Science: Flight Recorder

In Baltimore. J. J. Ryan of General Mills. Inc., reported on a new device designed to help end much of the uncertainty about crashes due to air failure: a flight recorder, set in the cockpit, that transcribes the plane's speed, direction, altitude and vertical acceleration. Designed to withstand shock as well as fire, the instrument will keep operating ten minutes after engine failure, furnish possible clues to what happened in the crash. Moreover, used in normal safe trips, the recorder's data will provide a valuable added record of pilot performance and flight irregularities.