ABOVE THE CLOUDS

Wairarapa Times-Age, 19 October 1939, Page 11

ABOVE THE CLOUDS

HOW PETROL IS TAKEN ABOARD.

Difficulties concerning the refuelling of big aeroplanes in mid-air seem to have been overcome at last, and the system has been used for an airliner on the Atlantic mail service between England and North America. Cruising above Southampton Water, the Cabot flying-boat let out from a cup oh its tail a line which trailed behind for about 100 feet before a weight at the end caused it to sink. The tanker plane, flying near, shot out from a kind of harpoon gun another lind with a weight at its end.

It was projected into the arc formed by the first line, and at the same time the 'plane climbed so that the two lines met. The tanker wound in its line, the weight at the end (a kind of grapnel) engaged with the weight at the end of the flying boat’s line and hauling that line up to the tanker. A member of the tanker's crew then attached the flying-boat's line to the nozzle of a hose, gave a signal to the flying-boat, and the flying-boat proceeded 10 wind in its line, pulling the nozzle and the hose with it from thc« tanker. The nozzle was pulled right into the cup on the flying boat’s ta i forming a loakless joint. All was now ready for the petrol Io pass from the tanker to the flyings boat. When delivery of the fuel was finished the flying boat again paid out its line and at a point well clear of the tail, the line was severed at a specially arranged weak joint by the 'planes drawing away from one another.

Each ’plane then wound in its line and the operation was finished. By filling up with fuel in this way the flying-boats will be able to carry much greater loads on the Atlantic journeys, for when once it is in the air a ’plane can fly with a much greater weight 4.han it can lilt off the water or the ground.