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Aviation History
1923
1923 - 0742.PDF
DECEMBER 6, 1923 A FOKKER MACHINE OF 1915 : This little biplane, with rotary engine, was the first cantilever machine, and Fokker had great difficulty in convincing the German authorities that this form of wing could be -.,„ ,. strong enough. to squadron, demonstrating the wing strength by placingabout 20 men along the wings, that he could convince them that the cantilever wing was sufficiently strong. MijnheerFokker then briefly outlined the Fokker " Milestones," beginning with the little Fokker triplane which marked the Mijnheer Fokker on wing nutter and on controllability ofcantilever wing machines. The use of cantilever wings had, he said, given rise lately toa strange phenomenon, since in fact speeds of 150 m.p.h. or more had been attained. In Holland the new phenomenon—wing fluttering—was first observed on a monoplane with semi-cantilever wing, belonging to the Royal Dutch Navy,which vibrated at large angles of attack. The same thing was noticed on two occasions by the chief of the Fokkerscientific department. The remedy was found to be to bring the centre of gravity of the ailerons to coincide with the hinge,when no further trouble was experienced. On the important question of control at angles beyond thestalling angle of a machine, Mijnheer Fokker made some interesting statements. He had, he said, been somewhatastonished at the importance attached to this subject in England. On the Fokker D.VII, he stated, it was quitepossible to fly this machine with the engine on or off and with the control stick pulled right back. The machine remainedperfectly controllable on rudder, elevator, and ailerons. When it was desired to climb the stick had to be pushedforward, showing that the previous form of flying had entailed a reversal of controls, flight taking place in the second region.With the engine off and the stick pulled right back the machine would glide down at a very steep angle. The vertical velocityhad been ascertained to be 12 to 14 ft.'sec, while the hori- zontal speed was only 60 ft. sec, giving a gliding angle of4-5 to 1, or 12° to 14°. The best gliding angle of the Fokker D.VII was 8-3 to 1. It was even possible to land the machinein this way, although, naturally, somewhat severe stresses were thrown on wheels and axle. The machine had notendency to roll over sideways, and the rudder control was so great that the machine could be swung about by kicking therudder from side to side without throwing the machine into a stall or spin. The machine could be spun, but required fullelevator and bottom rudder. As soon as the rudder was released the D.VII stopped spinning. These qualities werefound in all Fokker machines, which made them almost The latest Fokker:This one - and - a - half 'plane is fittedwith a Napier " Lion " engine,and has reached an altitude of8,500 metres with a load of 1,000 lbs.Mijnheer Fokker claims that it isnot essentially different in prin-ciple from the 1915 machine. B m B m B m m real beginning of the practical adoption of cantilever wings,and finishing with the latest Fokker, fitted with a Napier " Lion " engine, a photograph of which is given herewith.We cannot devote the space to give a reference to the various types in detail, and as most of them will be familiar to readersof FLIGHT, we will turn to some interesting remarks made by '•Air Strategy " THE paper under this title, which was at first announced as to be read by Wing Commander Edmonds before the Royal Aeronautical Society on December 13, will be read before the Royal United Service Institution, by arrangement with the Royal Aeronautical Society, on December 12, 1923, at 3.30 p.m. 13 Entries for French Engine Competition FROM Paris it is announced that 13 engines have beenentered for the French competitions next year. These are 2 Renault, 1 Salmson, 2 Breguet, 2 Lorraine-Dietrich, " fool-proof," and were indirectly a result of cantilever wingsor, anyway, of thick wing sections. A brief discussion followed the lecture, which did not,however, bring to light any new points. The Chairman, Mr, W. O. Manning, then proposed a very hearty vote of thanks,which was both loud and prolonged. M 1 Peugeot, 1 Panhard-Levassor, 2 Hispano-Suiza, and 2 Fiat. No British engine has been entered. All About the " Bristol " Gas StarterAN artistically produced little pamphlet has just come to hand from the ;Bristol [Aeroplane Company, of Filton,Bristol, in which is presented a very complete description of the " Bristol " gas starter for high-powered engines. Photo-graphic illustrations and diagrams assist in the explanation of the working and construction of this wonderfully successfuland useful aircraft unit, which was fully described UI_FLIGHTfor December 1, 1921. 742
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