teps taken by a young man--or by his parents on
his behalf--to launch him on a career in aviation that it is
impossible, here, to do more than generalise. Certainly, as we have
said, it is an excellent preliminary to learn to fly; and it may be
stated also that it is now possible to place, with aviation companies
of repute, premium pupils who will undergo instruction extending over
a period of three years. A youth may, also, gain his knowledge of the
industry by becoming an indentured apprentice.

One may say, as a conclusion to this chapter, that a great, new, and
potential industry is springing up in our midst, one which will prove
to be equally if not more important and far-reaching than the British
shipbuilding industry, and one which will employ thousands of skilled
engineers and artisans. Ships are limited to one element, the water,
which has very definite boundaries. Aircraft, too, are limited to one
element, the air; but this element has no boundaries so far as the
earth is concerned, and aircraft will be navigable to any and every
part of the globe.

CHAPTER XII

THE FUTURE OF FLIGHT

It is a hopeful augury, to those concerned with aviation, that public
interest in flying should not only be keen, but should be growing. In
the early days, even when aeroplanes were so great a novelty, it was
difficult to induce people in any numbers to witness a flying display.
The first meetings, though they were organised with enthusiasm, ended
as a rule with a heavy financial loss; and this fact of course, when
it became known, had a discouraging influence on those who might, had
these early meetings proved a success, have been willing to finance
aerodromes and the building of machines. But as it was, business men,
who are quick to form conclusions, said that people would never be
induced to pay to see aeroplanes fly. But here they failed to reckon
with the fact that, though public interest in flying has been of very
slow growth, yet at the same time it has been a steady and continuous
growth. From month to month, and from year to year, as aeroplane
constructors and pilots have continued at their tasks, overcoming
technical difficulties and personal risks, the interest of ordinary
people has grown perceptibly. Even before the war--which has done so
much to focus attention on flying--the attitude of scepticism and
apathy had been greatly changed. When the London Aerodrome at Hendon
was established, there were shrew