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Aviation History
1918
1918 - 1384.PDF
DECEMBER 5, 1918 on the top of the main tank, and forms the back of the pilot'sseat; in the latter it is under the engine cowling. In the Fokker, the main, auxiliary, and oil tanks are incorporatedin one unit, and a hand pressure pump is fitted for starting purposes. A small windmill, similar to that on the D.H.9aeroplane, was found in the wreckage of the five-engined giant, and it is conjectured that'the enemy may have turnedhis attention to this kind of petrol supply mechanism. Propellers Owing to the shortage of the best classes of timber, mahog-any and walnut are now frequently replaced by ash, pine sycamore, and maple. The screws of the giant bombers,being geared down, roughly, 2 to 1, are not very heavily stressed, and are made entirely of soft wood covered with thin. veneer, the grain of which runs across the blade. •,: Wireless'-'• The majority of German aeroplanes are internal] ' wired for greater wireless capacity, but are only fitted with t] ad-mitting apparatus when this is actually going to be used. In some cases the dynamo is driven from a pulley on the enginein conjunction with a hand-controlled clutch, but in modern types it is commoner to find the dynamo supported on oneof the undercarriage struts, and driven- by a screw in the slip-stream of the tractor. On the five-engined giant aDouglas type horizontally opposed engine of about 3 h.p. drives the wireless and heating generator.; mm THE R.A.F. Now that hostilities have ceased it is possible to tell inbrief the story of Royal Air Force activities during the War in the development of airships. As these craft have workedalmost entirely with the Navy, their work has necessarily been kept as secret as the other operations of the Silent Ser-vice. The outbreak of war found the Royal N avy in possession of seven airships, all of the non-rigid type. ' On October 31st,1918, the number was 103, including rigids and'non-rigids. During the war the functions of airships have been two,namely, to combat the submarine menace and to act as scouts for the Fleet. Bomb-dropping raids over land were notattempted by British airships, and were only considered of minor importance by the Germans. Rigid airships are the best of scouts for a fleet. The Ger-mans owed their escape after the Battle of Jutland to their Zeppelins. It was Zeppelins which made possible the escapeof the flotilla which raided Scarborough on Easter Monday, 1916, and it was Zeppelins whiGh enabled " U "-boats totorpedo His Majesty's ships " Nottingham " and " Falmouth." The struggle with the submarine menace entailed two sorts ofwork, patrol and convoy. While on patrol the airships were able to compass the destruction of numerous submarines,either by using their own bombs or by summoning surface craft. They were also able to direct vessels out of a dangerzone. Mines were likewise observed and destroyed. The system of convoy by airship proved extremelysuccessful. No ship was ever sunk while under escort from the air. This work was very arduous and required constantvigilance. Airships are not so independent of weather as ArmamentOn scouts it is now usual to find two fixed guns firing through the screw and furnished with the usual interrupter gearoperated by Bowden wire from the pilot's control stick. On some two-seater machines provision has been made for twofixed guns, but generally only one is fitted. The mountings for the movable observer's gun vary considerably, but inmost machinesi-they comprise wooden rings of rather clumsy design. In the Halberstadt it is notable that the gun mount-ing is erected well above the top of the fuselage, and is stream- lined in section as much as possible. The chief machine designed for offensives against troopsin trenches is the armoured A.E.G. two-seater. In this case the pilot has no gun at all, but the observer has three—one movable on a rotating turret, and two fixed weapons firing forward and downward, at an angle of 45° through the floor.It appears that the only other armoured aeroplanes are the Junker and the Albatros, but examples of this type have notbeen captured. BombsSmall bombs are invariably carried in vertical rr. agazine racks inside the fuselage, and discharged through a trap-dcorin the floor. The larger bombs are fitted in cradles under the fuselage, and also underneath the wing roots. On the laterGothas an electrical signal device is used to indicate that the bomb has actually left the machine. On these machines themedium-sized bombs appear to be generally released in pairs. AIRSHIPS are heavier-than-air craft, but it is interesting to note that in1918 up to the signing of the armistice there were only nine days on which no flying took place. It is a popular beliefthat airships require an extravagant number of mechanics. When..the number of flying hours is set against the numberof hands employed airships are shown to be more economical in man-power than heavier-than-air craft, as the followingfigures show :— Aeroplanes andAirships. Seaplanes. Men employed per hour flown .. 1-62 3-52Hours flown per man employed . . 1-04 0-40 Average duration of patrol .. . .6h. 17mm. 2h. 2min.The following table shows the hours flown from 1915 to October 31st, 1918 :— . . Hours. - 1915-- •• •• -• •• •• 339 - 1916.. .. .. .. .. .. 7,078 •'.. 1917 22,389I5i8 53,554 The total casualties to airship personnel during the warwere 239, of which 48 were fatalities due to flying accidents and enemy action. For every fatality suffered 42,548 mileswere flown. In the airship service credit is claimed, not for losses suffered but for losses inflicted on the enemy, andfor averting losses from one's own side. When the potential destructiveness of each " U "-boat is considered the servicesof the airships in securing the food supply of Great Britain and escorting troopships cannot easily be overrated. An American Seaplane Record A MESSAGE from Washington reports that a new three- engined seaplane for the U.S. Navy set up a new record by flying with 50 passengers from the naval air station at Rocka- wajr to New York on November 27th. The machine is equipped with three 400 h.p. Liberty engines, and the cruising speed is said to be 80 miles per hour. A Norwegian Record ON November 19th Lieut. Dietrichsen set up a speed record for Norway by flying 620 miles in 8£ hours. Aerial Mails in the U.S.A.IT appears that the success which has attended the aeroplane mail services which have so far been arranged inthe States, has been sufficiently encouraging to induce the authorities to release several hundred aeroplanes for thispurpose, and plans are now under consideration for the organisation of such services between many of the leadingcities in the States. " Electrical Welding " - OWING to the General Election, the Institution of Me- chanical Engineers has decided to cancel the meeting originally arranged for December 13th. The next meeting will be on January 24th, when Mr. T. T. Heaton will read a paper on " Electrical Welding." 7 7: ..7 : : Z "."-'. An International Aerodrome at Leeds ? AMONG the municipalities who are fully alive to the possibilities of international aerial travel must be counted Leeds, which has a very enterprising Chamber of Commerce. At a recent meeting of this body it was pointed out that the city is favourably placed for becoming the principal halt between London and Edinburgh, and might easily become eventually the English terminus of a Continental service, although it was -realised that Hull might be chosen for the immediate future from the latter point of view. It was suggested that for inland purposes a 200-mile flight would possibly be a recognised standard, while in continental journeys, flightswould probably be made in 500-mile stages. Aeroplane Flight to Australia THE Aerial League of the British Empire announces that it is organising a flight to Australia via India. It is stated that certain offers of financial assistance have been received conditional upon the full amount being subscribed, and it is hoped this will be forthcoming before the preliminary work is Completed. It has not yet« been decided whether or not the flight will be competitive, but if so, the co-operation of the Royal Aero Club will be invited and suitable prizes offered, not only for the pilots but also for the. makers of the successful machines and engines. The route also, is still under consideration, and it is proposed to ask the Govern- ment to lend its aid where necessary. _'::r. 7
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