278 ANNUAL, REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1930 



We can not remain content to restrict soaring to hilly country but 

 must strive to bring within its scope the regions of the air above 

 flat lands. The sailing flight of birds, indeed, shows that upwinds 

 exist over plains, and are probably adaptable to soaring man flight. 



Research on soaring was initiated just at the beginning of the 

 serious crisis of 1924 and 1925. Soaring gliders had not been involved 

 in the restrictions imposed on power aircraft, but were adversely 

 affected by the revival of interest in the sporting possibilities left 

 open to light airplanes, when the worst restrictions were removed. 



After the record duration soaring flights of 1922, England, 

 France, Italy, and Russia had held soaring competitions, but interest 

 had soon passed back to the light airplane. Even in Germany soar- 

 ing came to be regarded as a mere makeshift for power gliding. Only 

 when this erroneous view had been disproved, and soaring shown to 

 have its own individual scope, did the crisis pass. 



The Rhoen Rossitten Gesellschaft was founded in these difficult 

 times, with the purpose of supporting gliding schools, of holding com- 

 petitions to give publicity, of improving performance, and of stimu- 

 lating gliding activities generally. A special research department 

 was established at the Wasserkuppe for advancing technical and 

 scientific knoAvledge of the problems involved, and the management 

 was placed in the hands of the writer in 1926. 



The Rhoen Rossitten Gesellschaft may be regarded as the center 

 of the gliding movement in Germany and in other countries. Teams 

 were sent to the meetings in the Crimea at Asiago and at Vauville. 

 Instructors were sent to the United States on the formation of the 

 American gliding school at Cape Cod, A French educational com- 

 mission has received full training, and this has stimulated the sport 

 in France. Technical advice has been given to Hungary, Holland, 

 and Belgium. In these ways the society has made its contribution 

 to the common problem of soaring flight to which in turn all other 

 nations can contribute their activities. Since 1926, having overcome 

 the crisis of 1924-25, the practice of soaring and gliding has made 

 vigorous and continuous progress. Glider schools have been estab- 

 lished, and standard gliders have been distributed along with work- 

 ing drawings and instructions for building them. These include the 

 Zoegling, Priifling, and Professor types. The number of air-minded 

 youngsters and their interest in gliding have been increased by these 

 measures, and, above all, research has opened out new possibilities and 

 has contradicted the prevailing belief that soaring depends entirely 

 on the use of rising current over hill slopes. 



The investigations of rising currents in the free atmosphere car- 

 ried out in the last few years at Darmstadt and at the Wasserkuppe 

 have shown that soaring under cumulus clouds and near cold fronts 

 is practicable, both entirely new conditions. 



