On September 29, 1910, he left Chicago for Springfield, Ill. He made two stops on the way for repairs and fuel, and reached Springfield in 7 hours 9 minutes elapsed time. His actual time in the air was 5 hours 47 minutes. The air-line distance between the two cities is 187 miles, but as Brookins flew in the face of a wind blowing 10 miles an hour, he actually travelled 250 miles. During the journey Brookins made a new cross-country record for America in a continuous flight for 2 hours 38 minutes.
JOHN B. MOISANT.
John B. Moisant is an architect of Chicago, born there of Spanish parentage in 1883. Becoming interested in aviation, he went to France in 1909, and began the construction of two aeroplanes, one of them entirely of metal. He started to learn to fly on a Bleriot machine, and one day took one of his mechanicians aboard and started for London. The mechanician had never before been up in an aeroplane. After battling with storms and repairing consequent accidents to his machine, Moisant landed his passenger in London three weeks after the start. It was the first trip between the two cities for an aeroplane carrying a passenger, and although Moisant failed to win the prize which had been offered for such a feat, he received a great ovation, and a special medal was struck for him.
At the Belmont Park meet, in October, 1910, Moisant, after wrecking his own machine in a gale, climbed into Leblanc’s Bleriot, which had been secured for him but a few minutes before, and made the trip around the Statue of Liberty in New York Bay and returned to the Park in 34 minutes 38 seconds. As the distance is over 34 miles, the speed was nearly a mile a minute. This feat won for him, and for America, the grand prize of the meet—$10,000.
J. ARMSTRONG DREXEL.
J. Armstrong Drexel is a native of Philadelphia. He was taught to fly a Bleriot machine at Pau by Grahame-White, and he has frequently surpassed his instructor in contests where both took part. At the English meets in 1910 he won many of the prizes, being excelled in this respect only by Leon Morane.
At Lanark, Scotland, he established a new world’s record for altitude, 6,600 feet. At the Belmont Park meet he passed his former record with an altitude of 7,185 feet, making this the American record, though it had been excelled in Europe. At Philadelphia, November 23, 1910, he reached an altitude of 9,970 feet, according to the recording barometer he carried, thus making a new world’s record. This record was disputed by the Aero Club, and it may be reduced. A millionaire, he flies for sheer love of the sport.
RALPH JOHNSTONE.
Ralph Johnstone was born in Kansas City, Mo., in 1880. He became an expert bicycle rider, and travelled extensively in many countries giving exhibitions of trick bicycle riding, including the feat known as “looping the loop.” He joined the staff of the Wright Brothers’ aviators in April, 1910, and speedily became one of the most skilful aeroplane operators.
He made a specialty of altitude flying, breaking his former records day after day, and finally, at the International Aviation Meet at Belmont Park, L. I., in October, 1910, he made a new world’s altitude record of 9,714 feet, surpassing the previous record of 9,121 feet made by Wynmalen at Mourmelon, on October 1st.