MR. TILLERY, MEMBERS OF 0X5 AVIATION PIONEERS, BOB WALLACE SAID IT WOULD BE INTERESTING TO HAVE MEMBERS OF 0X5 TO TELL OF THEIR EXPERIENCES IN AVIATION, MR, TILLERY ASKED ME TO GIVE A TALK AT THIS MEETING, THE MEMBERS OF 0X5 KNOW THE HISTORY OF AVIATION WELL, WHAT l WOULD LIKE TO DO IS TO TELL WHERE I WAS WHEN THE HISTORY OF AVIATION WAS BEING MADE, 10TH FEBRUARY 1908, THE SIGNAL CORP OF THE ARMY GAVE THE WRIGHT BROTHERS A CONTRACT TO BUILD THE ARMY'S FIRST AIRPLANE, THAT WAS THE DAY I WAS BORN, My MOTHER SAID WHEN I WAS 4 YEARS OLD l WOULD CLIMB OUT THE SECOND STORY WINDOW AND STAND ON THE PORCH ROOF OF MY GRANDPARENTS' (LOVELESS) HOUSE IN BERWYN HEIGHTS, AND WATCH THE PLANES FLYING FROM THE COLLEGE PARK AIRPORT. I REMEMBER AT THE AGE OF 8 AT THE ALTAR OF OUR CHURCH WERE STATUES OF TWO ANGELS, I THOUGHT HOW WONDERFUL IT WOULD BE TO HAVE WINGS AND BE ABLE TO FLY. IN THE WINTER OF 1916-1917, I WAS PLAYING ON THE ICE OF THE DUCK POND AT SOLDIERS HOME WHEN AN AIRPLANE FLEW OVER. I RAN ACROSS THE ICE TO GET A BETTER LOOK AT THE PLANE WHEN I STEPPED ON A BOARD WHERE THERE WASN'T ANY ICE, I REMEMBER LOOKING UP AND SEEING ICE ABOVE ME, A MAN SAW ME AND HELPED ME OUT OF THE WATER (I THINK THE PLANE WAS A CURTISS PUSHER) 1917 I MADE MY FIRST JUMP---- WITH AN UMBRELLA. I JUMPED OFF AN EIGHT FOOT WALL, LANDING HARD TAUGHT ME NOT TO TRY THAT AGAIN, WHEN MY FAMILY LIVED AT 414-10TH STREET, S.E., WASHINGTONJ D.C. IN THE 1920's l WOULD GO OVER TO BOLLING FIELD AND WATCH THE PLANES FLY, AT THAT TIMEJ THE ARMY AND NAVY USED THE SAME FIELD. THE ARMY'S BUILDINGS WERE ON THE EAST SIDE OF THE FIELD, THE NAVY'S BUILDINGS WERE ON THE WEST ALONG THE SIDE OF THE ANACOSTIA RIVER WHERE IT FLOWED INTO THE POTOMAC. I REMEMBER SEEING Lt. AL WILLIAMS DEMONSTRATING INVERTED FLYING, THE OUTSIDE LOOP, AN INVERTED VERTICAL CIRCLE COMPLETELY AROUND THE FIELD AT VERY LOW ALTITUDE. HE GLIDED UPSIDE DOWN IN HIS FINAL APPROACH AND ROLLED OVER JUST IN TIME TO MAKE A PERFECT LANDING. ABOUT 1925,I TOOK MY FIRST RIDE IN A CURTISS JENNY, 0X5, AT HOOVER FIELD, VIRGINIA, RUTH BOWLING, LATER MY WIFE, AND I HAD A RIDE IN A SEAPLANE WITH A HISPANO ENGINE AT ARLINGTON BEACH SEAPLANE, INC,, SOUTH END OF HIGHWAY BRIDGE, I HAD A RIDE IN A BERLINGER-JOYCE AT HOOVER. ABOUT 1927, - ASH I NGTON AIRPORT, INC, TOOK OVER A 1/4 MILE DIRT RACE TRACK ACROSS THE COLUMBIA ROAD FROM HOOVER FIELD, I BOUGHT A HEATH PARASOL, SENT IT BACK WHEN I FOUND OUT I COULD NOT PUT IT TOGETHER. HERBERT FAY, PILOT OF A NEW WACO 10 SAID HE WOULD GIVE ME FLYING LESSONS FOR WORK IN HELPING TO MAKE THE OLD RACE TRACK INTO A FLYING FIELD. ABOUT TWO WEEKS LATERJONE OF THE NEW PLANES TAKING OFF FROM THE FIELD HAD A FORCED LANDING ON A FARM SOUTH OF THE OLD BOLLING FIELD) WHERE THE NEW BOLLING FIELD IS TODAY. THE PRESIDENT OF THE COMPANY FIRED ME FOR LETTING A WASHINGTON POST PHOTOGRAPHER TAKE A PICTURE OF THE PLANE, So MY TWO WEEKS WORK ENDED WITH NO FLYING LESSONS. I LATER HAD SOME RIDES AT WASHINGTON AIRPORT THAT I PAID FOR, STEWART REISS GAVE ME ONE HOUR DUAL IN A WACO 10J 1927; PART IN VIRGINIA) WEST OF ALEXANDRIA) VIRGINIA; PART AT COLLEGE PARK, MARCH 1928 MY BROTHER AND I JOINED A FLYING CLUBJ THE DC, AIR LEGION. PAUL GARBER GAVE THE CLUB A LECTURE ON THE HISTORY OF FLYING, 1929 I JOINED THE CAPITAL AERO CLUB, TOOK PRIVATE PILOT'S GROUND COURSE AT D,C, AIR LEGION, MECHANIC COURSE AT THE AVIATION SCHOOL OF AMERICA, PARACHUTE COURSE AT NAVAL AIR STATION, MADE ONE JUMP AT LOGAN FIELD) BALTIMORE., MAY 1929, lsT SOLO., COLLEGE PARK AIRPORT) THE 11TH HOURJ 11TH DAY, 11TH MONTH) 11 YEARS AFTER WORLD WAR I IN A TRAVEL AIR, WITH A WORLD WAR CURTISS 90 HP OX5 ENGINE, JANUARY 29, 1930; PRIVATE PILOTS LICENSE NUMBER 11902, FLIGHT TEST AT HOOVER FIELD, 1930; GLIDER LICENSE NUMBER 436, WHEN LINDBERGH ARRIVED IN WASHINGTON AFTER HIS NEW YORK TO PARIS FLIGHT, I SAW HIM RIDING IN A CONVERTIBLE ON 10TH STREET BETWEEN F & G. MY WIFE SAW HIM A NUMBER OF TIMES AT GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY WHEN HE WAS DOING RESEARCH, AIR MAIL PILOT AT BOLLING, MARCH 4, 1929. THE INAUGURATION PARADE OF PRES1DENT HERBERT HOOVER, I WAS MARCHING WITH THE DC NATIONAL GUARD. WE HAD JUST MARCHED PAST THE PEACE CROSS ON PENNSYLVANIA AVENUE, WHEN I HEARD ENGINES IN THE SKY. THE CLOUDS COMPLETELY COVERED THE SKY, NOT MUCH HIGHER THAN THE CAPITOL DOME, VISIBILITY BELOW THE CLOUDS WAS UNLIMITED. I LOOKED UP AND SAW COMING OUT OF THE CLOUDS THE NAVY'S ZEPPELIN, THE Los ANGELES, IT CAME OUT OF THE CLOUDS, NW, OF THE CAPITOL BUILDING NOT MORE THAN A HALF BLOCK FROM THE CAPITOL GROUNDS. I WAS AMAZED, HOW DID THEY KNOW WHEN TO LET DOWN THROUGH THE CLOUDS AND MISS THE CAPITOL BY ONLY ABOUT A BLOCK OR SO? THE 800 FOOT ZEPPELIN FLEW ABOVE THE PARADE ROUTE ON PENNSYLVANIA AVENUE, JUST A LITTLE HIGHER THAN THE BUILDINGS, I REMEMBER THE GOODYEAR BLIMP AT HOOVER, I THINK IT HAD A HANGER THERE. WHILE FLYING AT COLLEGE PARK, l SAW A PLANE THAT WAS EXPERIMENTING WITH BLIND FLYING INSTRUMENTS. THE PLANE WOULD FLY INTO THE FIELD JUST A FEW FEET OFF THE GROUND AND THEN CLIMB AGAIN. I WAS TOLD THAT JIMMY DciOLITTLE WAS ONE OF THE PILOTS. ONE DAY AT BOLLING FIELD, I DON'T REMEMBER WHAT THE OCCASION WAS, BUT 1,100 AIR PLANES FLEW OVER WASHINGTON. 1928 THE INTERNATIONAL CIVIL AERONATUICAL MEET WAS HELD IN WASHINGTON, AVIATION PEOPLE FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD ATTEND. I WAS ABLE TO GET AUTOGRAPHS ON MY STUDENT PILOT'S LICENSE, OF ORVILLE WRIGHT, LT. AL WILLIAMS, LT. LESTER MAITLAND, CLARENCE D. CHAMBERLIN, FOKKER, LADY MARY HEATH, PARKER CRAMER AND A FEW OTHERS. ALL THESE EVENTS WERE COVERED BY THE NEWSPAPER RADIO AND MOVING PICTURE NEWS REELS WHICH WAS SEEN AND HEARD WITH GREAT INTEREST. ERNIE PYLE, THE MOST POPULAR REPORTER IN WORLD WAR ll, HAD A AVIATION COLUMN IN THE WASHINGTON DAILY NEWS ABOUT 1928 TO 1933) MAYBE LONGER. HIS REPORTING WAS OF GREAT INTEREST IN NEWS OF THE AIR MAIL, BOLLING FIELD NAVAL AIR STATION, WASHINGTON-HOOVER FIELD. THERE WAS NEWS OF THE SMALL AIRPORTS THAT SPRANG UP IN THE WASHINGTON AREA. COLLEGE PARK, OF COURSE, WAS THE FIRST AND OLDEST, THEN CAME CONGRESSIONAL, SCHROM, QUEENS CHAPEL, CAPITAL, HYDE IN MARYLAND. IN VIRGINIA, BEACON, HYBLA VALLEY AND OTHERS. ALSO NATIONAL NEWS. ERNIE PYLE WROTE A LOT ABOUT GLIDING. ONE DAY I GAVE HIM SOME INSTRUCTION IN A GLIDER. HE MADE SEVERAL SOLO FLIGHTS. ONE DAY AT HOOVER FIELD, ERNIE PYLE AND l HAD A FLIGHT IN A PITCAIRN AUTOGRO, PILOT BY JIM RAY. THE DAY BEFORE HE DEMONSTRATED THE AUTOGYRO, IN FRONT OF THE CAPITOL, FOR MEMBERS OF CONGRESS, ALSO LANDED AT THE WHITE HOUSE GROUNDS, 0N OUR FLIGHT WE TOOK OFF AT HOOVER FIELD, CLIMBED OVER THE AIRPORT AND THE COLUMBIA ROAD THAT SEPARATED THE TWO FIELDS. WHEN WE WERE OVER THE CENTER OF WASHINGTON AIRPOR THE PILOT STARTED THE DESCENT, fROM l000 FEET, WE CAME STRAIGHT DOWN AND LANDED IN THE MIDDLE OF THE FIELD. 1930 I WAS THE INSTRUCTOR OF THE EAGLE GLIDER CLUB. THE 25 MEMBERS MADE ABOUT 400 FLIGHTS. I MADE ABOUT 150 FLIGHTS. RUTH BOWLING, MY FIANCE FLEW THE GLIDER. JANUARY ll, 1931 I FLEW A RUBBER GLIDER FOR MOVING PICTURE NEWS CAMERAS. THEY TOOK PICTURES OF THE SEVENTH AND EIGHTH FLIGHT, THE GLIDER CRASHED ON THE EIGHTH FLIGHT. THE MOVING PICTURES WERE SHOWN IN THE THEATERS ALL OVER THE COUNTRY. THE EIGHTH FLIGHT, THE CRASH WAS SHOWN IN THE MOVING PICTURE, "THOSE MAGNIFICENT MEN IN THEIR FLYING MACHINES". BEFORE T.V, WHICH WAS BEFORE WW ll, THE THEATERS WOULD SHOW MOVIES OF NEWS EVENTS ON THE SCREEN. THERE WAS ONE THEATER, TRANS LUX, THAT SHOWED ONLY NEWS EVENTS THAT RUN ABOUT ONE HOUR. IN MAY 193 WHEN THE GERMAN ZEPPELIN HINDENBURG CRASHED, THE TRANS LUX SHOWED THE PICTURES FOR WEEKS, WHEN OUR COUNTRY ENTERED WORLD WAR II, DECEMBER 1941, I JOINED THE CIVIL AIR PATROL AND WENT ON ACTIVE DUTY FROM NOVEMBER 1942 TO APRIL 1944l STATIONED AT LANGLEY AND BOLLING FIELDS. I WAS A CIVIL SERVICE EMPLOYEE AT BOLLING FROM OCTOBER 1944 TO JUNE 1946. I WAS IN CIVIL AIR PATROL ABOUT 15 YEARS. I FLEW PLANES WITH 0X5 ENGINES, WACO 9 & 10, AND TRAVEL AIR ALSO OXX6 LINCOLN PAGE KITTY HAWKJ 100 HP FIVE CYLINDER AIR COOL ENGINE. THE PIPER CUBS1 40, 50, 55 AND 65 HP ENGINES. PIPER CRUISER 75 HP, STINSTON VOYAGER, 75 HP. PT-17 WITH 225 HP. CESSNAS 150-152 & 170, 1957 AT A CIVIL AIR PATROL CADET ENCAMPMENT, I HAD A FLIGHT IN A JET T-331 A TWO PLACE F-80. THE PILOT LET ME ROLL THE PLANE AND PERFORM SOME OTHER MINOR MANEUVERS AT NEARLY 500 MILES PER HOUR,