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Aviation History
1923
1923 - 0290.PDF
to make and yet possessing a good strength/weight ratio. We have recently obtained particulars of the latest Wibault machine, which is also constructed mainly of Duralumin, although certain very highly-stressed fittings are made of steel. This machine, the 3 C.I., ia designed as a fast single-seater fighter for high altitude work, but if desired may be used for long-distance photographic reconnaissance. Among the desiderata aimed at by the designer are high aerodynamic efficiency, great manoeuvrability, maximum range of vision, good machine gun accessibility and a high factor of safety. In weighing the various problems it was decided to make the machine of metal, all except the covering, which is ordinary doped fabric. The necessity for a good view resulted in a parasol monoplane arrangement, and the desire for good aerodynamic efficiency pointed to the cantilever wing. Since, however, a very large factor of safety was essential, it was decided that a small amount of external bracing would not affect the efficiency greatly, while it would enable the wing to be made very strong. Consequently the actual machine incorporates a fairly thick wing, raised above the fuselage, and braced on each side by one pair of struts. The factor of safety is claimed by the makers to be 19, and the wing is stated to have withstood a sand load of more than 50,000 lbs. The wing section used is one developed by M. Wibault. It has a flat bottom surface, and the leading edge is very much rounded. The depth is not extraordinary, as it was found that a wing of medium thickness with external struts gave better results than a thicker wing without struts. The maximum L/D of the wing is stated to be just under 20. The wing of the Wibault 3 C.I. is built in two halves, the roots attaching to inverted V-struts from the fuselage, and the lift struts meeting the spars nearly half-way out to the tips. It might appear that this point is rather far outwards, but. MAY 31, 1923 on the other hand, probably the designer had in mind torsional stiffness rather than the direct bending stresses, which, after all, are fairly easy to take care of. There is little doubt that the breakage of the wings of the Dornier " Falke " at Madrid recently was the result of insufficient stiffness against torsion, as the wings are stated to have been seen by competent observers to " flutter " before they finally broke. The two tubes seen in the front elevation of the Wibault are not part of the wing structure, being aileron control tubes used to avoid the use of cables in theaileron control system. The wing spars are of the Duralumin box type, and the ribs are built up of Duralumin tubes, assembled by small Duralumin fittings pressed from the sheet. The ailerons, it will be seen, are very long, and of high aspect ratio. No particulars are available relating to the fuselage con- struction beyond the fact that it is all-metal, with the excep- tion of the covering. Even this is aluminium over the front portion, up to the cockpit. The 300 h.p. Hispano-Suiza engine is entirely cowled-in, and is equipped with a Rateau supercharger, which enables full power to be maintained up to an altitude of 15,000 ft. A Lamblin radiator is mounted on each side of the fuselage. The undercarriage is usual tvpe, but the arrangement of the rubber shock absorbers is such as to enable these to be removed without dismantling the axle. The main characteristics of the Wibault 3 C.I. are as follows :—Span, 38 ft. 7 ins. Length o.a., 26 ft. 7 in«. Chord, 7 ft. 5 ins. Wing area, 285 sq. ft. Weight of machine empty, 2,100 lbs. Weight of fuel, 500 lbs; Useful load, 485 lbs. Total loaded weight, 3,085 lbs. Wing loading, • 10-8 lbs./sq. ft. Power loading, 10-3 lbs./h.p. Speed at 6,500 ft., 152 m.p.h. Speed at 16,500 ft., 174 m.p.h. Ceiling, 34,500 ft. Range at 16,500 ft., 530 miles. Landing speed, 50 m.pJi. HONOURS THE King has approved of the following rewards for dis-tinguished service in the Field with the Waziristan Force :— Distinguished Service Order •• •'£-_•*•• Major Arthur E. B. Parsons, O.B.E., 2nd Bn., 12th Frontier Force Regt., LA. As Political Officer he volunteered to fly as a passenger with the Royal Air Force Squadrons in bombing operations against the hostile Mahsuds, whose location in difficult country it was hardly possible to find except under his personal guidance. This he has done on several occasions with complete success, and has shown conspicuous daring and initiative in finding the targets. While guiding the raid on the Jelal Khel on December 24, 1922, he was severely wounded in the arm while flying at a low altitude. His gallantry has been of the greatest value to the Royal Air Force in enabling them to find and deal with their objective. Military Cross Lieut. A. Hancock, 9th Jat. Regt., LA. -S - Near Katkai, on December 18, 1922, when a mixed column had moved out to co-operate with the Royal Air Force, he displayed conspicuous bravery, coolness, and judgment under fire, when with three platoons of his company he seized and held a hill in advance of the main position. He was under close enfilade fire from the enemy the whole time. His senior Indian officer had been killed and fourteen other ranks wounded during the three hours he held the hill. During the whole time, by his coolness and judgment he set a splendid example to his men. Finally, when ordered to . retire, still under very accurate fire, he removed the remainder of the wounded and all Lewis guns and arms. The Handasyde H.2 Commercial Monoplane : This machine, a full description of which was pub- lished in our issue of July 20, 1922, has been under- go in g tests recently at Brooklands. It is intended for service in Aus- tralia, and is fitted with a RolIs- Royce " Eagle " engine. 290
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