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Aviation History
1921
1921 - 0096.PDF
FEBRUARY IO, 192 I NORWAY'S EXPERIENCE OF COMMERCIAL AVIATION IT is a curious fact that among the countries which have attempted to run regular air services there appears to be one only which-has chosen for such services the seaplane type of machine. This country is Norway, and here there were very good reasons for selecting the seaplane. The country is mountainous throughout, and consequently suitable landing-grounds for land machines are few and far between, and could only be artficially provided at considerable cost. Therefore, when the Norske Luftfartrederi planned a mail and passenger route between Stavanger and Bergen, it was natural that the seaplane should be chosen. Originally this firm was founded in 1918, with a fully paid-up capital of 3,300,000 kroner (normally about /183,000), and did a lot of propaganda work for the establishment of regular air mail routes along the Norwegian coast and between available at short notice (it was then getting late in the year), the company hired one and purchased two German seaplanes, all of the Friedrichshafen twin-float seaplane type. Thus the two types were used under equal conditions, and some interesting comparisons could be made. According to Dr. Keilhau, the German machines were, if anything, the more seaworthy of the two, as regards living in a rough sea, but as the coast-line between Bergen and Stavanger has for the greater part land-locked fjords, well protected against heavy seas, it was found of greater importance to ' have machines which would behave well in the air. In this respect, Dr. Keilhau says, the British machines proved far superior to the German. In those Norwegian fjords there is a superfluity of gusts and swirls, with violent squalls and showery weather. OOOOOOOO ;A Supermarine flying - boat, be-1 longing to the Norske Luftfar- trederi, outside Bergen, Norway. OOOOOOOO O O O O O o o o o o o o o o o o o Norway and the British Isles. The managing director of the firm was Dr. W. Keilhau, Commander Gyth Dehli was technical director, and Dr. Fridtjof Nansen was associated with the firm as President of the representative body. After a lot of uphill work, the firm at last succeeded in obtaining from the Norwegian Government a contract for the carriage of mails by air between Stavanger and Bergen. Operations were commenced in August, 1920. Originally it was thought that three machines would be sufficient for the purpose, the services being so arranged that there was only one machine in the air at a time. This would leave one machine in reserve and one under overhaul. Consequently three Supermarine flying-boats were purchased and duly delivered. It was then found, however, that owing to the linking-up with the Bergen-Christiania railway it would be necessary to run two machines simultaneously, one in each direction. As no more British machines were Especially are weather conditions very nasty, with easterly winds coming down the mountain sides. It was found that the Supermarines could go out in any weather and complete their journey when the German machines were unable to stay in the air. As regards the comfort of passengers, it is pointed out by the company that these boats ran more steadily than a railway coach, and did not sway and plunge even in the strongest gusts. In the matter of engines, the experience of the Luftfar- trederi was that the Supermarines would have been all the better for a little more power, the 160 h.p. Beardmores having to be run all ou^iuring the whole of the trip, in view of the unfavourable auTumn weather. In consequence they needed overhaul more frequently than the more lightly-loaded Benz engines (220 h.p.) of the German machines. This is not to be wondered at, as running constantly at maximum power is a severe test for any engine. SUPERMARINES IN NORWAY : The photograph on the left shows one of the Supermarine boats used by the Norske Luftfartrederi, and on the right is a view of Stavanger taken from the Supermarine boat.
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