inutes
at Mourmelon, and on the 5th of the month, Paulhan, flying a Farman
biplane, made a world's height record of 977 feet. This, however, was
not to stand long, for Latham got up to 1,560 feet on an Antoinette at
Mourmelon on December 1st. December 31st witnessed the first flight
in Ireland, made by H. Ferguson on a monoplane which he himself had
constructed at Downshire Park, Lisburn.

These, thus briefly summarised, are the principal events up to the end
of 1909. 1910 opened with tragedy, for on January 4th Leon Delagrange,
one of the greatest pilots of his time, was killed while flying at
Pau. The machine was the Bleriot XI which Delagrange had used at the
Doncaster meeting, and to which Delagrange had fitted a 50 horse-power
Gnome engine, increasing the speed of the machine from its original
30 to 45 miles per hour. With the Rotary Gnome engine there was of
necessity a certain gyroscopic effect, the strain of which proved too
much for the machine. Delagrange had come to assist in the inauguration
of the Croix d'Hins aerodrome, and had twice lapped the course at a
height of about 60 feet. At the beginning of the third lap, the strain
of the Gnome engine became too great for the machine; one wing collapsed
as if the stay wires had broken, and the whole machine turned over and
fell, killing Delagrange.

On January 7th Latham, flying at Mourmelon, first made the vertical
kilometre and dedicated the record to Delagrange, this being the day of
his friend's funeral. The record was thoroughly authenticated by a large
registering barometer which Latham carried, certified by the officials
of the French Aero Club. Three days later Paulhan, who was at Los
Angeles, California, raised the height record to 4,146 feet.

On January 25th the Brussels Exhibition opened, when the Antoinette
monoplane, the Gaffaux and Hanriot monoplanes, together with the
d'Hespel aeroplane, were shown; there were also the dirigible Belgica
and a number of interesting aero engines, including a German airship
engine and a four-cylinder 50 horse-power Miesse, this last air-cooled
by means of 22 fans driving a current of air through air jackets
surrounding fluted cylinders.

On April 2nd Hubert Le Blon, flying a Bleriot with an Anzani engine,
was killed while flying over the water. His machine was flying quite
steadily, when it suddenly heeled over and came down sideways into the
sea; the motor continued running for some seconds and the whole machin