This was just what Kiwi had been hoping for, and for the next couple of hours they went from one plane to another while Armbruster pointed out their characteristics and the peculiarities of each.
He showed Kiwi a Sopwith-Dolphin, a compact biplane in which the pilot sat so that his head came above the top plane. That was a good plane during the war, Armbruster told him. It could go up high—about 20,000 to 22,000 feet—and had a back stagger so that the pilot had a good view both up and down.
Then they came to a Spad. Armbruster explained how the French had used them to splendid advantage, how fast they were, how beautifully they maneuvered, and finished up by saying, “All in all, a beautiful bus.”
SPAD
Alongside this plane was an enormous Handley-Page, its body towering above the little Spad, the wheels of its undercarriage being almost as high as a man. Two Rolls-Royce engines drove it through the air, and while they were talking about it another one came down to land, its slow descent reminding Kiwi of a freight elevator.
So they went from one plane to another. Soon they came to a German Fokker D7, painted in glaring colors with lavender wings and a pink body.
Armbruster said, “That’s Schaeffer’s machine. He and I had a good many scraps during the war over around St. Quentin. However, neither one of us ever did much damage to the other, although one day he did get a couple of shots through my center section. If he is around anywhere I want you to meet him, for he and your Dad had a few skirmishes, too, in the old days.”
Armbruster next pointed out an S.E.5, but this was not new to Kiwi. He had seen several of them back on the field at New York where they were being used for sky-writing.
