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Aviation History
1923
1923 - 0044.PDF
JANUARY 25, 1923 a seaplane. Hull design is a matter for the closest collaboration between the aircraft designer and the naval architect,; and the subject is one which no designer can afford to ignore; On February 9, Mr. W. O. Manning is reading a paper before the I.Ae.E. on " Seaplane Design." Here Mr. Manning will speak to men whose work has been mostly connected with the practical side of aircraft design and construction, and his paper should be of the very greatest value in elucidating problems which are not, perhaps, realised by those who have interested themselves in the subject mainly in a general way, but which are very real to those intimately connected with the detail work. Finally, on February 15, Wing-Commander Cave- Brown-Cave will read a paper before the R.Ae.S. entitled " The Practical Aspects of the Seaplane." Thus, it will be seen that we are threatened by a very epidemic of papers and lectures on seaplanes, a fact which we interpret as an indication of a general awakening to the importance of the subject, and which cannot fail to have the most beneficial effect upon future progress. We congratulate the societies in question on having secured such a large proportion of seaplane lectures, and we feel sure that the day is coming when the British Empire, already well to the fore in seaplane design, will show itself willing and eager to make full use of the advantages which the seaplane has to offer. Then those who are now devoting their energies to the development and perfecting of the science of .seaplane design will reap their due reward, by a much more rapid progress than has been possible during the period of apathy and neglect through which the seaplane has passed. • • • While on the subject of seaplanes, we „ J^f. are reminded that the regulations forSchneider ,, . , , .,^ , • j Race this year s contest for the SchneiderCup have now been drawn up, but that the place for the competition has still to be chosen. Last year, soon after the winning of the race at Naples by the Supermarine-Napier " Sea Lion," we ventured to make the suggestion that, if possible, the race should be held over the Channel, between the French and English coasts. Our suggestion has met with considerable approval in France, where I'Auto concurs in the desirability of holding the race over a triangular course, including either two turning points on the French coast and one on the English; or vice versa. We do not know if it is possible to follow the suggestion, but there is little doubt that the international character of the race would be enhanced if something of the sort could be done. If, as appears probable, the latter part of August is chosen for the race, weather conditions should be favourable, and it should not be difficult to " borrow " a few destroyers from the British and and French navies for patrolling the course, thus reducing to a minimum the risks run by the competing pilots. We again commend the suggestion to the attention of the Royal Aero Club for their considera- tion. There may be reasons why it cannot be done, but we think the idea is worth examining. We have previously referred in these at columns to the International Exhibition Gothenburg t0 ^e ne^ at Gothenburg, from July 20 to August 12. It now appears probable that France, Germany, Italy and Holland will be represented, and probably several other countries. France has already, we understand, applied for stands at the exhibition for the purpose of showing French private aircraft. Not only so, but M. Laurent Eynac, French Under-Secretary of State for Air, has intimated his intention of sending a Service Squadron to Gothenburg, and has further taken 100 sq. m. of floor space for exhibition purposes. In connection with the exhibition, there will be flying contests and demonstrations at the aerodrome near the exhibition, and doubtless the French squadron will take a prominent part in these. The question now arises, what is Great Britain doing ? As we have repeatedly pointed out in FLIGHT, although we know, and a great many other people know, that British aircraft are second to none, it is no manner of use resting content with that knowledge. Unless we constantly give the world an opportunity of judging of the correctness of this opinion, we shall gradually lose prestige, and with that loss will follow loss of orders. • Now, so far as we can see, the position boils down to this : Our manufacturers cannot well afford the expense of sending machines abroad ; nor, we think, can they afford not to send machines abroad. It is, therefore, a question of which of the two we can least afford, and in our opinion the answer must be that we can least afford not to send representatives. The next problem is how to set about it. It may be granted that, with perhaps the exception of one or two firms, private manufacturers cannot stand the expense. The only solution would, therefore, appear to be concerted action by the Society of British Aircraft Constructors. We appreciate that the selection of the types to be sent must be a somewhat delicate matter. But surely there is enough mutual trust and confidence among members of the industry to arrange for certain representative types to be sent. Would it not be possible to make some arrangement whereby the profits from any machines sold as a result of the exhibition were divided among members of the S.B.A.C, the makers of the particular type being, of course, given their fair share of profit and the rest being put into a pool ? If no machines were sold the members of the S.B.A.C. would assist one another in defraying the expenses, in proportion, of course, to the financial status of each firm, and, possibly, with the exhibiting firm paying a rather larger proportion. It is not to be doubted that any favourable impres- sion created abroad, not to mention actual orders, would react favourably on the whole British industry. Are our firms " big " enough, broad-minded enough to see the truth of this argument ? We shall see. We have previously suggested that a squadron of the R.A.F. be sent to Gothenburg. So far we have heard of no actual results, and it is likely that a policy which will not let service machines take part in races at home will not send a service squadron abroad. Nevertheless, the very fact that France is sending one should be one more reason for the participation at Gothenburg by a British squadron. We earnestly recommend the matter to the authorities for their serious consideration. After all, in the past the Navy has, among its many functions, performed that <5f " showing the flag." As the R.A.F. is now acknowledged to be our first line of defence, should it not begin to take over such functions as this ? 44
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