WINGS FOR TRANSPORTATION — ^WRIGHT 581 



made good were only 65 percent of what they would have been if all 

 this unnecessary drag were eliminated and a perfect streamline air- 

 plane produced. This proportion of actual speed to streamline speed 

 is now 90 percent, leaving only a short way to go in possible improve- 

 ment. 



Table 4 indicates three factors which will contribute toward in- 

 creasing range by about 30 percent in the next 10 years. It is be- 

 lieved these are self-explanatory. However, it should be noted that 



Table 4. — Airplane range: factors causing increase in the next 10 years 



Percent 

 Speed increases automatically improve range. The improvement may be of 



the order of 15 



Reduction in specific fuel consumption 10 



Structural weight reductions 5 



Total 30 



all of the speed increase shown in table 2 will not go into range 

 increase since that proportion which will be attained by flying at high 

 altitudes will not result in range improvement and, as well, the weight 

 reductions resulting from structural improvements cannot all be 

 used both for speed and range increase. Then too, cruising velocities 

 are higher than schedule speeds which are reduced by time losses in 

 take-off and landing to give what are known as block-to-block speeds. 

 As these losses are constant regardless of cruising speed, the final 

 range increase due to cruising-speed improvement is about 15 percent 

 as shown. A further 10 percent reduction in specific fuel consump- 

 tion is expected although it will be difficult to obtain when it is 

 realized that in the past 10 years, specific fuel cosumption has dropped 

 from about 0.52 pounds per horsepower hour to about 0.41, a 21 

 percent improvement. 



THE FUTURE OF AIR TRANSPORTATION 



Now I shall briefly discuss the future of air transportation. Let 

 us look at plate 8, figure 2, which shows the New North Beach, 

 La Guardia Airport in New York City, from which operations started 

 on December 1, 1939. This magnificent airdrome with its long all- 

 direction runways and fine hangars and waiting rooms, is a definite 

 indication of air transportation's future expansion. Just as those 

 cities which provided themselves with facilities and inducements for 

 the railroads to pass within their limits in the 1870's and '80's, 

 made certain their future as centers of commerce and industry, so 

 likewise the case will be now for those cities that provide themselves 

 with proper airport facilities. At North Beach dual facilities for 

 land and water operations are provided. 



