Dring, 1912, Helicopters and insect flight
This entry from Brockett includes two letters, the first responding to Berriman and the second replying to the reply in Flight by Bertram Cooper.
The first letter responds to Algernon E. Berriman (author of Principles of Flight), taking issue with his statement that Dring classifies insect flying as a type of helicopter. Whereas, Dring argues, helicopters must lift off at an absolute vertical, the insect-wing style of propulsion gives more versatility. (The editor comments that Principles of Flight grouped these propulsion types together in the course of its survey, as part of a general category "helicopter", not implying that they were exactly the same.)
(Dring also suggested that Berriman had not actually read his initial letter to Flight describing the vortex-lifters.)
In the reply to Cooper, Dring denies that the data from his vortex-lifter experiments would allow his invention to be compared mathematically with screw propellers. He doesn't supply experimental data. The editor suggests somewhat sternly that he should.
| Original title | Helicopters and insect flight |
|---|---|
| Simple title | Helicopters and insect flight |
| Authors | Thomas Augustus Dring |
| Date | 1912-04-13 |
| Countries | GB |
| Languages | en |
| Keywords | helicopter, insect flight, Berriman, 1911, Principles of Flight, Algernon E. Berriman, classification, Dring, 1911, The vortex principle of flight, Cooper, 1912, The Dring vortex propeller |
| Journal | Flight |
| Related to aircraft? | 1 |
| Page count | 2 |
| Word count | |
| Wikidata id |
Sources
- Brockett (1921), page 372, entry 13: Dring, T. A. Helicopters and insect flight. Flight, Nos. 172, 177, Vol. 4, Nos. 15, 20 (Apr. 13, May 18, 1912), London, pp. 337, 458. (B2p0372e13)
- Scans from Internet Archive
