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Aviation History
1917
1917 - 0564.PDF
ifusm rear. The King had clattered up to the ground with an escort of the ist Life Guards, and now he was still guarded by a Sovereign's escort in the clouds. They weaved slow circles through the clouds, and later far above them. They turned, crossed the City, and came back, keeping a ceaseless Watch over the King, and ready to give warning of the approach of any danger in the air." JUNE 7, MR. TWELLS BREX, in his notes in the Daily Mail, put it this way : " Early during the investiture the guardian aeroplanes appeared. They flew at a tremendous height—so high that at times they seemed to hover. A gale must have been blowing in those Alpine heights, and the King's air hawks were often invisible behind scudding clouds." COMMERCIAL AERONAUTICS." IN the discussion which followed the reading of Mr. Holt Thomas's paper on the above subject, which Was given in " FLIGHT " last week, Col. O'Gorman congratulated Mr. Holt Thomas on the able way in which he had dealt with his subject, and he reminded those present that the lecturer, "besides being an enthusiast where aviation was concerned, •Was also a keen business man, and he mentioned how he had been present with him at the first Rheims meeting. He pointed out how vital speed Was in the ordinary way, but another way in which speed was important was in the transition period from war to peace flying. If there was any delay in changing over it might easily cost the country ^5,000,000. Col. O'Gorman thought that Mr. G. Holt Thomas's figure of £250 per annum for each landing ground -Would be found to be too high in the light of experience. He also mentioned that four years ago he had been asked to arrange for a service of aeroplanes along a river in one of our distant Colonies, and it was found that it could be "worked quite successfully. Sir John Rees said he knew nothing about aviation, but he knew something about India, and so was in a position to appreciate what he had heard with regard to the possibilities of aeroplane transport. The idea of being able to reach Bagdad in two days, instead of the two months which was often required, appealed to him strongly. He urged the •Government not to be " too late " in giving their serious attention to the question With a view to assisting it to the full. The paper opened up a vista of great importance, and every effort should be made to ensure that nothing should be left undone to encourage the movement for the benefit of the Empire. Mr. F. Handley Page said as he sat and listened to the lecture he could not help likening the audience to those •who in Columbus' time had listened to that pioneer navigator «xplaining his project which led to the discovery of America. He said the fact which stood out was that a load of 6 tons having been carried successfully, it meant that either heavy loads could be carried or that long distances could be covered by aeroplanes. Another thing which was brought out by the pictures was the amount of sociability possible in the roomy cabins on the large machine, While there was ample space in which to stow mails, &c. From his experience he thought that in practice it would be found that wind and weather would not seriously interfere with regular aeroplane services. MR. H. White Smith said that although it might be possible to criticise Mr. Holt Thomas's figures, the matter should be regarded in the broadest way. The machines shown on the :film could not be bought for £2,500, ,and the passengers would want to carry more luggage. The capital cost would also go up considerably. They looked to the Government to Tielp to develop the types of machines necessary for carrying out continental and overseas flying, and they looked to the public to support the Government. General Brancker said that he agreed with the lecturer except in his statement that military and commercial aviation were quite different things and would lead to the development of various types of machines. He thought there was no reason Why military and civil machines should not progress along similar lines. The big weight-carrying machines Were just those which Were required for bomb-dropping expeditions, the fast passenger aeroplanes were of the type most useful for reconnaissance purposes, while the very fast machines for exhibition flying and racing would be the type required for fighting in the air. At present they had to sacrifice a good deal to speed, but when the war was over and they could allow of greater strength, flying Would be practically safe. Lord Montagu said in India they already had landing places 15 miles apart along the N.W. Frontier and Khyber Pass, and the system had proved very successful. The war had accelerated the progress of aviation by 25 to 30 years. Lord Cowdray said that before aviation was made a com- mercial success there Were many difficulties to be overcome. Whatever efforts were made between now and the end of the war it was impossible to expect to be able to continue the aircraft industry at the present high pressure after the war. He agreed that the industry ought to be favourably treated in the matter of the taxation of excess profits. After the war there would be available thousands of aircraft, thousands of skilled pilots, and many thousands of mechanics for employment in commercial aviation. Personally, he believed it would be found that Mr. Holt Thomas's estimate of the cost was somewhere near the mark— that it would not exceed 5s. per mile. It could not be expected that commercial flying would step into a business that would produce that amount. However rapid might be its growth it Would be years before the trade itself Would support the air service which Imperial needs demanded. Commercial flying was bound to come ; it would come quickly ; it would come successfully, and not require Govern- ment assistance after, probably, the first five years, or maybe six or seven years. One could hardly picture the advantages flying would have for us in the future. It would bind nations together, and it would lengthen life in so far as it would enable us to do so much more in the future than we had been able to do in the past. In connectionn with the figures regarding the carrying of mails given in Mr. Holt Thomas''paper, published in our last issue, a printer's error in the original paper as issued put a very different complexion on the state of affairs when only £ load is carried (see Fig. G., p. 539). What Mr. Holt Thomas really said was that With full load four machines gave a profit of £60,000, three-quarter load a profit of £14,000, and half-load a loss of £35,000, and so on. The King and Queen at Hendon. THE King and Queen, accompanied by Princess Mary, and attended by Commander Sir Charles Cust, R.N., on May 31st motored to Hendon and paid a long visit to the Works of the Aircraft Manufacturing Co., Ltd. Their Majesties were received by Major C. S. Paulet, of the Ministry of Munitions ; Major Ivan Dobson, Captain R. H. Brand, Mr. G. Holt Thomas, Founder and Chairman; Mr. H. Burroughes, general manager ; Mr. G. A. Peck, assistant general manager ; Captain S. W. Hiscocks, chief engineeer ; and Captain de Havilland, chief designer. The Royal visitors were given a rousing welcome by a guard of honour formed of the workpeople, and proceeded to make a tour of the shops. In each one the King and Queen took a great interest in the work going on, and many of the work- people Were asked to explain the process of Which they were ,. in [^charge. In the dope shop the King remarked upon the excellent ventilation and the absence of unpleasant smell. Subsequently their Majesties motored to the aerodrome at Hendon, where they were received by Major Lord Robert Innes-Ker, Commandant. ^Detachments of the R.N.A.S. and the R.F.C. were on the ground, and an exhibition of flying, including looping the loop, was given on one of the latest De Havilland machines by Captain B. C. Hucks, R.F.C. The King and Queen inspected a number of various types of machines, including one expressly designed for training purposes. In a subsequent flight, in comparison with four other planes in the air, this machine appeared to be almost standing still, and indeed the designer himself averred that When he brought it back from a distant air station some days ago he was passed by a goods train on the London and North- Western line. Their Majesties also witnessed a display by an R.N.A.S. pilot, and visited the naval sheds. A mock' battle was also fought in the air between two fast aeroplanes, which manoeuvred for position. As the King and Queen left, the Royal car again drove through lines of cheering workpeople, who had been permitted to leave the shops for the occasion. S64
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