_Witnessed Over Cape Cod Waters_
The invasion of Sicily was begun with glider transports. And, the
beginning of glider-flying in the United States was witnessed on Cape
Cod. Sixteen years ago the first extended glider flight in America was
demonstrated by a German expert.
On July 29, 1928, at Corn Hill, Truro, near the outer end of this
historic peninsula, Peter Hesselbach of Darmstadt, Germany, was
catapulted over the brink of a 100-foot bluff in a Darmstadt-made
glider. He remained aloft for four hours and five minutes. A few days
before this, Hesselbach smashed Orville Wright’s record of soaring nine
minutes and forty-five seconds. A group of helpful American citizens,
hauling on a rope, snapped him into the ether on the ocean side of
Truro. He maintained a motorless flight for 55 minutes.
Glider flying has progressed a great deal since those pioneering
flights. Soon after a school was established at South Wellfleet,
but it didn’t last long. Much activity developed in California and
in the East. Elmira, N. Y., became the headquarters of motorless
flying enthusiasts. Before our entry into the war, Parker Leonard of
Osterville, Cape Cod, was the chief glider experimenter in this area.
Now he is serving his country as a glider specialist.