Thursday, September 11th,. 1919 THE ALLIANCE (NEBRASKA) HERALD LOCKLEAR GIVES PERSONAL STORY OF HIS STUNTS IN THE AIR t - ?M IBP Lieutenant Ormer Locklear. darp.rtt.vii aviate o. r ... who thrilled Nebraska 'Victory" state fair visitors with his stunts 'in mld- oji, anu uib biucb, ufuifiiBiiis anon ana Elliott. Rending from left to npui. ieui. e.niney j. tnon, Lieut. Locklear. Lieut. Milton Elliott T-nrk lear performed his first stunts when at Baron Field. Texas, and the govern ment officials threatened him with court-martial. Since e has demonstrat ed his work for them, they have offered him the use of any the government fields for his experimental work. He is 28 years old and has 1.000 flylne Lours to his credit, having been an instructor" in the camp In Texas His ""n personal siory explaining now ne does his stunts and telling of his am bitions, hobbies and superstitions, is told in the accompanying article. By Leonard Kline. "How does he do it?" This is the question on the lips of every one of the quarter million per tons, who saw Lieutenant Ormer Locklear, the worlds most daring aviator, perform at, the Nebraska "Victory" fair this year. Volumes have been written about the Etunts which Locklear has in his extensive repertoire but very little has been said about the manner in which he does these stunts or how he feels while he is doing them, he told me in several conversations I had with him while he was in Lincoln. "Ninety-five rercent of the people who question me," he said, "want to know whether I am braced or tied to the plane, whether I have cleated hoes for standing on the plane or if I use safety devices in making my change from plane to plane." "If 1 had to UBe all these things," he told me, "I wouldn't be in this game. There would be no fascina tion in it for me if there wa6 no danger." Locklear uses an ordinary plane, with no extra braces, his shoes are leather-soled and rubber-heeled and Le carried no safety belts or ropes whatever. The people who see him perform see everything there is to tee. After people know this some of them figure that perhaps his stunts are not as dangerous as they appear. At thiB period, however, it is well for 1bem to know that there are approx imately 75,000 aviators in the world and thatLieutenantLocklear is the oniy one who has ever successfully changed from plane to plane or per formed his stunts in midair. During the first few weeks that Locklear was performing his stunts several ambitious airmen were killed in attempting the same feats and at the present time but few are trying (o copy his program. "Well, what Is it, then, that makes it possible for you to accomplish these feats when other men fail?", I asked him. Lwt Fear of Height. "The secret of my flying success," he replied, "is that I have lost all fear of heipht. In fact I would rather perform 5,000 feet in the air than only 500 feet. The air is much smoother higher and the planes be have much better. "I knew every inch of the plane by heart." he continued, "and know just how it will act under all condi tions. I know just how it will act when things are working well and when something is wrong wherever I am on the wings." Locklear has pone through what might be termed the "experimental" period. The knowledge of the plane's actions and the ability to foresee what it will do under various con ditions comes only through experi ence. Aviators, who have been killed in trying the same stunts have met with their accidents while trying out their planes without this knowledge. "When do you feel your greatest danger?" I asked the aviator as he was waiting for his time to fro Up on his tiiM dny at the fair. Ml (irwitrM Punier. The answer wns the one which niilit hne been expected. "While I am changing planes." he said. "The swirling propeller of Lieutenant Elliott's machine coining toward me as I stand on the outer edge of the top wing of Lieutenant Short's machine is probably the greatest danger 1 have to face. A little puff of wind, up or down pt sidewlse, or an air hole, would throw nie into the whirling blades. "We cannot hear each other up there for the noipe of thfl propellers and I guide Elliott's plane by mo tions of my hands. I can tell him to come forward or to go to one side or the other. We can tell as much from the expression on each other's faces as from anything. When something is wrong we Fhow it by our expression and the others know immediately what the trouble is. A Narrow Fcape. At St. Paul, Minnesota, last week Locklear had a narrow escape. He was just ready to grasp the rope lad der, when a gust of wind nearly brought the planes together. He was forced to slide quickly from the top wing of Short's machine to avoid being caught In his final perfor mance he had to jump for he ladder and caught it by his left hand. His wrist was sore from the sprain, when he crrived in Lincoln on Tuesday. "Tliere Is one peculiar thing about my change from plane to plane." Locklear said. "I never think to look to see how Short gets his ma chine away from under me after I , have caugnt ril;oW's plane. Nearly evry day I go up I say to myself that I an peine to watch him but I nevei do. 1 hav to concentrate I upon Elliott's J im? and on the ; ladder. Has Some Superstition. "Do you have any superstitions," I wanted to know. "Well, very few," he replied. I al ways wear my army identification tag on the little silver chain around my wrist and I would not fly with out it. I don-'t like to fly on Sunday either, and when I do it is always against my will. Sometimes when I am passing over a graveyard during my flying, I wonder if I am to be suc cessful." And then he smiled that pleasant smile that makes friends for him wherever he goes. Locklear's description of his meth od in pr rforming his feats on various parts of the planes is particularly in teresting. His journeys from th seat to the ends of the wings and the fusilage are made quickly in spite of his precarious position and the un certainty of wind currents. Many Tlilngn to Watch. "While going from mv seat to the wings," he explained, "I step from one brace to the other, all the time leaning against the wind, watching for air pockets or bad currents, list ening to the hum of the motor and analyzing the "feel" of the plane. The breeze is terrific up there and I must make a great deal of allow ance for that. Locklear wears a chamois-skin Jacket and an especial ly made cap and gocgles to protect him from the wind but t ese are the only "extras" he wears. While in Lincoln he was troubled somewhat with hay fever and his face was rather hadly chapped from contact with the air. "Senses" Air Pocket. It is Locklear's experiences that enables him to climb to the wings successfully. His acquired ability to sense air pockets and diverging air currents has often saved him from death, he told me. He doesn't know how he can tell when they are coming but It apparently is a Fort of a sixth sense. While at Ntbraska, (Continued on page 7.) ave Half Your l ire Bills Don't throw away YOUR TIRES. You may be throwing away GOOD MONEY. Send them to us by PARCEL POST and have them "Retreaded and Repaired Your autoniobilo tiros with blow outs, rim cuts, fabric breaks, or tread worn down, may look worthless to you, but do not throw them away. Tins that are t read-worn should be re treaded and thus tfive double mileage. Our repair men are factory trained men. At our shop we use the famous Anderson method of repairs and the dri-enre process for retreading. It will be to your interest to come in and inspect the work when you are in Lincoln. If not convenient to call, write for more complete information. Send Your Old Tires by Parcel Post Send your old tires by parcel post and notify us by letter or postal card, using the 'form below if you wish. "We will have our expert foreman examine them, and will write you as to the cost of having the same repaired or retreaded. You can then notify us. whether you want the work done. If not, your tires will be returned to you, prepaid, and no charge whatever will be made. Statement No. , By Omaha Real EaUta Bsard. THE SUPPLY OP OMAMA REAL ESTATE IS LIMITED NO MORE Or IT WILL BE MANU FACTURED TMESE PACTS MAKE OMAMA REAL ESTATE AN INVESTMENT WhlCM IS SAFE, PAYS A GOOD INCOME AND INCREASES IN VALUE The demand tar Omaha Keel Estate ! rrowlng daily because the population of Omaha la grcwlDg dally. Investors are laying more for Omaha Ileal Estate every day. Some Examples: A residence at 32nd and Famam, In 1917 old for $40,000. This epring It re-aold for $50,000. It is now being held for $73,000. M. J. Ncary, June, 1918, bought Lot 1, Block 131, Dundee Place, for $2,600, on term. It brought $3,500, cash, last April. Bert Murphy, three years ago, bought a lot In Happy Hollow Circle for $2,200, on terms. He sold If n MV for $3,900, cash. Note E. EL Peaks, Kansas City Realtor, in a epeech to the Omaha Heal Estate Board, June S, said Omaha will hare 500,000 population In ten years, lie's one of many consensu to mem wbo bave that opinion. OMAHA REAL ESTATE BOARD PETTIT-RUMBAUGH, TIRE CO. 2377 O St., Lincoln, Nebraska Gentlemen : Date .., 1919 1 am sending you by parcel post (give number and size) tires, riease advise me if it will pay me to have you retread or repair them, and what the cost will be. I wHl reply by return mail and let you know whether I want them retreaded, repairevd or returned to me post paid. i Name , . . .j, ... . . . 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The Liberty Fire Insurance Co. of OMAHA OMAHA OFFICE 1817 Douglas Street LIN COLN OFFICE Fourth Floor First Natl. Bank Bldg. Old Line Legal Reserve Stock Company Si ,500,000 Authorized Capital and Surplus Liberty Bonds, the best security on earth, $100,000 worth deposited with the State of Nebraska for the protection of policy holders as well as stockholders of the Liberty Fire. Also Purchased $25,000.00 Victory Bonds in Addition to Above The Liberty Fire writes every known kind of Fire and Tornado Insurance on Town and Farm property, and Automobile covering loss by Fire, Theft, Liability, Property Damage, Collision and Accidental death, also hail insurance on growing grain. Premiums are now averaging $1,000 per day, more than $60,000 in premiums written during tLe months of April and May. Losses paid in cash as soon as proofs are received. JOHNi A. WACHTER, President GEO. J. ADAMS, Vice-Pres. P. F. ZIMMER Secy, and Mgr. P. F. 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