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Aviation History
1915
1915 - 0758.PDF
planes. The engine can be started from the passenger's seat by means of a starting handle. "The main planes, which have a comparatively small gap in relation to the chord, are built up of wooden ribs over steel tube spars. Inter-connected ailerons are fitted to both upper and lower planes, and the chord of the ailerons is greater at the tip than at their inner ends in order to render them more efficient. "The elevators, which are of tremendous size, are carried on an outrigger formed of four steel tubes, and are unusual in that the elevators, which are of the balanced type, are supported rigidly at only one point on the outrigger, the remainder of the bracing being carried out by wires running to the bottom of the outriggers, and to a short mast on top. Mounted on the rear vertical tube of the outrigger is the large balanced elevator, which is unusual for its great length compared to breadth. "A refinement worth noticing are the wheel brakes fitted to the rear wheels. " By means of these brakes, which are operated from the pilot's seat, the machine can be held back by the pilot, whilst running the engine all out, so that it is possible by the aid of these brakes, and the starting handle behind the passenger's seat, to start the machine without any outside assistance whatever, a feature which should prove useful for cross-country work where, after having made a forced landing en route, experienced assistants are not always available, and where the help of inexperienced, though willing, assistants may easily cause considerable damage to the machine. Another advantage of the wheel brakes is that on making a landing in restricted grounds this machine can be brought to a standstill, where others would probably be wrecked by running into obstacles." ® © CONSTRUCTIONAL DETAILS.—V. HAVING dealt in previous issues with strut sockets and fuselage joints, our full page of sketches of constructional details this week illustrates some of the more commonly employed sections of main wing spars. Perhaps in no other component part of an aeroplane is the question of strength of such paramount importance as in the case of the members that support the weight of the machine when in the air. The nature and magnitude of the stresses to which a wing spar may be subjected are not yet fully known, or at least not available in published form. Ex periments have been carried out at the N.P.L. and methods devised for the calculation of the stresses in the wings and bracing of an aeroplane, the method of " strain energy " having been developed and applied for this purpose, but as the yearly report has not yet been published, the results of these experiments are not imme diately available. From the selection of sections em ployed by leading manufacturers illustrated by the ac companying sketches our readers should, however, be able to form a very fair idea of current practice in the design of a wing spar. It should be pointed out that the sections illustrated were in most cases those that were current practice before the war, as at the present moment it would obviously be unwise to describe in detail such ® ® No British Air Minister. IN a wtitten reply to a question put in the House of Commons by Mr. King, the Prime Minister stated that a separate Ministry for air purposes is not in contemplation. Aeroplane Work Along the Tigris. IN the review of the operations on the Tigris issued by the Secretary of State for India on September 30th there was the following:— " On the morning of the 29th the enemy's position was found un occupied, while aeroplane reconnaissance showed the Turks in flight by river and road towards Baghdad. One of our aeroplanes succeeded in dropping bombs on a large enemy steamer." New Lighting Regulations. UNDER the restrictions of the new Order regarding the use of lights in London, which came into force on the 1st, a more desirable state of affairs, from whichever point of view one looks at the subject, now prevails as regards street lighting, shops and house lights, the lighting of railway carriages, motor and other vehicles, &c. The Order applies to the City of London, the Metropolitan Police Dis trict, and it revokes the previous order of July 31st, 1915. It states that in case of a sudden emergency all instructions given by the Admiralty, as to the further reduction or extinction of lights, must be immediately obeyed. Air Raid Damage and German Assets. IN the House of Commons on the 30th ult., Mr. Shirley Benn asked the Prime Minister if he would consider the advisability of innovations as have resulted from experience gained by, and the lessons learned from, the arduous work performed by our aeroplanes on active service. Three of the spars shown, Nos. 3, 4 and 5, were tested by Mr. Alec Ogilvie, at Eastchurch, and of these spar No 4, which is, by the way, similar to those employed in the Maurice Farman and other machines, proved by far superior to the other two. Where the leading edge of a wing forms at the same time the front spar, this member must be designed to carry its share of the load, and an example of how this may be accomplished is shown in No. n. It should be clearly understood that where hollow or I-sections are employed it is general practice to leave the spar solid at the points where are attached the inter-plane struts and internal compression struts of the wings. In hollow spars—other than those of I-section—the whole spar is frequently strengthened by binding it with fabric, especially where the spar consists of two halves joined up with a fillet of hard wood. In the case of the German spars shown, it has not always been possible to ascertain the name of the manufacturer, nor the kinds of woods employed, but they have been included to show the sections. ® & introducing legislation to enable the Public Trustee to pay out ol moneys belonging to German citizens all damages done as a result of air raids to private property of British citizens situated in un fortified places. Mr. Asquith: The statute under which the Public Trustee holds German assets declares that the object is to preserve them with a view to arrangements to be made at the conclusion of peace, and the Government is not prepared to vary this announcement. An Echo. IN submitting the revised estimates for the ensuing half year to the Westminster City Council a few days ago, Alderman G. W. Tallents said that one matter of interest was that the Metropolitan Police charge has risen by ,£7,053, but he would like to point out that this was entirely unexpected, and due to the folly of those people who went about wrecking shops in various parts of London. For this compensation had to be paid. The Embargo on Aircraft Fabric. REGULATIONS will, we learn, shortly be issued by the Board of Trade, in consonance with the requirements of the Admiralty, the object being to guard against the possibility of cotton cloth suitable for aircraft reaching the enemy from this country through neutral States. The test by which it is intended to discriminate between cloths which are unsuitable for aircraft and those which might be so applied is one of count, weight, and ratio of strength to weight. Complete details of the test will appear shortly. 758
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