" was likely to be made, I was told
"The Secretary of State Jor Alr has decided not to suspend at present the permits ünder which those machines are now being flown."
The decision was made in reply in a suggestion from the Air Lea- gue that pending Investigation of the design of the "Firing Flea." the use of such machines should be prohibited. This suggestion was supported yesterday by the jury
AVIATION
"BIRD MAN" AT HANWORTH
Spectacular Jump From 'Plane
DIVING AND FLYING
London. May 3. A crowd of about 15,000 people at Hanwortl Aerodrome yesterday saw a man jump from an aero plane 10.000 feet from the ground and then fly under his own power, using only a pair of wings strapped to his body.
D
day. just before he went, up, was a model of brevity, consisting of ៨. very little more than "How
I'm jes goin' 10 do mu
The man is Mr. Cem Sohn, and his flying is certainly a thrilling sight to watch. It is said that in favourable conditions he can per-folks? form loops in the air. fly in any fight."." direction, and get as far as two Ł miles from his direct descent to the earth.
The wings are made of fabric. supported, as in an umbrella, by metal struts, and Mr. Sohn opens
14
Without more ado ne then hot bled across to his aeroplane and was soon being taken up, tollowed by the aeroplanes hired by the "Daliy Express." who have had the enterprise to bring him over here.
most towards the earth by raising
That climb provĘG a renginy his arms. He grasps them by the process, the aeroplanez leaving the handles affixed to the tips of the aerodrome and then ascending wings, and in th's painful, rigid.junt: it was almost impossible for and perilous position performs his
the naked eye to pick them out various movements in the air.
of the sky.
at the inquest on Fit.-Lt. A. M.hem when he is falling head fore Cowell, who crashed and was kill- ed on Monday when testing "a" "Flying Flea" at Penshurst, Kent
Mr. A. H. Neve, the eproner. stated in summing up the evidence that there will be an ocial in- quiry into the matter" to which the Government is "giving very considerable attention."
Not that Mr. Sohn will admit
that there is anything perilous. He is a modest young American of twenty-five, who ev'dently dis- likes talking, and particularly
about himse't.
FALSE ALARMS..
BABY PLANE
-IDEAL FOR WOMEN
Air Ministry tests are to be made. of a hew baby 'plane-the Grass-
quite invisible to many eyes when Mr. Sohn was suddenly seen fall-; ing at an incredible spred towards us. He had a smoke bomb attach- ed to his legs, and as soon as he was free of the machine, he ex-hopper-designed by F W. Brough- ploded 1.
ton, which should be ideal for those who want to fly at motoring cost, and should give many women their first chance to fly.
This clearly marked his position in the sky and he came falling towards us, leaving behind him a trall Q dirty, sinister-looking smoke. suggestive of a Are. He dropped as if nothing could stop him.
It is a real aeroplane, 15 leet Jong, with a wing-span of feet, and will do 85 miles an hour and uses two gallons of petrol an hour! It is difficult to judge distances from, the ground but the doomed
This is the Arst small orthodox machine thing that Mr. Sohn appeared to
to be produced in this be seemed to drop at least 2,000 country, and it is planned to sell teet before the fall was suddenly it at £185-less than the price of checked and the
airman turned many 12 h.p. cars. The 30 h.p. same as to his left and then upwards” in a
basically the engine is In movement of infinite grace.
Atted to Ford cars, so the that machine can be serviced if neces- sary by garage mechanics knowing nothing of aeroplanes.
his own country Mr. Sohn is call- ed the "bird-mat." and in that movement, at once casy and leisurely. Mr. Sohn showed he had got his reputation,
how
This new light car of the air holds enough fuel for a 250-mile But the excitement was no tip. and its flying tests show that over, for hardly had. Mr. Sahnit travels hands-off-a good completed his movement when he point for women pilots still learn- was once more falling with thing to fly. same swift sureness, straight down upon our heads. Would nothing stop him? Perhaps something had gone wrong after all. Was that a smoke bomb or was Mr. Sohn on Gre?
MISS JEAN BATTEN HONOURED
London, May. 0.
For the second time Mr. Sohi checked his fall, and for the third Since no une had ever seen Mr. time began to drop with terrifc Sohn fly before, there were all speed until, coming within a 1.000
Miss Jean Batten, the New Zeal- manner of false alarms, the hun-feet of the ground. he opened his His speech yester-dreds of little boys on the ground parachute and dropped gently on and air woman, last night received yelling themselves hdarse and ery-to the middle of the aeroplane. the Legion of Honour at a dinner ing "There he is!" wherever the The crowd could be restrained given in her honour by the French, no longer. Breaking from the Aero Club in recognition of her' wing of one of the aeroplanes was
We elders paths, they ran in a huge disorder- aeronautic feats. Miss Batten touched by the sun.
to crossed France "earlier in the day began to suspect that when Mr. ly body to the centre, there Sohn did leap from his plane none acclaim Mr. Sohn until even that from Toulouse to Versailles. flying of us would see him.
silent gentleman was moved as far a small machine in which she has I say been touring North Africa and as to pant not, "Say folks. folks."
Spain with her mother.
Ar' present, the position is that the owner of a "Flying Flea" must apply to the Ar Ministry for a permit exempting him from pus- ression of a certificate of air- worthiness. This is granted it he presents evidence that he is ined by the Air Council. cf the sured for a minimum of £5,000 Gorell Report or the Control of against third party risks. and pro- Private Flying. It is felt that to mises not to fly over populous départ from that recommendation
at this stage. would be prejudiciali These terms are in accordance to the private fying rights in with the recommendation secept- Great Britain.
areus.
IF THE BRAKES SHOULD FAIL WHEN DESCENDING
HILLS
What To Do In An Emergency
BY OWNER-DRIVER"
"Defendant stated that the do, you immediately remove the brakes of his car, falied and before angine friction, he could do anything he had smashed into the wall,"
Supposing the worst comes, and you cannot engage the lower gears, then the best thing to do is to take the car quickly, but without sharp movements,
up
A typical extract from the re- ports of police court proceedings any day in the, week. "Now, how often do brakes fail to act? Very against the side of the road and seldom. indeed; and when I read gradually force the wheels against these reports I confess to a feel-whatever kerb there is. Even if it be ing of doubt. The. brakes of a wall of rock, it is better to chew the modern car seldom fall out- the mud-guards deliberately right. What generally happens is than to continue on a wid career that the owner neglects to have the linings renewed, keeps
aking up the adjustments, and then suddenly ands that he car rot stop the car within the dis- fance, necessary. Then the radia- tor. comes back, accompanied by
another one!
an
tom of the hill, where you will most certainly hit something good and hard.
And then in a fish the thing happened. The aeroplanes were
J
MOTOR JOTTINGS
fur a second or two. The sudden pieces of stone left on the road NOTES AND NEWS
crease in road speed will start.e and the experience is not One
you.
for
repetition. trust to the handbrake hill. when stopped on s
а
I
11
MEASURING SLIPPERINESS
i which calls Apart from braking effect. the Never practice of descending
by alone pushing out the clutch and coast- Handbrakes nowadays are not, as ing is definitely a bad onc. In a rule, capable of holding the car the long run the clutch with-jan anything much steeper than a
There should now be no need for drawal gear will be. damaged and level atreet.
local authorities to walt until the costly replacements will be necess
WHITE TYRES AND RED RINGS slippery surface of their roads is sary. Coasting downhill in neut-
Time was when the really "poshladicated to them by the number ral is absolutely dangerous; unjess
whitewashed the tyre of accidents occurring, since there you are skilled enough to re-engage motorist
Is available a machine which will gear at will and at any speed. covers every night, and woe betiae.
the chauffeur who presented the measure the degree of, skiddiness Moreover, a car running downhill in
Dr. R. E. Strading, the neutral is not so steady or controll- car a
door with the of roads. able as when running normally, but, white rings marked in any way. director of road research, made a as I have sald. If you can engage But as the owner-drive arrived this Flea to road engineers to use this gear with certainty, free wheeling pipeclaying declined, and only a few apparatus when he read a paper in neutral can be very enjoyable: taxi-drivers continue the practice on "Road Engineering Problems:
The beginner need not
It is very sad for old stagers, bül. Judging the Slippery Road," at about brakes falling if he remem- on the whole. I prefer the black the Institution of Civil Engineers.
But I always bera to engage first gear at the cover unornamented.
worry
the front
of ever-increasing speed to the bot- top of steep and unknown hills did like the red ring around the and to keep in that gear until he covers made by the India Tyr: reaches the bottom. I cannot im- people at Tuchinnan, and I feel a agine any circumstances in which touch of regret that they have a car will run away while in lowest decided to drop it and to market their covers in plain black for the
But whatever you decide to do must be done quickly. There la no time to hold a committee
ON DESCENDING HILLS
kear.
PARKING ON GRADIENTS
future.
An official of that company telis considered that
the
schemes, one Bees
The apparatus consists of a motor cycle and sidecar, one wheel of which is out of alignment across the direction of travel The force necessary to keep it in that post- tion under a given load varies ac- cording to the resistance offered by the road surface to skidding.
At 30. m.p.b. an old compressed rock asphalt surface with no sur- face finish gave 0.1 as "sideways force co-eclent," compared with
1. entitled "Road Resistance to which will shortly be
Skidding". published:
NEW SPAKKING PLUG
the headlamps; the hot water meeting of the occupants of the flows onto the street and the car and to..decide. by vote where There are a good many hiby me that they have done this be neart of the driver goes pit-a-pit you will bump into something.roads in Scotland, and in most cause, motorisis The policeman arrives, complete The driver alone must decide, and instances cars have to be left on the red ring clashed with with notebook, and everybody, gets|| having decided, muat not be gradients-steep and not so steep. colour schemes of their cars. well, 0.9 for a new rock asphalt surface with the addition of pre-coated hot and very much bothered. The tempted to change his mind. All Time and again I am asked for I suppose he is right; but I am
After four years this urakes falled to act! Think of of which reads very dreadful, but advice on what to do to ensure under the impression that nothing chippings.
although I am sure the brakes on safety for the car under such con- could clash with many of the so-latter surface gave 0.8 in winter and 0.85 in summer. These results your car will pay you to bear in ditions. My practice la to engage called colour IF THEY DO FAIL?:
mind the possibility, and to think first forward gear when leaving nowadays. I often wonder they are typical examples taken from Road Research technical paper No. But supposing they do fall. The of it.
the car facing uphill and reverse really are schemes or Just ac- answer is that, they do, you
gear when facing down. Addition-dents. Anyhow, the absence of must keep calm and collected and
ally, I place a large stone either the red ring will not affect the Spruceed as follows, It the car is I have advised against pushing behind one of the rear wheels or mileage given by these excellent descending a bill like Rest and Be out the clutch when descending in front dr-one of the steering tyres, and it is mileage that the Thankful, and you suddenly dis- bills, a practice of which many wheels If stones are not handy motorist wants.
A new sparking plug is the Bur- cover that speed is being gained thousands of inexperienced motor- I always turn the front wheels
ton. It is claimed to be reliable against your wish. change down ists are guilty because they think towards the near side of the road
and generally free from trouble. into the next lowest gear after they are saving wear and tear of when facing downhill, and to
The plug is of normal detachable having jammed on the handbrake the engine. It is an indisputable wards the offside when facing up-
design, has porcelain insulation, In the latter instance," any as hard as possible. I know it is fact by keeping in the clutch a hill,
and three points surrounding 'the easy to say it, but you s'mply must certain braking effect is obtained backward movement of the
central electrode. The price is 3s. remember that there is plenty of from the power unit when the will swing the front towards the Statements which show a ten-od, and the makers are C. F. and time for the maneuvre. A quick throttle is closed. This braiding Dear side and the wheels will very dency to exaggerate have been B. Burton, Progress Works, Bernard change down. takes only a few effect is due to engine friction, I soon run against the kerb, Ultra- I made sa to the increase of cars on Street, Waisall. Different types are seconds, and even if there is no and the faster the engine speed cautious drivers sometimes leave the English road to be expected available to suit all engines. braking force at all against the the greater the friction; hence the the car with the front wheers with the beginning of the second ear it will not have gathered ex- extraordinary way in which a car actually jainmed against the kertz. Bɛensing quarter. press speed before the changes is will descend the steepest of hillsAfter all, safety precautions or the It has even been sald by some 1936. the made. If the lower ear is not almost without the use of brakes road cost nothing.
that 600,000 "new cars would | 28,580,, and it is absurd to imagine providing sufficent frict on to re- when the lowest gear is engaged. One word more. Do not mure make their appearance! This is this agure will be raised to 800,000 'duce the speed to safe measure- If you doubt the efficacy of the of witnust seeing that the stones obviously absurd, The new cars April ments, then you must change engine ag a brake, just descend a are removed from the road after registered in April, 1935, numbered As a matter of fact, it is unlike- down again. "but above all things, 3 In 4 hill with lowest gear engage use, Several times I have bumped 25.271, as compared with 25.623 in ly that more than 30,000 new car do not push out the clutch. If youre and then push out the clutch badly in the dark over quite big January of that year. For January registrations will occur next month,
1
car
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