Again, when landing the machine, it runs for a few yards quite fast, after which the tail drops, and then, owing to the braking action of the outrigger, and the very large scale of the main planes, it pulls up dead within about five yards.

In spite of its extreme cheapness, the detail work on the machine is excellent; the engine control levers, for instance, are very large, and are fitted with detent handles, to avoid any chance of undesired movement.-P. K. T.

The Coming of the Cheap Machine.

A few persons who desire to be considered "aero-experts" have from time to time derided the possibility of a cheap but effective aeroplane; but at last they can be refuted by ocular evidence. The writer went to Hendon on Friday last on the chance of seeing a performance by M. Caudron on the biplane which he had brought over for delivery to Mr. W. H. Ewen.

The machine had done a test flight in the morning; and in the afternoon M. Caudron got into it, and proceeded to do an exhibition flight of about half-an-hour, which showed the evident combination of a stable machine, ample power, and a master pilot-an exhibition, in fact, much like those of Hamei on his Blériot or Grahame-White on his Nieuport, with the exception of the speed, which appears to be about 50 m.p.h.

Then Mr. Ewen took the machine up, and after a trial came down filled with delight, saying that the machine did everything except steer itself.

Later on, after more of M. Caudron's splendid performances, Mr. Ewen, at 5.50. went out across country. He had not been seen or heard of when the writer left, but he said later that he lost his way, landed to find it, was again brought down by lack of petrol, and spent nearly an hour in getting a supply. He left the small field, where he had landed, in pitch dark, having a man standing by the far edge (about 50 yards away) to strike matches as a guide to the distance allowable before rising. He landed at Hendon about 8.30, being shown the way by rockets and fires, making a perfect landing without damage of any kind.

The Royal Aero Club.

At a meeting of the Committee on Tuesday, the 16th inst., the following new members were elected :-F. G. T. Dawson, A. Eveleigh A. Eagar, Edward Hotchkiss, Mrs. Longmore, Moss S. Myers, F. R. Samson, E. R. C. Scholefield, and J. S. V. Stephen.

The following Aviators' Certificates were granted: (201) Lieut. A. E. Burchardt Ashton (Bristol biplane, Salisbury); (202) Lieut. F. A. P. Williams-Freeman, R.N. (Bristol biplane, Salisbury); (203) Com. Oliver Schwann, R.N. (Bristol biplane, Salisbury); (204) Capt. P. W. L. Broke-Smith, R.E. (Bristol biplane, Brooklands); (205) Lieut. L. C. Rogers-Harrison (Bristol biplane, Salisbury); (206) Sub. Lieut. C. H. K. Edmonds, R.N. (Bristol biplane, Salisbury); (207) D. G. Young (Burgess-Wright biplane, Brooklands).

The request of the Aero Club de France for the Club to give its sanction to the issuing of an aviator's certificate to Mr. E. Scholefield was considered, and the necessary permission granted.

The Committee, after examining the certificates of the flights recorded in the Army and Navy competition, unanimously resolved that the prizes be awarded as follows: Army, £500-Lieut. B. H. Barrington-Kennett, Feb. 14th, 1912, on Nieuport, 50-h.p. Gnôme, at Salisbury Plain, 249 miles; Navy, £500-Lieut. A. M. Longmore, R.N., March 11th, 1912, on Short tractor biplane, 70-h.p. Gnôme, at Eastchurch, 172 miles. A letter from Mr. A. Mortimer-Singer, the donor of the prizes, enclosing cheques amounting to £1,000, was received, and the

Seating arrangement of the Caudron.

chairman kindly promised to forward the prizes to the successful competitors. A unanimous vote of thanks was passed to Mr. A. Mortimer-Singer for his generous prizes, and also for his kind suggestion of a further prize for this year.

NAVAL AND MILITARY AVIATION.-The following letter has been addressed to all aviators: "Dear Sir,-You will doubtless have seen in the daily Press the announcement of the Government scheme for Naval and Military Aviation, copy of which I enclose for your perusal. The Committee of the Royal Aero Club is of opinion that this scheme should be carefully considered by aviators holding certificates, and also by those who contemplate taking their certificates with a view to offering their services subsequently to the Government. It is, therefore, proposed to hold a conference of those interested at the House of Commons, on Tuesday, April 30th, 1912, at 6.30 p.m., at which Col. Seely, the Under Secretary of State for War, has kindly promised to attend, when the whole subject can be thoroughly discussed. Should you desire to raise any questions as to the Government proposals, it will greatly facilitate the proceedings of the Conference if you will send in details, in writing, at the latest by Friday, the 26th inst., so as to permit of full information being obtained on the points to be raised.Yours faithfully, C. D. Rose (Chairman), Harold E. Perrin (Secretary)." Members wishing to attend this Conference are requested to send their names to the Secretary.-HAROLD E. PERRIN, Secretary.

Aviation Honours at Rhyl.

to

Mr. Vivian Hewitt, who has been flying so well round about Rhyl, was entertained to dinner by the local Ratepayers' Association recently. This was the first public banquet be held in Rhyl, and there were about 100 people present. Judging from the menu card, sent by THE AEROPLANE correspondent in Rhyl, the company did themselves and Mr. Hewitt uncommonly well. The toast of the guest of the evening was proposed by Councillor Phillips, who presented Mr. Hewitt with a large photograph of himself in a fine ebony frame, inscribed: March 12th, 1912. Presented by the Rhyl Ratepayers' Association to Mr. Hewitt, Rhyl's First Aviator, in recognition of his brilliant flights. First flight in Rhyl, October 12th, 1911." It is only to be hoped that a similar spirit of encouragement for local aviators will spread throughout the country, and Rhyl is to be congratulated on having led the way.

Another Aviator Motorist.

As was noted recently Mr. Conway Jenkins and Mr. Harry Ferguson are to drive cars in the French Grand Prix, and it is now announced that Mr. James Valentine is to drive one of the Singer team in the same race. Whether motor manufacturers believe in aviation or not, they evidently believe in the eye and nerve of the aviators themselves.

Bargains for Builders.

People who are thinking of building experimental machines, or of starting a school, or even those who want spare stock, have several good opportunities just at present. As was noted last week, Mr. Handley Page has still a number of bargains among the stock of the Aeronautical Syndicate, Ltd., and that these are appreciated is shown by the sales already effected. The Gnome-engined Valkyrie, Mr. Barker's favourite machine, has been sold for experiments in hydro-aeroplaning-or aquaplaning-in which it should be very successful. The Viking has been sold to go abroad. The little 35-h.p. Green-Valkyrie has also been sold for experiments. The 60-80 h.p. Green engine has gone, and the big Valkyrie to which it was fitted is for sale cheap. These sales have been so shrewdly accomplished that the rest of the stock can be sold at a very low price without serious financial loss to its present proprietor.

The Blondeau-Hewlett school are anxious to sell their two Farmans so as to make room for the building of some machines of more modern type, and as both machines are in splendid condition, as is only to be expected, having been always under the master hand of M. Blondeau, they would be most valuable for school work and passenger carrying.

The liquidators of the Universal Aviation Co., Ltd.-Messrs. Reeve, Parker and Co., of 2, Coleman Street, E.C.-have a couple of Gnôme engines, a Blériot two-seater, and various other machines, with tools and material, for sale cheap. More bargains are among the stock of the Walton and Edwards Aeroplane Co. at Brooklands, which includes brand new 100-h.p. Clergêt engine in beautiful order, and a quantity of material-wood, fabric, steel, tools, and so forth. The Collyer-England Biplane.

says:

a

Writing from Shoreham on the 18th, Mr. B. H. England "I am glad to say we have now got our machine to fly splendidly with the 30-h.p. Green engine, and have got a pupil almost ready for his ticket. I had a discontinuation a few days ago through a bumpy landing in a side wind, and am seizing the opportunity to completely overhaul the machine and recover the planes.

You will note that our tuition fees are exceptionally low, and also that we share the damage with pupil, thus reducing the pupil's smash bill by 50 per cent.

"I might add that our 'bus has shown considerable constructional strength, each wing tip having sustained a landing without any further damage than a few broken wires. "Wishing THE AEROPLANE all success. Good work at Filey.

Writing from Filey on the 18th, Mr. A. J. de Villiers, who has recently joined the Blackburn School there, says: “ I found the machines here in perfect trim, and the Blackburn people have secured a good man in Brereton, for until Saturday last (13th) he had never had a chance of proving himself, owing to four months of continual gales. His flight on Sunday last was magnificent. His engine was missing badly, and he only kept the machine up by diving, often within three feet of the water. The Gnome-Blackburn is very slow after the Isaacson. Although both engines are rated at 50 h.p., I am sure the Isaacson fully develops this and a little over. She is in splendid condition now, and runs well for long periods without overheating.

"I find the machine itself is child's play to fly after the Blériot-Anzani, and I also find the speed difference difficult to get into. She does about 60, because she is now fitted with racing planes. When once you are up, you have only to hold the control and look at things passing. Landing is easy and requires no judgment, as one has a clear view all round." A Desirable Addition to British Aviation. An extremely important move in connection with the manufacture of British aeroplanes has just been made, for by the time these notes appear the British Hanriot Company will have been registered, with Mr. Maurice Ducrocq as general manager.

It has often been regretted in THE AEROPLANE that more has not been seen in this country of the Hanriot machine, which, although it has not taken part in the big French, competitions, is certainly one of the finest machines on the Continent; and it will be remembered that the very early type Hanriot, which has been at Brooklands since Autumn, 1910, has always flown excellently whenever the engine has been in decent order, and a number of the very best pilots have been trained on it.

The latest type of Hanriot is, however, a very different machine, and at first sight might be taken for a Nieuport. On investigation, however, one finds that it is an absolutely different type in every way, the body being wider and deeper, so the pilot and passenger sit side by side, and are so placed that they have an excellent view. The wings also are of quite a different shape. The chassis is different, and the controls are of standard type.

It is stated quite definitely that for the same power the machine is considerably faster than the Nieuport, so it should in every way fulfil the requirements of the Royal Flying Corps. Mr. Ducrocq hopes to have a French-built demonstration single-seater at Brooklands in the course of a week or so; but future machines will be built in this country, and may therefore be classed among British-built machines which may be acquired by the Flying Corps. As a matter of fact, an order for the construction of a British-built two-seater has already been placed with the Blondeau-Hewlett firm, so that it will be built by British workmen in this country.

One may confidently expect the machine to be a success, for Mr. Blondeau is one of the soundest men connected with aviation, and, whatever may be one's opinions as to the merits and demerits of the box-kite type of machine, there is no doubt that the Farmans built by him at Brooklands have been unsurpassed for soundness of workmanship. It may be well to note that the Blondeau-Hewlett firm are in no way connected with the new Hanriot Company, but the order has been placed with them simply because Mr. Ducrocq and M. Hanriot himself have absolute faith in anything turned out by Mr. Blondeau. It is to be hoped that the new firm will meet with every success, for the machine is thoroughly good, and Mr. Ducrocq is one of the men who have done most in this country to inspire confidence in aeroplanes and their capabilities.

His Majesty's Airboats.

His Britannic Majesty's airboats-one really cannot take them seriously and call them airships-Beta and Gamma, have been distinguishing themselves of late, thanks to the nice calm mornings. On Thursday last they were both out for quite a while, the Gamma cruising to the north-east, and the Beta going down into Hampshire, where the engine stopped and the poor little thing had to stop so long in the air that she lost a great deal of gas, and her poor little nose blew in when she tried to get going again. However, Capt. Maitland's luck held, and he got down without injury.

But it was Monday morning which beheld the full glory of the Gamma. In charge of Capt. Maitland and Lieut. Waterlow, R.E., she actually arrived in London and circled the dome of St. Paul's, that Mecca of all good dirigibles. The London dailies cheerfully ignore the fact that anything from 50 to 100 miles flying per day is the regular routine of an aeroplane school pilot-Mr. Pizey reckons 75 miles a fair day's work on his Bristol, and Mr. Lewis Turner carried 14 passengers about 6 miles each on the Grahame-White biplane last Sunday-but they waxed absolutely lyric over the Gamma. The Pall Mall Gazette-presumably in the absence of Mr. C. C. Turner (Certificated Aviator)-burst forth on Monday with There was a radiant spectacle for those who were early astir in town this morning. By half-past eight the Gamma had circled St. Paul's Cathedral at a thousand feet in air... the great dirigible flashed upon the sight as a creature of pure sunshine, a vision of flawless white [the Standard said it was yellow] against a sky of almost Italian blue. . . . She is a

daring re-assertion of the claims of the lighter-than-air-ship, and she did quite enough this morning to indicate her possibilities as a scout in time of war."

To use an expressive Americanism, "Come down off the organ! Scout in time of war," forsooth! If she can be coaxed out of her shed in anything but a flat calm, let the Gamma come over to Brooklands in a puffy breeze such as was blowing on Sunday last, and show us what she can do in the way of manoeuvring against, say, Mr. Sabelli on the little baby Deperdussin, let alone Mr. Sopwith on the big Blériot, or Mr. Valentine on a Bristol two-seater.

When the Royal Aircraft Factory has produced a dirigible able to do 60 miles an hour and manoeuvre accurately in a 35m.p.h. wind, then we can begin to talk about" the claims of the lighter-than-air-ship." Meanwhile aviators want to know why a semi-dirigible, which may burst at any moment, which is absolutely out of control if its engine stops, and which has every facility for dropping spanners and petrol cans overboard, is allowed to conduct its evolutions right over a crowded city at a height of about 300 ft., when trouble is raised if an aviator dare to fly along the line of the Thames despite the fact that his machine is faster, safer, and is under perfect control if the engine stops.

However, the triumph of the airboats was quite short lived, for, on Monday also, the poor little Beta, evidently wishing to emulate the late lamented Lebaudy, scratched her little side against the shed and burst, and, in the pathetic words of the dailies, " will not be fit for service for some time."

The Gilmour Memorial Fund.

The Gilmour Memorial Fund continues to make satisfactory progress, as will be seen from the figures given below.

As it will soon be necessary to close the fund, it is hoped that those who wish to send subscriptions will let one or other of the following gentlemen have them as soon as possible: Mr. Harold Perrin, Secretary of the Royal Aero Club; Mr. T. O'B. Hubbard, Secretary of the Aeronautical Society; Mr. T. W. Staplee Firth, c/o Firth and Co., 77, Chancery Lane, W.C.; Mr. Harry DelaCombe, Royal Aero Club; or to Mr. Eric Clift, 51, Sinclair Road, S.W. Or they may be sent to C. G. Grey, at this office. Mrs. Handasyde has this week collected £5 3s. at Brooklands :

Arthur W. Tate; K. S. Aplin; R. S.-5s. each (3)
N. P. L.; R. Kirke-3s. each (2)
M. Hensleigh Walter; G. M.; H. Lewis; T.
Lewis; J. Chater-Lea; P. F. D.; L. M. G.;
V. H.; B. F.; T. U. Skeffington; 2s. 6d. each
(10)

W. R.; H. S. S.; J. G.; B. R. Waite; Mrs. F.
Waite; J. F. F.; H. Pike Pease; Lieut. H. E.
Rendall; W. H. Randall; M.- -2s. each (10)...
M. Reilly
Eric H. Walter; Stanley H. Walter; J. M.;
A. V. S.; "Ugly "; F. W:; J. W.; C. F. S.;
M. R.; W. Gale-1s. each (10)

M. Reilly

...

...

£ s. d. 166 15 6

More Prophets Without Honour.

The Daily Mail's Berlin correspondent quotes, with an air of wonderment, the statement from German papers that the "greatest aeroplane factory in the world" is to begin at Johannisthal, and concludes: "It will be known as the Albatros Flying Machine Company, and its works will have a capacity of between 10 and 12 machines a month."

Apart from the fact that the Albatros Company has been building successful machines for nearly two years, the Mail happily ignores the fact that the Bristol Company's works, even as they are now without expansion could easily turn out 10 machines a week if the demand existed, and that they have already built close on 100 machines in the past 12 or 15 months, which is not so far short of the German prodigy about to be. As to the output of Vickers, Ltd., and the Coventry Ordnance Works, if the need arose, one would have to reckon their output in thousands per annum.

A New "Dope."

The writer has just experienced one of those sudden shocks which occasionally shake to their No. 10 foundations even

the best and heaviest of mortals. He has been privileged to examine some samples of a varnish for aeroplane work which shows a series of mutually incompatible features.

Firstly, the "dope "is a dark brown transparent liquid which smells very much like an ordinary oil varnish. Now, a varnish of this kind is usually avoided, because fabric treated with it usually becomes as brittle as paper. In this case, however, Egyptian cotton and Jap silk both remain absolutely flexible, and retain their full tensile strain. A single coating, applied on one side, penetrates the fabric, making both sides proof against the following varied list of reagents :-Sunlight, heat, cold, acids, water, soap, petrol, benzine, ammonia, and other strong alkalis. It leaves the fabric as it was with regard to inflammability, and does not shrink it. Not only this, but it imparts its virtues to other substances. If, for example, planes are required to have a glazed finish, the first coat is composed of Flexible Compound" alone, and the second, half Flexible Compound" and half of any desired varnish. As a test of this property, a piece of tinplate was shown, with a coating, about 1.40 in. thick, of Portland cement mixed with Flexible Compound" instead of water. This plate was bent in a circle of 1 in. diameter, the cement coating adhering perfectly, and showing no cracks.

A companion product, in the form of flexible black enamel, survived two interesting tests. A piece of sheet iron, coated on both sides, was left in strong sulphuric acid, which completely dissolved the metal, leaving the two coats of enamel untouched. Another piece was repeatedly bent double till the metal fractured, leaving the enamel uninjured.

It only remains to add that the quantity of " compound used is similar to that of ordinary varnish, and that it costs less than half as much as some of the special aeroplane varnishes in use at present.-P. K. T.

A Promising Engine.

While at Brooklands recently the writer had the opportunity of examining thoroughly the new A.B.C. engines now in the course of construction, and if these fulfil their promise on paper and in the rough they should go far to remove official prejudices against British aeroplane engines.

While in general appearance they do not suggest any sensational novelty, there is an enormous amount of clever detai! design, and weight has been reduced to a wonderful extent, without, so far as one can judge, sacrificing the strength of any part which is called upon to stand heavy strains.

The new 8-cylinder 120 h.p, engine introduces an entirely new system of crank case arrangement by using a cylindrical case, on which the cylinders are mounted with their feet cast and machined to the arc of a circle, and it is proposed in future to make this case of steel instead of aluminium, when it is expected that it will be both stronger and lighter. A's the 120 h.p. is calculated to come out at about 280 lbs., the appearance of the first of the new engines will be of more than usual interest.

Mr. Ronald Charteris, and his chief designer, Mr. Granville Bradshaw, have worked very hard for success, and it is to be hoped that they will soon reap their reward. Hendon's Next Meeting.

THE AEROPLANE has been favoured with an advance programme of the Second Spring Meeting at the London Aerodrome, which is to be held on the second anniversary of the great London-Manchester flight, when Mr. Grahame-White made such a plucky attempt to win the Daily Mail's prize. The following races will be flown on Saturday next, April 27th (weather permitting) :

Event No. 1. 3.0 p.m. to 3.45 p.m. Monoplane Handicap Speed Contest. (The entrant of the winner to receive trophy value 25 gns., and the entrant of second 10 sovs.) Open to all types of monoplanes. Eight laps. Distance about 12 miles. Event No. 2. 3.45 p.m. to 4.45 p.m. Relay Race, (The entrants of the winners to receive two silver trophies, and the entrants of the second pair £5 each.) Open to all types of aeroplanes, four laps. To be competed for in pairs, biplane and monoplane.

Event No. 3. 4.45 p.m. to 5.30 p.m. Cross-Country Handicap (about 10 miles out, and to miles back). (The entrant of the winner to receive frophy value 25 gns., and the entrant of the second to sovs.) Open to all types of aeroplanes. Competitors' aeroplanes to be on the starting line with engine running and to start on the fall of the starter's flag, to fly round the mark, which will be indicated to each competitor an hour before the race, returning and crossing the starting line. The winner to be the entrant of the aeroplane returning and crossing the starting line first, having properly completed the course.

Event No. 4. 5.30 p.m. to 6.15 p.m. Altitude Contest. For the St. Ivel Challenge Trophy, value 50 gns., to be won three umes by the competitor before becoming his absolute property. The New Martin-Handasyde.

Messrs. Martin and Handasyde have now almost completed a new machine which appears a magnificent piece of work. The fuselage of the machine is practically the sante as the old one, which proved itself so enormously strong in the .ccident which resulted in the death of poor Mr. Gilmour. The wings, however, are built on an entirely new principle, the spars being of box section built with two stout ash longitudinals top and bottom, which are connected by threeply wood. Exhaustive tests have shown that a spar built on his principle is at least twice as strong as a solid spar in the same section, and the massive structure of the whole wing should be enough to give one complete confidence in it. In the case of the new spars, stout ash beams built into the fuselage fit inside the box of the spar itself, and these beams cannot possibly leave their places without the fuselage itself disintegrating. The machine should be making its first trials in the course of the next two or three weeks.

A Trustworthy Record.

Few, if any, schools in England, or in any other country, can show such an excellent record as the Hewlett-Blondeau School at Brooklands, which has good claim to be the only school which has never had a smash, or even damaged an aeroplane, in the course of its work. The school also has

several points which are worthy of note. It was the first properly established school to be opened in England. It was the first school to pass an Army officer for his certificateLieutenant T. Snowden Smith, A.S.C., who is certainly one of the best fliers in the country, having been trained there soon after the school was opened, all previous Army pilots having learnt on their own account, without school training.

The school has had particular success with Service pupils, having also trained Lieutenant Cecil Marks of the Middlesex Regiment and Lieutenant T. G. Hetherington of the 18th Hussars, also Lieutenant Spencer Grey, R.N., and Lieutenant F. E. T. Hewlett, R.N. The last-named pupil won his certifi

cate after only two lessons from M. Blondeau, and this in itself constitutes another record for a school-trained pupil. Further, the school was the first to pass a British woman pilot for her certificate, that honour belonging to Mrs. Hewlett.

M. Blondeau, the instructor, is acknowledged to be one of the finest biplane fliers here or elsewhere; for, although he has never distinguished himself by big cross-country performances, he undoubtedly handles his machine to perfection, and has a wonderful knack of turning out pilots with a thoroughly good knowledge of their machine

A World-Wide Business.

Messrs. Mann and Grimmer have recently taken new premises at Kingston, where they have ample space to go ahead with full-size work as well as the models which have become so popular. They are considerably augmenting their staff of workers, so that they will be able to supply their rapidly increasing orders for models more quickly than ever, as well as doing experimental work. When Messrs. Mann and Grimmer called on THE AEROPLANE recently they showed us letters from such diverse parts of the world as Copenhagen, Winnipeg, Johannesburg, Pretoria, Malta, Rhodesia, British Guiana and Switzerland, and said that they have at present a large order for models in hand for Siam, so that evidently their business is becoming world-wide. They are of the opinion that there is far more interest taken in models abroad than in Great Britain, as is similarly the case with full-size machines.

More Model Accessories.

The Weston Hurlin Co., who are well known as supplying a large variety of models and accessories, as well as fullsized machines and accessories, have just issued a new catalogue for 1912.

Their models range from toy hundred-yard machines, at 3s. or so, to serious models, good for five or six hundred yards-even the latter, however, being very cheap. Their propellers are also cheap, especially in consideration of the fact that they are carved, and not bent, as are most cheap propellers. The other accessories are more or less as usual, except that the variety is greater than that offered by most firms.

THE AEROPLANE,

166, Piccadilly, W.

Telegraphic Address: AILERON, London. Telephone: Mayfair 5407.

SUBSCRIPTION RATES. THE AEROPLANE will be forwarded, post free, to any part of the world at the following rates:—

UNITED KINGDOM.

ABROAD.

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