500 M.P.H.

Land-planes have flown faster than 500 m.p.h.. seaplanes better than 400 m.p.h. To make flying speeds of 500 m.p.h. possible as well as safe, Secretary Ickes last week allotted $478,300 of PWA funds to construct a high-speed wind tunnel at the laboratory of the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics at Langley Field, Va. Planned for completion within a year, the 154-ft. tunnel will be made of reinforced concrete with steel-plated walls. Through its test chamber, 8-ft, in diameter, fans driven by 8,000-h.p. motors will hurl a 500-m.p.h. hurricane. Said the committee in a special report to President Roosevelt: "Airplane speeds upward of 500 m.p.h. are attainable, but knowledge is lacking as to the natural laws governing air flow above 200 m.p.h. . . . This wind tunnel is the greatest need in aviation today."

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