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Aviation History
1925
1925 - 0174.PDF
the bowsprit, sir." It would seem that Cobham could, on very many occasions, have, with as much justifiable pride, called attention to his landfalls, but he takes them so much for granted that he never refers to them. Sir Sefton Brancker, although at the banquet he referred to himself as the " sleeping partner" of the expedition, has really done much more than he himself appears to realise or claims by being the passenger in such a flight. As in other things, the personal example is worth volumes of counsel, and the manner in which Sir Sefton has proved his willingness, or even eagerness, to fly upon every opportunity has done a tremendous amount of good. The Duke of Sutherland at the banquet referred to Sir Sefton as " The best commercial traveller the aircraft trade has ever had." He is all that, and a good deal more. Like Mr. Cobham, his engineer, Mr. Elliott, was inclined to belittle the effort, and wanted to place all the credit with the machine and engine. While it goes without saying that an unsuitable machine and an unreliable engine would effectively have prevented the flight being so successfully accomplished, there can be no doubt that the careful grooming by Mr. Elliott must have had a good deal to do with the absence of trouble of any kind, and he also must, therefore, be considered to have contributed a very large share towards the success of the tour. Perhaps one of the really significant and valuable features of the organisation of the flight was the manner m which the " trade "—in other words, the aircraft industry—helped wholeheartedly and without a trace of jealousy. A very " Scotch " Treasury failed to see any obligation to finance the under- taking, and so it devolved, in the main, upon the industry to see that the necessary finances were forthcoming. A few firms directly interested paid more than their share, and of the rest, not a single one refused its assistance. Surely there is here a splendid example of what an industry can do if of a single mind. We very much doubt whether anything similar could have been arranged by any other nation, and we take it as a good omen of future progress. In this connection it should not be omitted to refer to the action of Mr. C. R. Fairey, chairman of the S.B.A.C. at the commencement of the flight, in guaranteeing the necessary funds until individual members of the society could be approached. Such resolute action goes a very long way towards solving difficulties, and British aviation in general is indebted to Mr. Fairey for the sportsmanship he has shown. With regard to the equipment used by the expedi- MARCH 26, 1925 tion little need be said. The D.H.50 is a type of small commercial aeroplane that has been in use since 1923, when the first specimen made its fine flight to Gothenburg, where it won first prize in the I.L.U.G. competitions. Since then the type has been used extensively at home and in the colonies, notably in Australia, and has established an enviable reputation for good flying qualities and comfort for the pas- sengers, as well as being a good commercial proposi- tion as regards economy. Mr. Sopwith, in his speech at the banquet, stressed the fact, and quite rightly so, that the machine used in the flight was a perfectly standard one. This is a very important point, as it can truly be said that the machine was in no way specially designed and built for the flight, but was, on the contrary, built as a general utility machine. The only alteration made, which does not in the slightest change the machine, was the fitting of larger tanks than the standard in order to enable the machine to cover certain stretches of the route without landing. A similar alteration could, and doubtlessly would, be made if the machine were wanted by any operating company for special purposes. The Siddeley " Puma " engine is, of course, a comparative " old-timer," and is no longer being manufactured in quantities, although the Aircraft Disposal Company holds large stocks of it. Its reliability has been proved over and over again, more especially in the de Havilland machines, and the way in which the engine fitted in the Burma flight machine stood up to its work only confirms that reputation. In view of the undoubted reliability of the " Puma," and the interest taken at present in three-engined machines, would it not, we wonder, be worth while designing a commercial aeroplane to be fitted with three " Pumas " ? A total engine-power of about 700 b.h.p. should be a useful size, and such a machine should carry, say, 12 passengers over fairly short routes, and 10 or so over slightly longer ones. The engine is of " clean " lines and can easily be well streamlined, so that efficient aerodynamic design should be possible. The new Junkers three-engined machine shown in a photograph in this issue gives a lead as to what can be done. To the rest of the equipment there is no need to refer here, as most of it is dealt with in a short article following Cobham's account of the flight. Suffice it to say that every item of the " trifles " did its duty and contributed its share towards the success. We think it will be admitted that congratulations are due to all concerned, and we express the hope that this flight may prove the first of many that shall carry the fame of British aviation to the farthest corners of the world. At the Levee AT the Levee held on March 19 at St. James's Palace by H.R.H. the Prince of Wales, on behalf of H.M. the King, were the following :—Air Marshal Sir John Salmond, Principal Aid Aide-de-Camp ; Group-Capt. C. Kilner ; Wing-Com- mander Louis Greig ; Capitaine de F. Sable ; Air Commodore T. J. Webb-Bowen ; Sqdn.-Ldr. R. C. Lane. The following were amongst those presented to the Prince of Wales : Flying Officer W. Akerman ; Wing-Commander C. Breese, A.F.C. ; Capt. H. Deacon, D.F.C., R.A. ; Flying Officer B. de Nevers ; Flight-Lieut. A. Ellwood, D.S.C. ; Sqdn.-Ldr. C. Hayward ; Sqdn.-Ldr. D. Iron, O.B.E. ; Pilot Officer A. McDowall; Flying Officer L. Nixon ; Flight-Lieut. W. Poole, A.F.C., M.M. ; Flying Officer R. Ragg ; Flying Officer J. Silvester ; Air Vice-Marshal J. Steel, C.B., C.M.G., C.B.E. ; Sqdn.-Ldr. H. Stewart: Flying Officer J. Wingate ; Wing-Commander A. Winter, O.B.E., etc. Carlisle-Belfast Air Service AN inaugural flight in connection with the air mail service between Carlisle and Ulster took place on March IS. On the arrival of the London mail train at Stranraer, a dummy load of mail a.nd newspapers was conveyed by car to Freugh aerodrome, and transferred to the waiting aeroplane. This left Freugh at 6.18 a.m., and arrived at Belfast at 7.5 a.m. The President of the Derry Chamber of Commerce stated that the Northern Government attached much importance to this service (which is being operated by Northern <Ur Lines), and had given ^1,000. The Belfast Corporation had given ^ 1,700. Arrangements had been made with the Post Office, both in Derry and Belfast. He suggested that if they applied for a few shares it would show that the people of Derry were taking an interest in the matter. Two machines will be used on this new service. 174
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