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  ANNUAL 
  REPORT 
  SMITHSONIAN 
  INSTITUTION, 
  1927 
  

  

  f>iider 
  requires 
  no 
  more 
  than 
  about 
  I14 
  horsepower 
  net 
  for 
  sustenta- 
  

   tion. 
  All 
  kinds 
  of 
  motorcycle 
  engines 
  have 
  already 
  been 
  tried, 
  

   varying 
  from 
  the 
  smallest 
  2-horsepower 
  variety 
  of 
  light 
  European 
  

   bicycle 
  motors 
  up 
  to 
  the 
  size 
  of 
  four-cylinder 
  racing 
  motorcycle 
  

   engines. 
  Remarkable 
  flights 
  were 
  made 
  with 
  such 
  machines, 
  taking 
  

   off 
  on 
  as 
  little 
  as 
  7 
  horsepower 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  soaring 
  with 
  the 
  motors 
  

   shut 
  down. 
  Clever 
  devices 
  were 
  designed 
  for 
  starting 
  the 
  engines 
  up 
  

   again 
  while 
  in 
  flight. 
  However, 
  it 
  soon 
  became 
  evident 
  that 
  avail- 
  

   able 
  motorcycle 
  engines 
  were 
  not 
  thoroughly 
  reliable 
  and 
  suitable 
  

   under 
  the 
  conditions 
  of 
  flight. 
  The 
  British 
  motor 
  industry 
  was 
  the 
  

   first 
  to 
  visualize 
  the 
  necessity 
  of 
  developing 
  from 
  the 
  motorcycle 
  

   engine 
  a 
  special 
  light 
  aircraft 
  motor. 
  Horizontal 
  twins, 
  two- 
  

   cylinder 
  V-types, 
  four-cylinder 
  block 
  and 
  three 
  and 
  five 
  cylinder 
  

   radial 
  motors 
  nov/ 
  cover 
  the 
  range 
  of 
  25 
  to 
  about 
  60 
  horsepower, 
  

   which 
  is 
  usually 
  referred 
  to 
  as 
  the 
  light 
  airplane 
  class. 
  All 
  of 
  

   them 
  are 
  air-cooled. 
  

  

  Startling 
  flights 
  were 
  made 
  with 
  astonishingly 
  low-powered 
  ma- 
  

   chines, 
  which 
  demonstrated 
  that 
  the 
  real 
  light 
  airplane, 
  as 
  developed 
  

   from 
  the 
  super-eflicient 
  glider, 
  is 
  by 
  no 
  means 
  a 
  fine 
  weather 
  craft 
  

   but 
  can 
  be 
  put 
  to 
  very 
  severe 
  service 
  and 
  yet 
  retain 
  a 
  great 
  deal 
  of 
  

   the 
  poetry 
  and 
  sport 
  romance 
  of 
  the 
  true 
  glider. 
  It 
  was 
  with 
  a 
  tiny 
  

   25-horsepower, 
  two-cylinder 
  motor 
  in 
  his 
  neat 
  little 
  monoplane 
  that 
  

   Botscli 
  two 
  years 
  ago 
  flew 
  more 
  than 
  300 
  miles 
  from 
  the 
  Rhine 
  to 
  

   Berlin 
  in 
  3^/2 
  hours. 
  A 
  Messerschmitt 
  two-seater 
  cantilever 
  mono- 
  

   plane 
  of 
  40-foot 
  span, 
  powered 
  by 
  a 
  similar 
  engine, 
  crossed 
  the 
  

   Alps 
  at 
  13,000 
  feet 
  from 
  Bavaria 
  into 
  Italy 
  under 
  the 
  most 
  adverse 
  

   weather 
  conditions. 
  Mileages 
  as 
  good 
  as 
  60 
  miles 
  per 
  gallon 
  are 
  not 
  

   uncommon 
  with 
  the 
  light 
  planes. 
  The 
  most 
  striking 
  feat 
  was 
  

   Botsch's 
  victory 
  in 
  a 
  competition 
  two 
  years 
  ago, 
  for 
  a 
  flight 
  circling 
  

   Mount 
  Zugspitze 
  of 
  the 
  Alps, 
  10,000 
  feet, 
  starting 
  from 
  and 
  return- 
  

   ing 
  to 
  Munich. 
  He 
  won 
  first 
  prize 
  with 
  a 
  small 
  14-horsepower 
  

   light 
  plane 
  against 
  competition 
  of 
  all 
  classes, 
  among 
  which 
  were 
  

   motors 
  as 
  strong 
  as 
  200 
  horsepower, 
  since 
  the 
  prize 
  was 
  to 
  be 
  awarded 
  

   for 
  the 
  least 
  consumption 
  of 
  fuel. 
  He 
  used 
  only 
  something 
  like 
  2 
  

   gallons, 
  doing 
  everything 
  else 
  by 
  deliberate 
  soaring 
  flight, 
  skillfully 
  

   utilizing 
  the 
  various 
  currents 
  in 
  the 
  mountainous 
  country. 
  

  

  Unfortunately, 
  among 
  the 
  motors 
  at 
  present 
  available, 
  there 
  seems 
  

   to 
  be 
  none 
  that 
  meets 
  all 
  of 
  the 
  ideal 
  requirements 
  at 
  once, 
  such 
  as 
  

   a 
  really 
  low 
  weight 
  per 
  horsepower, 
  fair 
  number 
  of 
  cylinders 
  insur- 
  

   ing 
  perfect 
  balance 
  on 
  a 
  light 
  mounting, 
  irreproachable 
  reliability 
  

   under 
  flight 
  conditions, 
  little 
  wind 
  resistance, 
  and 
  last 
  but 
  not 
  least 
  a 
  

   popular 
  selling 
  price. 
  As 
  soon 
  as 
  this 
  goal 
  is 
  reached 
  there 
  will 
  

   be 
  comparatively 
  little 
  difficulty 
  in 
  building 
  a 
  reliable 
  and 
  fairly 
  fool- 
  

   proof 
  light 
  airplane 
  of 
  high 
  efficiency, 
  and 
  capable 
  of 
  soaring 
  flght, 
  

  

  