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Aviation History
1926
1926 - 0834.PDF
de Havilland 50 on floats intended for the African air route, the " Moth " on floats which is going to America, and finally, the Schneider Cup seaplane race. As we have already said, there was" no intention on our part to make this week's issue a seaplane number, but we are by no means sorry that it has chanced to turn out as one, and we feel justified in regarding this fact as a sign of the times. The subject naturally in the minds of everyone this week is that of the seaplane race for the Schneider trophy, in which the Italian pilot, Major Mario di Bemardi, scored a magnificent victory on the Macchi monoplane with 800 h.p. Fiat engine. We feel sure all our readers will join us in congratulating our friends the Italians most heartily on their splendid and successful effort. In this connection it should be remembered that Italy took part in last year's Schneider Cup race with a machine of the monoplane flying-boat type, which proved in actual racing hopelessly outclassed by the American and British machines in point of speed. To have set to work and within the year to have produced a machine capable of beating the American defenders is an achievement of which the Macchi and Fiat companies, and the whole Italian nation for that matter, may be justly proud. The 1926 Schneider Cup race was won at the astonishing average speed of 246-496 m.p.h. It may be recollected that last year the race was won by Lieut. " Jimmie " Doolittle at an average speed of 232-573 m.p.h., so that over the triangular course the Macchi is 14 m.p.h. faster than last year's winner. Concerning the winning Italian Macchi monoplane, little information is available at present, but the photograph published in FLIGHT this week shows it to be of extremely clean design. In connection with this machine a somewhat curious situation has arisen. It is now general knowledge that three distinct types of racing seaplanes arc under construc- tion for the British Air Ministry, and that one of these is a Supermarine with the type number S.5. This machine is to be treated as " secret " for the moment, but a reference to it appears to be called for here. The S.5 and the Macchi machines are astoundingly oooooooo NOVEMBER 18, 1926 alike, except for the fact that whereas the British machine will have a Napier racing engine of the " broad arrow " type, the Macchi has a Fiat Vee-type engine. Lest it might be thought, when presently the Supermarine S.5 emerges from its present veil of secrecy, that this machine is a " copy " of the Macchi (a conclusion that might very easily be reached, and with some excuse, as the Macchi appeared first) it may be well to state very briefly what appears to have taken place. Evidently the Macchi designers and Mr. R. J. Mitchell, the chief designer of the Super- marine Aviation Works, took last year's Supermarine S.4 as a good starting point, and following the same lines of reasoning to a logical conclusion, both arrived at very much the same type of machine. These facts should effectively dispose of any subsequent talk of " copying." As regards the effect of the Italian victory, so far as Great Britain is concerned, the immediate outcome will, of course, be that the next Schneider Cup Race will be held in Italy. At the last conference of the Federation Aeronantique Internationale, it was decided to hold this event every other year instead of annually. Thus the next race for the Schneider Trophy will be held in Italy in 1928. That neither Italy nor the United States will rest content with their present machines may be taken for granted. The question therefore arises what should be done in the matter by this country. The three types of racers at present under construction have, presumably, been designed with last year's speeds in view, and even if they are estimated to have a good margin over the 1925 speeds, the new speeds put up by this year's Macchi must have reduced that margin somewhat seriously, and by the time Italian progress between now and 1928 has been allowed for the margin may have vanished altogether. It would seem that our best policy would be to push on with the present machines as rapidly as possible, learn as much as we can from them, and then set to work to produce the challengers for 1928. It is to be hoped that the Air Ministry, or perhaps one should say the Treasury, will do their share towards making such a programme possible. O O o o o o o o o o o o o A " Moth " for America : This photograph shows Sir Alan Cobham assist- ing Lady Cobham into the "Moth " seaplaneprepara- tory to making a short test flight at Rochester on Monday last. The " Moth " looks extremely well in its sea- plane form, and gets off and alights remark- ably well, while having, apparent- ly, lost nothing in air performance. O " FLIGHT " Photograph o O O O O O'O :o O 742
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