Creative Books

The engine is dead."
"Can you take her down safely?"
"Oh, yes, I guess so. She's a bit out of control, but the
stabilizer will keep her on a level keel. Good thing we installed
it."
"You're right!" said Jackson.
Now they were falling earthward with great rapidity, but,
thanks to the gyroscope stabilizer, the "side-slipping," than
which there is no motion more dreaded by an aviator, had nearly
ceased. The craft was volplaning down as it ought, and Tom had it
under as perfect control as was possible under the
circumstances.
"We'll get down all right if something else doesn't happen," he
said to Jackson, with grim humor.
"Well, let's hope that it won't," said the mechanic. "We're a
good distance up yet."
They were, as a matter of fact, for the explosion, or whatever
had happened to the craft, had occurred at a height of over two
miles, and they at once began falling. As yet Tom Swift was
unaware of the exact nature of the accident or its cause. All he
knew was that there had been a big noise and that the engine had
stopped working.


Pages:
160 161 162 163 164 165 166 167 168 169 170 171 172 173 174 175 176 177 178 179 180 181 182 183 184