Popular Aviation, November, 1929, pp. 298-299.


  PICTURE:   Roscoe Turner, with his familiar self-designed uniform and
             pet lion.


                       LANDING AN AIRPLANE BY PARACHUE
                                     by
                            CAPTAIN ROSCOE TURNER

       NOW that I have demonstrated that an airplane may be landed by a
  parachute I believe that the time is near when every up-to-date plane
  will be equipped with a mechanically released, built-in parachute.  By
  this means a crippled-in-the-air-plane may be landed safely saving the
  entire load of passengers, pay load and the airplane from wrecking.
       It requires no stretch of imagination to visualize every airplane of
  the near future with a built in parachute snugly stored in the center
  wing section in such a way that no evidence is in sight of the latest
  safety device.  Neither will the lines of the plane have to be changed.
  It has been fully demonstrated that parachutes can be and are being used
  to land individual passengers safely.  It is only a step further to apply
  the same safety device to a group and to the airplane.
       It was only after many experiments with parachutes and weights and
  much study as to air resistance and other conditions entering into the
  project that I landed the first airplane by aid of a mechanically
  released built-in parachute. Had I not been confident of success I would
  never have tried it before 15,000 spectators at Santa Ana, California.
  Now that the initial test has proven so successful I look for rapid
  development along this line of safety first.
       In this particular instance the result was accomplished by replacing
  the second rib on each half of the wing with a heavy ply-wood to take all
  the compression strain of the two ribs in general use.  A steel rib was
  placed at the center section of the two half wings and the whole
  compartment thus created was floored with heavy ply-wood.  This gave
  greatly increased strength to the wing and at the same time afforded a
  solid compartment for the pack.
       At each of the four corners of the compartment a heavy coil spring
  was placed, also two at the center.  Each spring had a recoil force of
  2,000 pounds and was placed in a solid steel container bolted through the
  spars.
       By this arrangement the releasement shock was equally distributed
  and a force of 12,000 pounds thrown against the pack at the release of
  the springs.
       On top of the six springs rested the basket which was the parachute
  carrier.  The basket was of heavy fabric webbing strips around a flexible
  steel frame.  To load the parachute into the compartment, it was folded
  on top of its connecting cables in the center of the carrier which was
  then placed on top of the springs.  Over the whole was placed a cover of
  ply-wood shaped to conform with the wing curve.  In the cover were
  openings to fit over spring-locking devices.  Thus in place, jack-screws
  were brought into use and the whole forced down into the compartment
  until the coil-springs were sent down to be caught by the triggers which
  held them until released by the pilot.
       The trigger release was mounted on ball bearings to eliminate as far
  as possible all friction and afford a quick release.  Connected with the
  springs were six synchronized levers attached to a cable running down the
  inside of the right center strut to the pilot's cockpit.  The cable was
  attached to a lever on the instrument board.  To release the parachute
  the lever was moved from left to right and the six springs were released
  simultaneously.  At the same moment, the trigger released the fastenings
  on the cover of the compartment.  The force threw the parachute well
  clear of the plane thus avoiding possibility of entanglement with the
  rudder.
       The parachute may be of any standard make and of size in proportion
  to the weight of the plane and load.  The one used in my test at Santa
  Ana, California, was a Russell Valve type, 60 feet in diameter with an
  effective lift of 1,600 square feet.  It was made of the heaviest
  parachute silk and had 60 silk shroud lines, each of 400 pounds tensile
  strength.  Each shroud line measured 60 feet from lip of the parachute to
  the Dee rings, of which two were used, this precaution to help stop
  oscillation of the parachute.
       The airplane was attached to the shroud lines from the parachute by
  four flexible cables running from the bottom longerons at the two main
  stanchions up through the wing. Between these cables and the shroud lines
  of the parachute a connecting link was so arranged that it could be
  released by the pilot on landing- this to provide against the plane being
  dragged in case of strong wind.
       Two days before the exhibition test a preliminary one was made from
  a straight flying position with the motor turned on.  A load of papers of
  the weight of the parachute was used.  From that test I saw that there
  was danger that the huge parachute, much heavier than the individual
  pack, might envelope both the tail and pilot's cockpit and render escape
  impossible.  To reduce this danger to a minimum I had the extra steel
  cables added to get more distance between the plane and the shroud lines.
  The extra length of cables was used for the first time in the exhibition
  at Santa Ana.
       At this test a three-place biplane was used.  So far as the
  spectators could see it was the regulation biplane as there were no
  visible evidences of the parachute.  I circled over the airport gaining
  altitude, also making observations as to wind currents and possible
  drift.
       After a few maneuvers I selected the most desirable position and
  pulled the release lever at the same time side-slipping the plane a
  little.  Hurled by a 12,000 pound force the great parachute came out of
  the compartment thrown well clear of the tail.  It took form almost
  instantly bringing the plane into a combination loop and wing-over at
  right angles to the arc of the parachute-pulling shroud-lines, and the
  mammoth billows of silk settled down slowly earth-ward with plane and
  pilot.
       E. H. Dimity, head of the Aircraft Safety Equipment Corporation,
  says, "All manufacturers of airplanes, for all purposes, are using every
  effort to provide the greatest possible safety.  The greatest drawback to
  air travel today is fear on part of the public.  Once this is overcome,
  they will all take to the air as they have during past few years to
  automobiles.  I believe that the day is near at hand when every passenger
  plane and postplanes as well will be equipped with a built-in parachute,
  either the same or along the lines of the one used by Captain Turner in
  his experiment at Santa Ana.  This is the day of progress in aircraft."


              ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
        Source:  Captain Roscoe Turner.  Popular Aviation, pp. 298-299,
                 November 1929.


        Data transcription by:  Milton Sandy, Jr. July 27, 1993.