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Aviation History
1934
1934 - 0493.PDF
FLIGHT, MAY 17, 1934 SAFETY IN THE AIR A report of a demonstration organised by the National " Safety First " Association, Inc. in collaboration with the Air League of the British Empire IN connection with theNational Safety Congress,which was held from May 9-11 in London, the National Air Safety Congress Committee and the Air League of the British Empire, through the courtesy of Airwork, Ltd., organised a de- monstration of air safety at Heston Airport on Thursday, last. A large number of dele- gates to the Conference and several Chief Constables were present. Mr. Ivor McClure, chair- man of the Aviation Section of the Association, broadcast an ex- cellent commentary on the de- monstration. He explained that it had been restricted to simple illustrations of some of the first principles of normal flying. Any element of entertainment had ls been eliminated. Mr. McClure pointed out that the Air Navigation (Consolidation) Order of 1923 and its amendments imposed certain duties upon the constabulary either directly or by implication. Although constables are familiar with road vehicles and, in consequence, should make competent witnesses in cases involving contravention of the Road Act, few of them have opportunities of acquiring the same degree of know- ledge of aircraft. If a constable is not conversant with the elementary facts of flying, he might be at a disadvan- tage when called upon to decide whether or not an offence under the Air Navigation Act had been committed. Maj. L. H. Thornton, the President of the Liverpool Aero Club, last year organised a lecture and demonstra- tion by the Club for the benefit of the Liverpool Police Force. A syllabus of this lecture and a programme of demonstration were communicated to the National Air Safety Committee of the N.S.F.A., which realised the benefits which might be derived by the police force if the experiment were repeated in other parts of the country by co-operation of the Chief Constable and local aeroplane clubs. The demonstration at Heston was a condensed version of the Liverpool Aero Club's programme. Three aircraft took part—a " Puss Moth," lent by Standard Telephones & Cables and flown by Mr. Samuel- son, a " Moth " belonging to Capt. Lamplugh, who is a member of the National Air Safety Committee, and G-AAAA, or, as its owner, Mr. McClure, calls it, "four A's," the first machine in the " A " series. This latter machine was flown by Capt. Rex Stocken, also a member of the National Air Safety Committee, First a demonstra- tion was given of how aircraft differ in their behaviour during take-off according to the load they carry. During this demonstration the visitors saw in operation the con- CAN I LAND HERE ? The machine is banking low in order to see if the ground is suitable for landing. (FLIGHT Photo.) trol system whereby a signal is given by an Aldis lamp to the pilot before taking off. " Four A's," carrying hardly any load, took off first. Next the second " Moth," having an engine of the same power as " four A's," but carrying a load equivalent to pilot, passenger and luggage, took off. The effect of the extra load on the take-off and rate of climb was easily seen. The " Puss Moth " took off with a load equivalent to pilot, two passengers and luggage and crossed the aerodrome boundary at a lower height than the other aircraft. Both the " Gipsy Moths " then gave a demonstration of how a machine stalls when climbing too steeply. A height-judging competition was the next item on the programme. The three aircraft flew at various altitudes and distances from the crowd, members of which were asked to write their estimation of these on cards. Mr. Samuelson, in the " Puss Moth," then showed how far a machine will glide after the engine has been cut out or has failed. The " Puss Moth," of course, has an exceptionally flat gliding angle, and instead of barely reaching the aero- drome, Mr. Samuelson had apparent difficulty in losing the necessary height. Capt. Stocken, in the " Gipsy Moth," gave his well- known imitation of a young man paying a visit to the home of a desirable young lady, whom he is anxious to impress with his daring. There are, we think, few young men who could impress a young lady by " showing off " in an aeroplane quite so well as Capt. Stocken. The com- mentator explained that emergencies occasionally arise when pilots must carry out evolutions which the layman might mistake for " showing off." When making a forced landing in a strange field, for example, it is desirable to find out the nature of the surface of the ground. Capt. Stocken " " »" demonstrated this by flying the " Moth " between ten and twenty feet above the ground and bank- ing slightly the better to see the nature of the ground. Although no part of the actual demonstration, the next event greatly impressed the visitors Capt. V. H. Baker, the chief in structor at Heston, gave a demon stration of crazy flying in an Avrc "Club Cadet" ("Genet Major "). His exhibition was one of the finest of its kind that we have seen. A FLAT TURN : A " Moth " shows how not to turn near an enclosure. (FLIGHT Photo.)
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