AEROSONDE UAV Propulsion system A 26 Hour 45 min. Un-manned flight over the Atlantic
THE FIRST FLIGHT ACROSS THE ATLANTIC...THE FIRST FLIGHT ACROSS THE ATLANTIC STAND OFF! We’re going...
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THE FIRST FLIGHT ACROSS THE ATLANTIC STAND OFF! We’re going in under our own power!” shouts Towers to the USS Hard- ing off Ponta Delgada. Commander Towers had been, since 1914, the driving force and guiding genius of the plan to cross the Atlantic in an American airplane. NC-3 entered harbor of Ponta Delgada in the Azores on May 19, 1919, after Towers and his crew had sailed 205 miles through varying sea conditions. N THE 18TH, weather was 0 still so bad that Read and his men were forced to stay in Horta. In spite of gala celebra- tions and congratulatory messages from around the world, Read was concerned. There had been no word of Towers. On top of that, disturbing news came through from Canada. The British had made their move. Stampeded by Read’s successful flight to the Azores, Hawker and Grieve set out to head off the Ameri- cans. During the afternoon, they had taken off from St. John’s, jettisoning their Sopwith’s landing gear to gain speed for the run to Ireland. An hour later, Raynham and Morgan tried to follow but their Martinsyde couldn’t make it off the field. They crashed and Morgan was seriously injured. By the next day, Hawker and Grieve had vanished over the North Atlantic. In view of the gallant effort, all England mourned and Lord North- cliffe donated the $50,000 as a conso- lation prize to the flyers’ widows. On the 19th of May, a U.S. Marine battery stationed in the hills west of Ponta Delgada sighted something out to sea. As the destroyer Harding moved to lend assistance, John Towers stood in the heaving remnants of the 30
Transcript of THE FIRST FLIGHT ACROSS THE ATLANTIC...THE FIRST FLIGHT ACROSS THE ATLANTIC STAND OFF! We’re going...
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THE FIRST FLIGHTACROSS THE ATLANTIC
STAND OFF! We’re going in under our own power!” shouts Towers to the USS Hard-ing off Ponta Delgada. Commander Towers had been, since 1914, the driving forceand guiding genius of the plan to cross the Atlantic in an American airplane.
NC-3 entered harbor of Ponta Delgadain the Azores on May 19, 1919,
after Towers and his crew had sailed205 miles through varying
sea conditions.
N THE 18TH, weather was
0 still so bad that Reada n d his men wereforced to stay in Horta.In spite of gala celebra-tions and congratulatory messagesfrom around the world , Read wasconcerned. There had been no word ofTowers. On top of that, disturbingnews came through from Canada. TheBritish had made their move.
Stampeded by Read’s successfulf l ight to the Azores, Hawker andGrieve set out to head off the Ameri-cans. During the afternoon, they hadtaken off from St. John’s, jettisoningtheir Sopwith’s landing gear to gainspeed for the run to Ireland. An hourlater, Raynham and Morgan tried tofollow but their Martinsyde couldn’tmake it off the field. They crashed andMorgan was seriously injured.
B y t h e n e x t d a y , H a w k e r a n dGrieve had vanished over the NorthAtlantic. In view of the gallant effort,all England mourned and Lord North-cliffe donated the $50,000 as a conso-lation prize to the flyers’ widows.
On the 19th of May, a U.S. Marinebattery stationed in the hills west ofPonta Delgada sighted something outt o s ea . As the destroyer H a r d i n gmoved to lend assistance, John Towersstood in the heaving remnants of the
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NC-3 and shouted, “Stand off! We’regoing in under our own power!” Heand his crew had sailed the crackedand broken boat 205 miles , back-wards, through violent seas to theirdestination. He didn’t need help now.
I n s p i t e of Towers’ fantas t icachievement, LCdr. Read was the pop-ular hero. And so it came to be thatwhen the NC-4 continued on to Lis-bon and thence to England, Towerswas not on board.
Now, when a fleet commander hashis ship shot out from under him, hetransfers his flag to another. The cir-cumstance was parallel in Towers’case. R o o s e v e l t t h o u g h t s o . B u tJosephus Daniels did not agree. Evenwhen the question was raised on thefloor of Congress, Secretary Danielsstood fast in his conviction that sinceRead had made it to the Azores in theNC-4, he should continue as her solecommander. Towers was forbiddeneven to ride along as a passenger; hewas ordered to proceed to Plymouthaboard a destroyer.
It was a bitter pill for the man whowas Commander of U.S. Seaplane Divi-sion One, a chief planner and organiz-ing genius of the expedition, and itwas a keen disappointment to theother members of the group, includingAlbert Read.
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COMMANDER TOWERS and his menshow weariness in photo below,taken upon their arrival in the Azores.From left to right are CMM L. R. Moore,LCdr. R. A. Lavender, Lt. D. H.McCulloch, Cdr. H. C. Richardson andCdr. Towers. The NC-3 wasdisassembled and shipped to the NavalAircraft Factory, Philadelphia to berestored to operational condition.
NC-4 lands at Ponta Delgada on May 20, 1919.
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![The Bismarck tribune. (Bismarck, N.D.), 1933-10-28, [p ].€¦ · Graf Zeppelin, Germany’s great dir-igible, which has just completed a flight across the South Atlantic and U 9](https://static.fdocuments.net/doc/165x107/6057e520da83bb18bf235d50/the-bismarck-tribune-bismarck-nd-1933-10-28-p-graf-zeppelin-germanyas.jpg)
