PARACHUTE AND ITS VALUE

Hokitika Guardian, 10 April 1931, Page 3

PARACHUTE AND ITS VALUE

AN INTER IOSTNG TALK. LIEUTENANT QY I LEER’S EXPERIENCES. CHIHSTCH.DR.C 11, April D. Lieutenant.., Ifaakon Qviller, the Norwegian |>arachiilis.t. who is on a visit, to Christchurch, was the speaker at the Optimists’ Club at, luncheon yesterday. Possessing a keen s rise uf humour. Lieutenant. Qviller gave an interesting talk oil the genesis and (lev lopment of 11 11 • parachute as a life-saving appliance for balloonists and air pilots. He regretted that the Briisli Government had dclined to adopt tin. parachute for the Air Force during the war, and mentioned th"t cl the enemy sid<" it was no uncommon ■tiling to see from a dozen to twenty parachute descents upon one section of flic front in ,a day. An elderly English enthusiast, he said, spent his fortune in experimenting in parneh hi CM and in his vain attempts (» persuade file military authorities <>l Britain to equip British airmen similarly. Imf it was not until after the

wa;• that representations were successful. Li tel'ing of demonstrations hv a German parachutist in Norway li■• utenant Qviller said that, a ‘uimllin" was thrown from a ’plane. To if was attached., ii purachuto,., and Lieutenant Qviller was stationed on tlk* groin'd to see that all went well. “I was looking up.’’ he, said, “and nothing Imopened, hut the sandbag nearly lauled on my fiead.” ft made a hole three foet. (le.Cn in. the ; ground. TYPES OF PARACHUTE.

'l’ll,, speaker described some of ibe types of parachutes which, lie said, could be divid'd into two main classes, manual and automatic. Tim manual. Ip. said was all right, in tb" hands n 1 an artist under normal conditions, hut how could an aviator. I<’avi"g his machine in an emergency. he expected to eak"'late to a nieOy -just when to open the ' finite 5 Me preferred the' c'loma tje type, with which the avhtoi' had merely to get-out of Ids 'plane and let tlm- panrhute do tlm i-e'-T

“I’m all wrong here.” he said. “ 1 in in the wrong place; You are nptim'xls; you lclievo in going up. I'm always coming flown.” When the- Inudder had subsided ho paid a tribute *n New Zealand. “When I landed in Now Zealand,” lie said. “T saw there 'V"ro things moving. Something was going on. Something was being done. Von never drop the burden. Aon are ontimists.” And Lieutenant Ovilh.r (■"siimed his seal amidst hearty applause.