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Aviation History
1922
1922 - 0540.PDF
air force for work of this nature. Nothing could be farther from the truth, but lack of spares and other essentials, caused by a desire for " economy," has so hindered the work and impared the efficiency that the R.A.F. has not had a fair chance of showing what it can do. Although the R.A.F., Irak, will be in a much more favourable position, inasmuch as it will be in direct contact with the Air Ministry and the Government, and not rely upon the Indian or other Government, the tendency to " economise " is present at home no less than in India, and from the list of equipment published elsewhere in this issue it will be seen that the majority of machines going out with the squadrons are of fairly old type. It is true that so long as these machines are maintained in first-class condition, by good supplies of spares and by adequate ground staffs, they are as good, probably, as those of any other country at the present time, but it should be kept in mind that pro gress is rapid, and that, in all fairness to the gallant officers and men of the R.A.F., we should not— must not—continue to expect the R.A.F. to do its work on old war stock. There are now in existence British designs far in advance of anything which is being sent out to Irak, and gradually these must replace the older types with which the start is being made. • • • In the midst of the enthusiasm for Glider gliding which has been aroused during Aviette? tne last few months, there is already signs of a division of opinion as to whether gliding is, after all, likely to carry us much further, of whether we should not do better by de voting our energies to the evolution of a type of power-driven aeroplane which will fly with engines of a few horse power only. The two schools are both emphatic in their views, but we think that, as usual in such cases, the truth lies somewhere between the two extremes. We have always held that gliding can provide excellent sport, but have never shared the optimistic view that its practice will lead to the development of types of aircraft which will be com mercially useful and will be able to make long trips, to a fixed time table and over given routes, by the aid of the energy in the wind only, without other motive power. The opposite view, that gliding cannot possibly teach us anything, is, to our way of thinking, equally incorrect. Gliding can undoubtedly teach us a good deal about best wing forms, best fuselage shapes, effective controls, and so on. In other words, it provides an opportunity of carrying out, for a very small capital outlay, full-scale experiments which would, if conducted with power-driven machines, cost considerable sums of money. The machine of ultra-low power is certainly a possibility. In fact, it is possible to predict with fair accuracy, without introducing uncertain features, that a small, lightly- loaded, single-seater machine can be built which will fly level—that is to say, will just be able to remain in the air without descending—for a power expendi ture of about 4 or 5 horse power. Such a low- powered machine would, however, have no reserve power for climbing, and might easily, we think, be more dangerous than a pure glider in which the pilot would know that no other power was available than that obtainable from the wind- It has been suggested that progress might be made SEPTEMBER 21, 1922 by fitting a very low power engine in a glider, and merely using the power when the wind dropped or when the machine got out of an ascending current. We very much doubt if such a procedure would be satisfactory. As soon as an engine is fitted the elements of an ordinary aeroplane are introduced, such as noise, vibration, propeller draught, etc., and it appears to us doubtful whether pilots would be able to change over from gliding to propelled flight, and vice versa, sufficiently quickly and at the correct instant to make such a compromise successful. The very presence #f an airscrew would detract con siderably from the gliding angle of the machine, and then there is the difficulty of starting the engine, should it, as would frequently happen, stop altogether while running throttled down. To re-start would mean a steep dive, with consequent loss of altitude. To us it seems that the best policy will be to learn as much as we can from pure gliding, and then, with the knowledge thus accumulated; attack the problem of low-power flight afterwards. In that way much more is likely to be learned than if we start off straight away with " Aviettes." That it will ultimately be possible to fly at a speed of 50 or 60 m.p.h. with a power expenditure of about 10 h.p. we are quite prepared to believe, but before the really satisfactory machine can be evolved which will do this we think a thorough study of gliding and soaring should be made. • • • The R.Ae.C. Next Sunday, September 24, the Royal " Coming of Aero Club attains its majority. On that A £e " date, in 1901, a party consisting of Mr. Hedges Butler, Miss Vera Butler (now Mrs. Iltid Nicholl) and the late Hon. C. S. Rolls made an ascent in the balloon " City of York " from the Crystal Palace. At an altitude of 5,000 ft. above London, Mr. Hedges Butler suggested the formation of a club to control the science and sport of flying, and the idea was adopted unanimously by the little party. By -the time a landing was made at Sidcup the Aero Club was in being. The Club rapidly developed, and did a tremendous amount of good in the services of avia tion during the early years when those who believed in the possibilities of flying were ranked as cranks, to say The least. In spite of all handicaps, however, the Club flourished, and in 1912 the Club achieved the honour of becoming known as the Royal Aero Club, Mr. Hedges Butler receiving from the Home Office a letter announcing that His Majesty had been pleased to grant permission to members of the Club " to fly on their aeroplanes, airships and balloons a burgee bearing a representation of His Majesty and surmounted by a Royal Crown." It is of interest to recall that the inaugural ascent of the Club was made in November 1901, when the " City of York " ascended from Stamford Bridge, piloted by Mr. Stanley Spencer. At an altitude of a few hundred feet above London Miss Butler unfurled a white banner some 12 yards long, bearing the words " Aero Club." The burgee of the Royal Aero Club is now, of course, a familiar sight to all interested in aviation, but in those days few—even among the enthusiasts—would have dreamed of the extent to which flying in all its branches was destined to develop during the next 21 years. On its formation in 1909 FLIGHT was chosen as the Official Organ of the Aero Club, and has remained so ever since. 540
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