Page:Aeronautics and Astronautics Chronology 1915-1960.pdf/18

 August 25: JN training plane with large parachute floated deadstick down to a rough landing and some damage, at San Diego Naval Air Station.

During August: Air Corps School of Aviation Medicine moved from Mitchel Field to Brooks Field, Tex., and was subsequently moved to Randolph Field in October 1931.

October 1: Daniel Guggenheim Fund for the Promotion of Aeronautics made a grant to the University of Michigan for the completion of a wind tunnel and a Chair of Aeronautics.

November 13: Lt. C. F. Schilt (USMC) took second place in the Schneider Cup Race at Hampton Roads, Va., flying an R3C-2 with an average speed of 231 mph. This was last U.S. Navy participation in international racing competition.

December 10-11: Financed by the Daniel Guggenheim Fund for the Promotion of Aeronautics, a conference of representatives of MIT, New York University, Stanford University, California Institute of Technology, University of Michigan, and University of Washington was held at NACA to interchange ideas on educational methods, coordinating research work, and developing special courses in aeronautical education.

During 1926: Dr. Louis H. Bauer, former Commandant of the School of Aviation Medicine (1919-25), established a medical section in the Bureau of Air Commerce, Department of Commerce.


 * Lt. Col. D. A. Myers at the School of Aviation Medicine developed basic physiological principles necessary to the development and use of blind-flying instruments, work done in conjunction with research by Lt. Col. W. A. Ocker. This study was regarded as one of the greatest contributions of medicine to the technical advancement of aviation.

During February: Army Air Corps completed aerial photographic survey of east and west coasts of Florida (1,284 square miles) for the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey.

March 9: Capt. H. C. Gray (AAC) ascended to 28,910 feet in a free balloon for an American altitude record. (World record held by Suring and Berson of Germany who ascended to 35,433 feet on June 30, 1901.)

April 4: Regular commercial airline passenger service initiated by Colonial Air Transport between New York and Boston.

April 21: Dr. Joseph S. Ames was elected Chairman of the NACA, to replace Dr. Charles Walcott, one of the original 12 members, who died in February.

May 4: Record balloon flight by Capt. H. C. Gray (AAC) reached 42,470 feet over Scott Field, Ill., but he was forced to bail out successfully so that record was not official.

May 20-21: The first solo nonstop transatlantic flight, New York to Paris, was completed by Charles A. Lindbergh. This was a major milestone in awakening the Nation to the full potentialities of aviation.

May 25: Lt. James H. Doolittle (AAC) flew the first successful outside loop.

June 4: Daniel Guggenheim School of Aeronautics officially opened at New York University. Daniel Guggenheim Fund for the Promotion of Aeronautics also made gifts to MIT, University of Michigan, Stanford University, and the California Institute of Technology in this time period.

June 4-5: Clarence D. Chamberlain and Charles A. Levine flew nonstop from New York to Eisleben, Germany, in Bellanca monoplane Columbia.

June 5: Society for Space Travel (Verein fuer Raumschiffahrt), known as "VfR," formed in Breslau, Germany.

June 8: Astronautics Committee of the Société Astronomique Française established in France.

June 22: John F. Victory, the first employee of NACA in 1915, who had served as Assitant Secretary since 1917, was appointed Secretary of the NACA.

June 29-30: Cdr. Richard Byrd, Bertram B. Acosta, Noville, and B. Balchen flew Fokker monoplane America from New York to a crash landing in the sea off the French coast.

July 25: A world airplane altitude record of 38,484 feet was established by Lt. C. C. Champion (USN) in a Wright Apache P&W 425.

August 1: Fire damaged interior of variable-density wind tunnel at Langley Laboratory, which when reconstructed was used in conjunction with jet-type wind tunnel produced airflow in 12-inch chamber in excess of 800 mph.

October 12: Wright Field, Dayton, Ohio, was formally dedicated.

November 4: Capt. H. C. Gray (AAC) ascended to 42,470 feet, the identical altitude of his May flight, but he did not survive the flight and thereby failed again to achieve official world record.

November 6: Lt. "Al" Williams (USN) flew Kirkham racing plane powered with 1,250-hp 24-cylinder Packard engine at unofficial speed of 322.6 mph.

November 16: U.S.S. Saratoga (CV-3) was placed in commission by the Navy.

December 14: U.S.S. Lexington (CV-2) was placed in commission.

During 1927: Air Corps sponsored development of Allison "X" type engine of 24 cylinders expected to develop 1,400 hp; while Navy flight tested radial air-cooled Wright R-1750, and used Pratt & Whitney Wasp in a number of service aircraft.


 * Coordination between NACA and British Aeronautical Research Committee included exchange of views at joint meetings and a program of comparative research for standardization of wind tunnel data.


 * Operation of Materiel Division wind tunnels at McCook Field handicapped by move to the new Wright Field. During the year, the new full-scale Propeller-Research Tunnel at Langley Laboratory became operational, while the Bureau of Standards tested 24 airfoil sections at various speeds up to 1.08 times the speed of sound.


 * Superchargers passed from experimental development stage to active service use on radial air-cooled engines, while both Roots-type and centrifugal-type superchargers were being tested on water-cooled engines.


 * Appearance of Lockheed Vega set pace for general-purpose aircraft, a high cantilever wing and wooden stressed-skin fuselage which permitted large interior structure for passengers as well as reducing weight and drag.

February 3: At Wright Field, Lt. H. A. Sutton began a series of tests to study the spinning characteristics of planes, for which he was awarded the Mackay Trophy. (See Appendix D)

February 28: Navy issued contract for XPY-1 flying boat to Consolidated Aircraft, the first large monoplane flying boat procured and the initial configuration which evolved into the PBY Catalina.

March 10: $900,000 authorized for completion of the Wright Field Experimental Laboratory.

March 28: Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Aeronautics called conference of representatives of Army, Navy, 22