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Aviation History
1920
1920 - 0805.PDF
JULY 22, 1920 "Flight" Copyright Two views inside the cabin of the Westland Limousine : On the left the two forward seats are shown, and on the right the aft seat and pilot's cockpit attempt at producing a satisfactory combination is therefore to be greeted a step in the development of aircraft. In the Vickers " Viking " the hull is flat-sided, and each side has an arc of sheet steel with a series of holes in it. A small star wheel is carried at the lower end of a shaft passing down along the tubes of the wheel undercarriage. This shaft is operated from the pilot's seat through a transverse shaft near the top rails of the boat, so that as the shafts are rotated they rotate the star wheel engaging with the arcs or quadrants on the sides of the hull,-'and thus lower or raise the wheels. Messrs. Vickers, Ltd., have had a most interesting film taken which shows the behaviour of the machine both on land and sea, and as far as could be seen both were highly satisfactory. It is quite amusing to see the machine come taxying in, and then without hesitation climb up on the beach. The machine certainly appears to get off well, and the unusual hull design, which has been the subject of some speculation, appeared to be quite effective, the machine getting off and alighting with no more spray than one associates with all flying boats. On land also the machine appears to behave very well indeed, although it is possible that after a great number of landings the hull might become strained. It will be realised that the hull has to be considerably stronger when used thus, owing to the whole weight of the machine coming at one point, instead of being more or less distributed over the hull as it is in the ordinary flying boat. If, however, the land undercarriage is used chiefly in emergency there would appear to be no reason to suppose that the gear wduld not be successful and capable of lasting quite a long period. The Westland Limousine It is now several months since we described in detail the first Westland Limousine designed and built by the aircraft department of Petters of Yeovil. Since then the machine has undergone several minor modifications, although in its broad lines it is still very much like the original machine. The chief feature of the Westland Limousine is, in our opinion, the seating arrangement, which is a good compromise between the two types : pilot in front and pilot far aft. Both of these arrangements have their drawbacks, but in the Westland the bad points of both would appear to have been avoided. The pilot and rear passenger sit side by side, but the pilot at a higher level, with his head out in the open, while the passenger is inside the cabin. The other two passengers are slightly farther forward, one on the port side facing forward, and the other on the starboard side facing aft. Thus, in spite of its comparatively small size, the Westland Limousine is very roomy, while the weights are at the same time close '• "••' ••"-'•." •-• 1 • • - .. . • - Flight" Copyright THE WESTLAND LIMOUSINE : The main petrol tanks are mounted one on each side under the lower plane
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