CHAPTER X 



DESCRIPTION OF THE LAUNCHING APPARATUS AND OF AERO- 

 DROMES Nos. 5 AND 6 



Reference has alreadj been made to the development of the "cast-off' 

 apparatus that was used at Quantico for launching the aerodrome. An initial 

 velocity is indispensable, and after long experiment with other forms which 

 proved failures, an apparatus was designed by me, which gave a sufficient Linear 



velocity in any direction. It had, moreover, been found that, when the aero 

 drome was attached to any apparatus upon the roof of the house-boat, such 

 slight changes in the direction and intensity of the wind as would ordinarily pass 

 unperceived, would tend to distort or loosen it from its support, so that only 

 the most rigid of fastenings at three independent bearing points were of any use 

 in holding it, while the wings must be separately fastened down, lest they should 

 be torn from their sockets. It was, then, necessary to be able to fasten the 

 aerodrome very firmly to the cast off apparatus, to start it upon its journey in 

 any direction with an initial linear velocity that should equal its soaring speed, 

 and to release it simultaneously at all points at the very same instant, while at 

 the same time the points of contact of Hie launching device, to which it had just 

 been fastened, were themselves drawn up out of the way of the passing pro- 

 pellers and guys. 



All these requirements and others were met by the apparatus finally adopted, 

 which is shown in I'lates 'J.'! and 24. It consists of a strong timber frame work, 

 carrying a track, consisting of two flat iron rails set on edge, upon which runs 

 the launching car, suspended from two small wheels on each side. At the front 

 end of the frame there are two cylindrical air buffers to receive the buffing pis- 

 tons and thus stop the car after the aerodrome has been released. The car is 

 drawn to the rear end of the track and held by the bell-crank lever .1 ( Plate 23). 



The contact points BB and C are turned down and tl lutch-hook D set over the 



clutch-post A'. The aerodrome is thus held firmly up against the three points BB 

 and C by the clutch D, and a distortion from its proper position rendered impos- 

 sible. All these points are thrown up out of the way of the projecting portions of 

 the aerodrome at the instant of release. This result is accomplished as follows: 

 when the car has reached the proper point in its forward course, the earn E, which 

 is hinged at 1, is depressed by a roller fixed fo the framework of the device. In 

 this motion if pushes down the adjustable connections FF, which are attached at 

 their lower ends to the bell-crank arms (!(!, which turn about a central pivot at 

 2. Thus the downward movement of the connections FF opens the jaws of the 

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