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Aviation History
1925
1925 - 0277.PDF
MAY 7, 1925 ROYAL AERO CLUB AUGUST AIR RACE MEETING THIS meeting (under the Competition Rules of the RoyalAero Club and the Regulations of the F.A.I.), to be held" at Lympne, near Hythe, takes place on Saturday Sunday andMonday, August i, 2 and 3, 1925. The following is the provisional programme : International Handicap.—Open to all aeroplanes. Therace is over a distance of approximately 100 miles, comprising eight circuits of the course. First prize, /150. If five starters, the second will receive£'50. Entry fee, £2. Grosvenor Challenge Cup Handicap.—The aeroplane and engine must have been entirely constructed in the British Empire. The weight of the engine must not exceed 275 lbs. The entrant and pilot must be British subjects. The entrant must be an individual and not a company. The race is over a distance of approximately 100 miles, comprising eight circuits of the course. First prize, £'100 ; second prize, £'50. Entry fee, /2. Light Aeroplane Holiday Handicap (International).— Open to light aeroplanes (single and two-seaters). The weight of the engine must not exceed 170 lbs. The race is over a distance of approximately 50 miles comprising four circuits of the course. First prize, /100. If five starters, the second will receive £'25. Entry fee, 12. Single-Scater Light Aeroplane Scratch Speed Race (International).—Open to light aeroplanes (single-seaters). The weight of the engine must not exceed 120 lbs. The race is over a distance of approximately 50 miles, comprising four circuits of the course. First prize, /50. If five starters, the second will receive /20. Entry fee, £2. Two-Seater Light Aeroplane Scratch Speed Race (International).—Open to light aeroplanes (two-seaters). The weight of the engine must not exceed 170 lbs. The race is over a distance of approximately 50 miles, comprising four circuits of the course. First prize, £"50. If five starters, the second will receive /20. Entry fee, £2. Private Owners' Handicap (International).—Open to all aeroplanes, privately owned and registered in the nameof an individual. (The definition of " Privately owned " is to be at the sole discretion of the Royal Aero Club.) The raceis over a distance of approximately'50 miles, comprising four circuits of the course. First prize, £100. If five starters, the second will receive/25. Entry fee, £'2. Inter-Club Race.—Open to D.H. "Moths" owned andentered by the Light Aeroplane Clubs. It will be a scratch race over a distance of approximately 50 miles, comprisingfour circuits of the course. First prize, £"100. If five starters, the second will receive/25. Entry fee, £2 per aeroplane. Certified Performances for Light Aeroplanes.—Singleseaters and two-seaters. The weight of the engine must not exceed 170 lbs. The Royal Aero Club will give certificates of performancein the following classes :— Class I.—Height in a given time—30 minutes.C'ass II.—Greatest speed over 3 kms. Class III.—Greatest speed over 50 kms.Class IV.—Height. A prize of /25 will be given for the best performance ineach class. Prizes will only be given in classes where there are at leastthree competitors. Entry fee, £T for each class. All races will be held over the course of 12 J miles, startingand finishing on the aerodrome. In all cases where aeroplanes are entered as two-seatersa passenger must be carried, and the weight of the pilot and passenger must be at least 340 lbs. Any shortage of weightmust be made up with ballast. Competitors must comply with the Air Navigation Regula-tions in force, subject to any concessions which may be made by the Air Ministry for these races. Where the weight of engine is specified, this will includecarburettor and induction system, complete ignition equip- ment, air-screw hub and fastenings, exhaust pipes (if any)and radiator, pipes and water (if any). ON TRAVELLING BY AIR Mr. S. F. Edge Expresses Some Interesting Views To those of us who are intimately connected with aviation it is often a matter of very considerable difficulty to " see ourselves as others see us." Those who are directly con- cerned in the construction and/or operation of aircraft naturally look upon matters from an entirely different point of view, often, it is to be feared, with a certain amount of prejudice, and always tinged by the sentiment that must ever attach to the growing up of a new art, science or industry. For this reason it is always interesting to hear the views of someone not connected in any way with aviation, more especially when that someone is a business man prominent in other branches of engineering and transport. It is, therefore, with considerable satisfaction that we are able to publish this week a few notes dealing with the impressions formed by Mr. S. F. Edge when, during the latter part of April, he made the journey from London to Paris and back by air, and which he has been good enough to give us recently when we had a chat with him on the subject. To begin with, Mr. Edge seems to have been somewhat unfortunate in choosing April for his journey, for he said that on the outward trip he was the only passenger in the machine, and on the homeward journey there were but three passenges in addition to himself. Mr. Edge thinks that this scarcity of passengers must be due to lack of the right kind of publicity for attracting passengers, and suggests that a great improve- ment might be effected by constant and widespread circulation of interesting items connected with the subject of the air lines. Mr. Edge believes that many people consider air travel dangerous. He suggests as a remedy the publication of statistics showing the number of miles flown without accident. He would also constantly supply the newspapers with the names of prominent people traveling by air in order to secure the confidence of others. Concerning the actual nights, the machines, the engines, the passenger accommodation, etc., Mr. Edge made some very keen observations, and his views, untinged by prejudice as they are, are particularly interesting. The first thing he noticed was that there was in the saloon no printed matter of any sort pointing out the peculiarities or advantages of air travel On taking his seat in the cabin he noticed that the 277 chair was secured in place by a strap, the legs fitting into thimbles in the floor. The strap, however, was not tight enough, and on leaning back the legs came out of the thimbles. Mr. Edge pointed out that if the chair had been left in this state the feeling, on the machine taking off at a steep angle, might have been alarming to a nervous passenger. Mr. Edge also commented on the oiliness of camshaft casings and on the wires, which gave the engines a slovenly appearance that thev did not deserve, and he suggested that passengers should be provided with some little pamphlet setting forth the reasons for these various things. These pamphlets should also explain that in rising off the ground the aeroplane does so at a fairly steep angle, and that when a turn is made the machine banks over. Nervous passengers would then realise that these are normal manoeuvres and would not become alarmed. A brief explanation of " bumps," comparing them with sea waves, would, Mr. Edge thought, serve to reassure the passengers who might otherwise receive the impression that the machine was not under proper control. He made the very sound suggestion that all the machines should be named as, rightly or wrongly, passengers do take a fancy to particular machines" or types. ' Mr. Edge thought that there should be two pilots on" board, especially if the spare pilot could be allowed occasionally to go into the cabin and explain various subjects to the passengers. He recommended the issue to passengers of ear protectors as a means of increasing the comfort. In connection with the arran enients at the terminals Mr. Edge was not impressed. In fact, he complained of the lack of smartness, which might, he said, be due to insufficient business to keep them really busy. Another small point raised by Mr. Edge, but one showing how he must have paid attention to detail, was that on the ticket no address or telephone number of Imperial Airways in Paris was given. While not agreeing with Mr. Edge in all his views on how to improve air travel, we do think they are worthy of very serious consideration by those responsible for operating our air lines, and if other prominent people who have travelled by air could be persuaded to give their views, much might be done to improve matters.
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