MIDGET PLANES

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Issue 107, 22 May 1937, Page 3

MIDGET PLANES

a Our Own Correspondent.)

Waipukurau Man Still Experimenting BUILDER OF THE TLYING FLEA'

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WAIPUKURAU, This Day. Ddfliculty. in securing a propeller with suitable pitch has heid up the expevimental work of Mr E. R. Perkius, of V.'aipukurau, who, with the co-opera-tiou of Mr B. Hawke, built a ' ' h'lying Flea." He is now waiting to receive a propeller from Australia, and on its arruval in. Hawke ;s Bay Jie will carry «u with his work or scheming out further improvements. Mr Perkins admitted this morning that he did not think that the "Flying Flea" was a p'raetieal proposition at the predent time, maauly because with the type of construction suihcieut power could not bc generated to make Hying perfectly safe. "1 deiiuitely thiuk that it would bc exceediugly dangerous for amateurs to build them, for unlcss a designer has sound expei'ience in aeropiane-building there is a grave danger of faulty construction, resulting in fatal crashes, ; ' he said. He himseif has built kalf a dozen aeroplanes of various designs and claims to know something of the dangers of faulty designing by inexperieuced amateurs. His ' ' Flying Flea " is at present housed at Waipukurau. His search for a suitable type of propeller has so far been fruitless. Three were made for him in Christchurch, but none was of any use. Sinee writing to Australia, he has learned ^hat one can be secured in England, but meanwhile he will wait and see what Australia can do for him in the matter. When this problem is overcome, Mr Perkins intends to fly his plane locally for demonstration and experimental purposes. Under the existing legisla'tion, he may not fly his machine for a greater d'istance than three miles from the aerodrome. While he thinks that at present there is little practical value for the "Flying Flea,' he has hopes of further development along lines which will xnako midget plaue-flying much safer. With this in view he dntehds to carry on with his experimenting.