Behind the reconnoitring officer comes the pilot of the machine, with the controlling wheels placed in front of him. His attention is devoted exclusively to steering, and preserving the lateral stability of the biplane.
This division of duties upon an aeroplane is especially useful in military work; and it will, undoubtedly, become more and more a feature of war aircraft. A crew of three, upon a reconnoitring machine, represents an ideal distribution of duties. An engineer, to look after the motor when in flight, will probably become more and more of a necessity, as engines increase in power.
A machine with ample engine-power is essential from the military point of view. It not only means ability to withstand wind-gusts, but it spells, also, the power to rise swiftly.
This power of quick-rising, combined with high speed, may frequently save an aeroplane from destruction, when it is reconnoitring over a hostile force. The ability to "climb" speedily is, indeed, insisted upon by those who frame the rules for military contests.
Unknown to the crew of a war machine, they may approach within range of a concealed battery. In such a case, a shell bursting near them will probably be their first indication of peril.
Instantly, the pilot will seek to put as great a distance as possible between himself and the battery; and, as he darts off, he will "climb" as quickly as he can. In such circumstances as these a quick, handy machine would probably escape unscathed, whereas a slow-moving craft might run grave risk of being hit. In the matter of speed, a machine like the Breguet shows a very distinct improvement, as compared with early-type biplanes. Thirty-five miles an hour represented the speed of some of the first biplanes flown in France; but this was increased, before long, to forty miles an hour.
Then came specially-built biplanes, really racing craft, which caused speeds to increase from forty to forty-five, and fifty miles an hour. Now, in reference to the Breguet, a speed of sixty miles an hour is attained.
In regard to the speed of biplanes when amply engined, it may be mentioned that Mr Cody, using a 120 horse-power Austrian-Daimler motor, has been credited with a pace of seventy miles an hour at Farnborough.
Concerning the development of big, weight-carrying biplanes, the French military authorities are now definitely credited with the intention of using such machines, in war-time, for destructive purposes. No official announcement of policy, in this connection, has been made; but the statement is current, and finds general acceptance that, in the case of a war with Germany, large biplanes would be used by France along the German frontier, for the purpose of dropping bombs upon fortifications, and frustrating any punitive flights of German airships.
In this direction, and possibly also for transport purposes, the future of the weight-carrying biplane seems certainly to lie.