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Aviation History
1921
1921 - 0655.PDF
OCTOBER 6, 1921 THE VICKERS "VIKING" MARK IV Several Machines Building for Abroad SINCE the Vickers Viking, Mark III, won the Governmentcompetition for amphibian machines at Martlesham, in September of last year, that machine has been doing a gooddeal of experimental work so as to obtain data for the next in the series, the Mark IV. Among the experiments anddemonstrations which have been made with the older machine it will suffice to recall the trips between London and Paris—frpm Thames to Seine and vice versa—one of which was accomplished in the record time of two hours. No one whohad the good fortune to witness the ease with which that machine got off from and alighted on the river could be in percentage of useful load will be absorbed by the land gear,and consequently it is impossible to strike a balance between the two types. On the one hand, there is the fact that noprepared aerodrome is required, and, therefore, no ground rent to pay nor ground maintenance. On the other, theamphibian will carry less useful load—by the amount equal to the weight of the land gear—than the land machine of thesame power and performance. From the point of view of military (or naval) aviation, there can be little doubt thatthe amphibian will find its sphere of usefulness. However, to return to the Vickers " Viking " amphibian, VICKERS "VIKING IV ": Three quarter front view. " Flight" Copyright doubt about the enormous possibilities which the amphibiantype of machine possesses. The .majority of large towns have rivers running through or near them, which can be madeto serve as " aerodromes," thus doing away with the expense of preparing land aerodromes, which must of necessity besome distance away from the centre of the town, and which, therefore, take up valuable time to reach. The drawback to the amphibian type of machine is, ofcourse,r,th.at the amphibian gear runs away with some of the load that could otherwise be utilised for paying cargo. It isyet too early in the development of the amphibian to make it possible to lay down any hard and fast rules as to what the experience gained with the Mark III " Viking " since itswinning of the competition last year, has indicated that a more seaworthy hull would be desirable, and consequentlyMr. Pierson, chief designer of Vickers' aviation department, set to work to improve upon the III. The result is shown inthe Mark IV, several of which are now ready, and others nearing completion. It is not without interest to note that.France has placed an order for new " Vikings," while a small country like Holland has also ordered several, some of whichare about to be delivered immediately. The first machine, for France, is ready and will probably have been deliveredbv air by the time this week's issue of FLIGHT is distributed. VICKERS "VIKING IV "; Side view. 655 - •Flight" Copyright ' :*r • • • C 2
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