All the boys saw fit that afternoon to be at the airport. Only Paul and William were to go up for flying instructions but the others wanted to be there to see what it was like. At a little past three, the major came out of the office and approached the group of boys. The two boys stepped forward and William informed him, “We’re ready, major, if you are.”
Smiling, he said, “That’s fine. But now that you’re all here, I’m going to tell you something about flying.” All the boys gathered in front of him, forming a semi-circle. Very quietly and seriously they listened to every word he said. “The first thing I want to impress upon you, fellows,” he began, “is that flying is not in the least dangerous, providing, of course, you adhere strictly to the rules and regulations of flying. Everything has its rules which you must observe, flying is not an exception. The most important rule in flying is that you must never risk stalling your machine near the ground. At no time must you lose flying speed until you are at a safe altitude—approximately five hundred feet above ground.
“Now suppose your engine cuts out as you are taking off, then what you must do is to push the nose down and go straight ahead, regardless of what is in front of you. If you cannot avoid running into a shed, or a tree, or any other obstacle, while landing, it just can’t be helped. You will smash the machine but you yourself will not be hurt. Another rule to remember is, never turn back in order to return to the airport or some other good landing ground. When you do that you risk stalling your machine. And when you stall near the ground, you usually lose control of your machine, go into a spin and crash nose first into the ground. And that may be the last time you will ever fly.”
“Those are a few elementary rules of flying. You’ll learn more as you go along. What you must understand is that you must always obey these rules, or take the consequences. I don’t want to frighten you, but there are rules in every game and you have to observe them.”
He stopped and scanned the faces of the boys. From every indication, they had taken his words seriously and were convinced by his authoritative tone of voice. Nothing more to say, the major now called upon his first two pupils and inquired, “Are you ready?”
“Ready!” the two boys answered in unison and precision.
“Which one is going up first?”
“We’ll have to choose,” answered Paul.
Major McCarthy took a coin out of his pocket and tossed it into the air. “Heads,” cried William.
“Tails,” cried Paul.