848 The Outline of Science 



with his load of passengers until he was over Croydon Aero- 

 drome. He knew he was over the aerodrome by the wireless 

 signals he was receiving from below, so he throttled back his 

 engine, pushed down the nose of his machine, and hoped that as 

 he dropped to earth the fog would become clearer and he would 

 be able to sight the aerodrome and land gradually. The alti- 

 meter dropped to 3,000, 2,000, 1,000, and 500 feet, but still he 

 was wrapped in a dense mist. On his wireless he was conversing 

 continually with the people on the ground who were endeavouring 

 to guide him to earth. On the ground the sound of the motors 

 could be plainly heard as the Handley Page circled round and 

 round, vainly endeavouring to get a glimpse of the earth so 

 that it could come down. Rockets were fired into the air to give 

 some guidance, but without success. All they could do was to 

 wait and hope for the best. The men waiting by the motor 

 ambulance started up the engine and got ready their first-aid 

 appliances. As the fog extended right down to the surface of 

 the ground it did not appear possible that Mackintosh would be 

 able to bring down the machine in safety, and with nine people 

 on board there seemed every likelihood of a dangerous crash. 

 For some twenty minutes the drone of the engines continued, 

 getting fainter as the machine moved away and growing stronger 

 as it came back to the aerodrome under the guidance of the wireless. 

 At last the roar suddenly died down to a whisper, and as the wait- 

 ing officials looked at each other, expecting every minute to hear 

 the sound of the crash, the huge machine suddenly loomed out of 

 the fog and landed literally at their feet outside the Custom House. 

 When the door of the aeroplane was unlocked the passengers came 

 out one by one, quite unperturbed, not realising that they had 

 been in any danger and wondering what all the fuss was about. 



Wireless and Civil Aviation 



Wireless telegraphy and telephony, of course, are important 

 factors in modern flying. The civilian pilot resorts to them 



