The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 58, July 1954 - April, 1955 Page: 356

                                
Southwestern Historical Quarterly

noon the newspaper press was given another chance to record an
unusual event when the two pilots flew from the "mounted drill
ground" to the lower parade ground for lunch at the Officer's
Mess, "an innovation as far as the South or Southwest is con-
cerned." The February air was cold and altitudes were kept
to a minimum. As the day's work neared the end, Parmalee ex-
ecuted a perfect "figure eight" proving to his enthusiastic news-
paper audience that the assertion to the effect that "a flying
machine cannot turn to the right as well as to the left" was noth-
ing more than "press agents bunk."38
As Parmalee flew with the enlisted men of the detachment on
February 25, it was noticed that strong winds failed to bother
the new airplane as much as similar winds had bothered the old
Wright Type A. In the meantime, Lieutenant Foulois had been
working on his plans for reconnaissance flights along the Rio
Grande; by February 25 the necessary permission for these mis-
sions had been granted for a cross-country flight from Laredo to
Eagle Pass and return. As a result, the Wright Scout was crated for
shipment and started on its way to Laredo on February 27; the
personnel of the aviation detachment entrained the following
day, and since a long stay on the border was expected, tentage
and other miscellaneous equipment were carried along.3"
The flying detachment arrived at Laredo, established a camp
at old Fort McIntosh, and assembled the Wright Type B on
March 2, 1911. The proposed cross-country had been originally
planned for the day of arrival but a high north wind forced a
temporary postponement. Parmalee, however, became the admi-
rative officer of the camp when he made three test flights on March
2. Several thousand curious persons appeared during the day to
hamper the work of the detachment. Intelligence reports on the
proposed route of flight warned the pilots that the wagon road
on the Texas side of the Rio Grande was "carroded and marred
with deep arroyas," and in many places, the road was twenty
miles from the line of flight.40
The Laredo to Eagle Pass cross-country of March 3, 1911, is
R8Ibid., February 24, 1911.
3Ibid., February 27, 1911, and February 28, 1911.
4OIbid., March 3, 1911.

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