﻿FIGHTING 
  INSECTS 
  WITH 
  AIRPLANES 
  

  

  An 
  Account 
  of 
  the 
  Successful 
  Use 
  of 
  the 
  Flying-Machine 
  

  

  in 
  Dusting 
  Tall 
  Trees 
  Infested 
  with 
  

  

  Leaf-Eating 
  Caterpillars 
  

  

  By 
  C. 
  R. 
  Neillie 
  and 
  J. 
  S. 
  Houser 
  

  

  IN 
  THESE 
  very 
  modern 
  times 
  one 
  

   should 
  be 
  prepared 
  to 
  expect 
  the 
  un- 
  

   usual, 
  but 
  to 
  be 
  told 
  upon 
  inquiry 
  for 
  

   a 
  man 
  at 
  his 
  office 
  that 
  "He 
  is 
  up 
  in 
  the 
  

   air; 
  I 
  don't 
  know 
  when 
  he 
  will 
  come 
  

   down" 
  is 
  so 
  ultra 
  modern 
  that 
  the 
  average 
  

   person 
  would 
  be 
  taken 
  somewhat 
  aback. 
  

   Such, 
  however, 
  was 
  the 
  experience 
  

   of 
  the 
  writers 
  one 
  day 
  last 
  summer 
  dur- 
  

   ing 
  the 
  course 
  of 
  the 
  work 
  herewith 
  

   reported. 
  And 
  after 
  a 
  short 
  time, 
  the 
  one 
  

   for 
  whom 
  inquiry 
  was 
  made 
  did 
  safely 
  

   "come 
  down." 
  This 
  was 
  Lieutenant 
  J. 
  A. 
  

   Macready, 
  Acting 
  Chief 
  of 
  the 
  Flying 
  

   Section 
  of 
  the 
  Government's 
  Aviation 
  

   Experimental 
  Station 
  at 
  McCook 
  Field, 
  

   Dayton, 
  Ohio, 
  — 
  the 
  man 
  who 
  piloted 
  the 
  

   machine 
  which 
  was 
  an 
  epoch 
  maker 
  in 
  the 
  

   annals 
  of 
  insect 
  warfare. 
  

  

  THE 
  ADVANTAGES 
  OF 
  AIRPLANE 
  OVER 
  EN- 
  

   GINE-DRIVEN 
  PUMPS 
  

  

  Heretofore 
  the 
  usual 
  method 
  of 
  con- 
  

   trolling 
  leaf-eating 
  insects 
  affecting 
  tall 
  

   trees 
  has 
  been 
  by 
  the 
  use 
  of 
  liquid 
  poisons 
  

   sprayed 
  on 
  the 
  trees 
  by 
  means 
  of 
  engine- 
  

   driven 
  pumps, 
  these 
  outfits 
  having 
  reached 
  

   their 
  present 
  development 
  in 
  the 
  New 
  

   England 
  States 
  in 
  combating 
  the 
  gypsy 
  

   and 
  brown-tail 
  moths 
  and 
  elm-leaf 
  beetle. 
  

  

  However, 
  the 
  difficulties 
  encountered 
  in 
  

   spraying 
  very 
  tall 
  trees 
  with 
  liquids 
  are 
  

   legion, 
  particularly 
  when 
  the 
  trees 
  are 
  

   situated 
  on 
  ground 
  so 
  uneven 
  that 
  the 
  

   spraying 
  machine 
  cannot 
  be 
  operated 
  in 
  

   their 
  immediate 
  vicinity. 
  In 
  such 
  in- 
  

   stances 
  it 
  is 
  no 
  uncommon 
  thing 
  to 
  use 
  

   several 
  thousand 
  feet 
  of 
  hose, 
  and 
  since 
  

   this 
  must 
  be 
  dragged 
  about 
  over 
  the 
  area 
  

   under 
  treatment, 
  the 
  labor 
  cost 
  of 
  operat- 
  

   ing 
  under 
  such 
  conditions 
  is 
  enormous. 
  

  

  Moreover, 
  progress 
  is 
  so 
  slow 
  that 
  it 
  

   is 
  not 
  always 
  possible 
  to 
  cover 
  the 
  in- 
  

   fested 
  area 
  at 
  the 
  time 
  when 
  the 
  applica- 
  

   tion 
  would 
  be 
  most 
  effective 
  from 
  the 
  

   standpoint 
  of 
  insect 
  control. 
  Dusting 
  by 
  

   airplane 
  at 
  least 
  gives 
  promise 
  under 
  some 
  

  

  conditions 
  of 
  overcoming 
  a 
  few 
  of 
  these 
  

   difficulties. 
  

  

  Early 
  in 
  the 
  spring 
  of 
  1921 
  the 
  authors 
  

   began 
  seeking 
  an 
  opportunity 
  to 
  conduct 
  a 
  

   practical 
  test 
  of 
  the 
  airplane 
  as 
  a 
  distribu- 
  

   tor 
  of 
  insecticides. 
  In 
  a 
  few 
  instances 
  the 
  

   plan 
  was 
  received 
  with 
  favor; 
  in 
  others 
  

   it 
  was 
  considered 
  a 
  theoretical, 
  impracti- 
  

   cable 
  and 
  foolish 
  undertaking 
  and 
  from 
  

   many 
  sources 
  much 
  good-natured 
  chaff- 
  

   ing 
  was 
  endured. 
  Finally, 
  however, 
  a 
  

   cooperative 
  project 
  was 
  arranged 
  with 
  the 
  

   officials 
  of 
  the 
  Federal 
  Aviation 
  Experi- 
  

   mental 
  Station 
  at 
  McCook 
  Field, 
  Dayton, 
  

   Ohio. 
  

  

  These 
  officials 
  entered 
  into 
  the 
  spirit 
  of 
  

   the 
  undertaking 
  in 
  a 
  whole-hearted 
  man- 
  

   ner, 
  giving 
  it 
  priority 
  over 
  everything 
  in 
  

   the 
  Field 
  for 
  one 
  entire 
  day. 
  Those 
  

   chiefly 
  concerned 
  were: 
  Major 
  T. 
  H. 
  

   Bane, 
  Director 
  of 
  McCook 
  Field; 
  Major 
  

   H. 
  S. 
  Martin, 
  Chief 
  Engineer, 
  and 
  his 
  

   assistant 
  Mr. 
  E. 
  Darmoy, 
  who 
  designed 
  

   the 
  hopper 
  to 
  carry 
  and 
  distribute 
  the 
  

   poison 
  and 
  who 
  operated 
  the 
  mechanism 
  

   during 
  the 
  flights; 
  Lieutenant 
  J. 
  A. 
  Ma- 
  

   cready, 
  Acting 
  Chief 
  of 
  the 
  Flying 
  Sec- 
  

   tion, 
  who 
  piloted 
  the 
  plane, 
  and 
  Captain 
  

   A. 
  W. 
  Stevens, 
  photographer, 
  who 
  made 
  

   a 
  remarkable 
  series 
  of 
  photographs 
  of 
  the 
  

   dusting 
  plane 
  in 
  action. 
  

  

  A 
  WAR 
  DECLARED 
  ON 
  A 
  NIGHT-ELYING 
  

   MOTH 
  

  

  Originally 
  it 
  was 
  planned 
  to 
  conduct 
  

   the 
  test 
  in 
  the 
  spring 
  of 
  1922 
  against 
  the 
  

   canker 
  worm 
  in 
  the 
  vicinity 
  of 
  Cleveland, 
  

   Ohio, 
  but 
  almost 
  simultaneously 
  with 
  the 
  

   completion 
  of 
  plans 
  for 
  cooperative 
  work 
  

   with 
  McCook 
  Field, 
  a 
  much 
  better 
  oppor- 
  

   tunity 
  for 
  the 
  test 
  presented 
  itself 
  in 
  the 
  

   shape 
  of 
  an 
  outbreak 
  of 
  the 
  Catalpa 
  

   Sphinx 
  (Ccratoiuia 
  catalpce 
  Bvd.) 
  at 
  

   Troy, 
  Ohio, 
  some 
  twenty 
  miles 
  distant 
  

   from 
  Dayton. 
  

  

  The 
  Catalpa 
  Sphinx 
  is, 
  in 
  the 
  adult 
  stage, 
  

   a 
  large 
  night-flying 
  moth 
  which 
  lays 
  its 
  

  

  333 
  

  

  