Essential vocabulary:

1. constraint - ограничение

2. strip - полоса

3. surface - поверхность

4. sheltered – скрытый, укрытый

5. to provide – снабжать, обеспечивать

6. to require - требовать

7. available - доступный

8. to attempt - пытаться

9. to establish - устанавливать

10. artificial - искусственный

11. calm – спокойный, тихий

12. stretch - протяженность

13. insular - островной

14. stepping-stone – камень, положенный для перехода через речку

15. airmail - авиапочта

16. wingspan – размах крыльев

17. whet – точить (зд. разжигать, усиливать)

18. ceiling - потолок

19. to encounter – сталкиваться с

20. altitude - высота

21. resistance - сопротивление

22. input - вклад

23. secure – безопасный, защитный

24. hurdle - барьер

25. airtight -герметический

26. to accompany - сопровождать

I. Work in pairs. Discuss which sentence in b best continues the sentence in a:

A	B
1. Multiple engines became the only way to gain the total amount of power	a) capable of carrying mail and passengers across the Pacific.
2. Only landing on the surface of sheltered waters	b) and there would be less resistance to forward movement, allowing the same input of power to move the plane at a greater speed.
3. In 1932 Pan American signed a contract with Sikorsky to build a four-engine flying boat	c) plane cabins above 6,000 to 8,000 feet.
4. A second four-engine plane was designed just before World War II	d) necessary to lift the large loads of fuel needed for long journeys.
5. If planes could operate at higher altitudes, flights would be more comfortable	e) would provide the thousands of feet required.
6. It was necessary to artificially pressurize	f) when the general configuration of the DC-3 was transformed into a four-engine size.

II. Look at the groups of words below. Which word is the odd one?

1. a) engine b) power c) fuel d) load

2. a) plane b) altitude c) aircraft d) flying boat

3. a) to land b) to lift off c) to fly d) to function

4. a) cosmonaut b) pilot c) operator d) passenger

5. a) cabin b) wingspan c) distance d) fuselage

6. a) navigation b) controlling c) operation d) duration

7. a) altitude b) distance c) plane d) velocity

III. Complete the sentences:

1. When Pan American sought to open a service from Alameda to Manila and China, it faced a 2,400-mile … … between the San Francisco Bay area and Honolulu.

2. The Germans in attempting to establish a transatlantic … … experimented with artificially calmed stretches of ocean, but the operation was too risky to be used in passenger service.

3. Passengers were added to the service in 1936, when the first long … … began.

4. Half the weight of the atmosphere is normally found …18,000 feet, and most of the … is located there.

5. … was the only commercial aircraft to be able to fly directly from Newfoundland to Northern Ireland during … … .

6. The enlarged … was flown throughout the war, becoming the main transatlantic … .