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Aviation History
1932
1932 - 0040.PDF
FLIGHT, JANUARY 8, 1932 THE INDUSTRY AIRCRAFT RADIO TANDARD Telephones & Cables, Ltd., of Con- naught House, Aldwych, W.C.2, are responsible for the installation which is being used for the Automobile Association weather broad- :asting scheme at Heston Airport. The installation of this equipment is yet further evidence of the practical way in which the proprietors of Heston Airport are determined to make their aerodrome one of the most up to date in the country, for it is an undoubted fact that the provision of a radio station at every municipal airport will not only increase the safety and regularity of aerial traffic in general, but will automatically tend to increase the volume of that traffic. It follows, therefore, that radio stations must in the end be very profitable investments. The range of equipment which Stan dard Telephones & Cables are produc ing for aircraft and airport use is such as will meet all possible require ments. The transmitter for the ground station is of the type known as M.4. The whole equipment is operated from the electric mains, and is designed so that both the opera tion and upkeep are remarkably simple. Its range for telephony is something over 250 miles, while for telegraphy it is considerably more. The chief reasons for the installation of such a station as at Heston are: — (1) Communication with aircraft in flight ; (2) communication with neigh bouring aerodromes ; (3) transmission of weather reports and forecasts for general use in aviation. The receiver of this ground station is type R.S.I, and can receive on wave lengths be tween 40 and 20,000 metres, a parti cular feature being that it is not neces sary to change coils for different wave lengths, as this is carried out by means of plugs and sockets. In the aircraft a set such as the standard M.S.3044 is used. This can receive messages up to 100 miles from an M.4 ground station without the necessity of a trailing aerial. This particular receiver is suitable for even the smallest type of aircraft. The fixed aerial is mounted between the wing tips and tail, and folds without inter ference when the wings are folded. Its wave range is 600-1,000 metres, and its controls are confined to a single switch and one tuning dial. The possession of such a set, there fore, makes it a simple matter for pilots to obtain weather reports and other information which is helpful on cross-country flights. A further use which it is quite con ceivable may become very popular in the near future, is for advising and instructing pupils during their solo flights ; the instructor can then sit with the microphone in front of him in the control tower and order his pupil to do anything or not to do anything, by means of the wireless. This receiver is particularly small, its overall dimensions being 9J in. X 4£ in. X 4j in., and its weight only 4 lb. 10 oz. Particular care has been taken to protect this receiver from damage due to knocking about, and there is one case on record where the aircraft was involved in a crash and was completely written off, but on inspection the radio receiver was found to be perfectly intact and in working order. For the technically minded, it is interesting to note that the circuit comprises two screen-grid high-frequency valves preceding a de tector valve and transformer coupled low-frequency amplifier with special output. A wander plug and screened multi-cord cable connect the receiver with the battery box, while two ter minals at the top of the set are con nected to the aerial system and the metal work of the machine respec tively. The voice pipe system is utilised for receiving, a small loud speaker movement being incorporated in the voice pipe line. By this means (on right) The Radio station at Heston equipped by Standard Tele phones & Cables, Ltd., and run by the A.A. aviation weather reports department. (on left) Type M.S. 3044 receiving outfit. Receiver (left), Bat tery Box (right). Loud Speaker unit (above). full intercommunication is well main tained between the pilot and his pas senger, while at the same time both make use of the radio receiver. The valves used are ordinary commercial ones and may be purchased from any ordinary dealer. The battery box, which is made of aluminium, contains a small two-volt non-spillable solid electrolyte accumulator, 120-volt dry high-tension battery, and a small grid bias battery, all of which may also be replaced from any local dealer. The accumulator is such that it should in ordinary use be sufficient for some where about 25 flying hours before needing recharging. The high-tension battery with, the same usage, should last some 1\ to 3 months, while the grid bias is of sufficient size for six or eight months' use. The aerial consists of a single insulated stranded wire run ning from each wing tip to the tail fin and from the centre of these wires a lead-in runs to an insulator on one of the centre-section struts, assuming the aircraft to be the conventional single biplane. All the aerial fittings are standard, and do not impair the air worthiness of the machine, for the whole of the installation is approved by the Air Ministry. One thing, how ever, is needful for the satisfactory functioning of this receiver, and that is the screen of ignition system. This means that the magnetos must be shielded, the high-tension cables screened with braided copper wire and the plugs with a cover such as that illustrated as suitable for Lodge Plugs in FLIGHT for December 25, 1931. Such work can be carried out by the Standard depot at Heston Air port at a comparatively small charge, 40
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