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Aviation History
1934
1934 - 0764.PDF
766 FLIGHT. JULY 26, 1934. CORRESPONDENCE The Editor does not hold himselj responsible /or opinions expressed by correspondents. The names and addresses of the writers, not necessarily for publication, must in all cases accompany letters intended for insertion in these columns. INTEREST IN AIR RACING [2945J As one who saw the King's Cup race in its early days and as one who, as a Londoner, has not bothered to see it in recent years, may 1 be permitted to express my humble criticism of your Editorial opinion in last week's issue oi Flight? Two alternatives were suggested, (a) that in future it should be a seaplane race, and (b) a landplane race to be held in the North of England From this I presume that you have in view the vast crowds which attended the Schneider Trophy Race and, I assume, the interest shown in the novel spectacle —to those of the North—of, aeroplanes arriving at regular intervals at certaai northern aerodromes. Frankly, as a Londoner who knows little or nothing about the intricacies of modern aircraft, the latter spectacle lacks appeal—we can see it every evening if we so choose. As regards the former there is something vastly different. Machines travelling at 400 m.p.h. look fast and sound last— if was a spectacle, terrifically exciting and awe-inspiring to those who knew nothing about it And here is, to my mind, the important point. Although the machines were flying at intervals round a short course, there was no such thing as handicap. I know, if I suggest it that any number of diffi- culties will arise, but may I make a plea for a race to be held round a short course in the vicinity of London, in which there is a capacity limit—-say, oi 200 h.p.—in which machines are sent off at half-minute intervals, to cover ten laps. Con- tinuous lap-leader boards at aerodromes en route, run some- thing on the lines of the motor cycle T.T. races in the Isle of Man, could add to tht public interest. This would, 1 think, evolve a special sports type of machine which would be improved as the years go by. Also private owners could be catered for by the inclusion of a sealed handicap. Obviously entries would be small for the first year or so, but I honestly believe that as a result of such a race far greater and keener interest of the right type would be evolved and your Londoner might even begin to show fresh interest in the actual landing of 'planes at an aerodrome than he does at the moment. London, S.W.16 C. R. H. [We agree with our correspondent that racing over a very short course, with the machines in sight the whole time, is thrilling. Very! But it is also highly dangerous. We had a most lamentable example of this at the Bournemouth meetings some years ago. Competitors get bunched together at the pylons, and the danger of collision is so great as to make this form of air racing not worth while. The only alternative would be to use slow machines only, such as the Lowe-Wylde ~" Drones."—ED.J ENGINE RELIABILITY [2946] On page 727 of the July 19 issue of Flight, under the heading '" The Outlook.' your contributor refers to the poor reliability of racing car engines compared with aero engines. It is not, however, possible to compare the two types, as the racing car engine, on an average, is giving about three times the horse-power per litre of the average aero engine used, say, in tht King's Cup Air Race. Both engines are produced for entirely different purposes, and cannot be compared for reliability, as the conditions are so entirely different. R. C. CROSS. Odd Down, Bath [2947] I was interested in your remarks in your July 19 issue in respect to engine reliability, particularly in vour comparisons with motor car racing. I should like to point out that engine speeds are very much higher in a racing car than in an aeroplane such as those taking part in the King's Cup Race. The highest probably was (I am open to correc- tion) the 90 h p Pobjoys, fitted to the Monospar S.T. 10 revving at 3,500. The average racing car engine turns over at least 6,000 r.p.m., and even 6,500; these speeds are even obtained on a racing single-cylinder motor cycle engine. Apart from the r.p.m. being considerably higher, great stresses are imposed on all working parts when sudden accelera- tion and deceleration takes place, and compression ratios are much higher also. Such alternating stresses are definitely not imposed on aero engines, and although they may fun at full throttle, their engine speed is slow in comparison, and without such violent variation. • •. I. H. NEWMAN. South Norwood, •. " London, S.E.25. ' ' SAFETY FIRST [2948] The last paragraph of the leading article entitled " More Squadrons," in Flight of July 19, which starts: " In particular there are too few manufacturers of aero engines," and which ends, " we should very much like to see that side of the industry established on a broader basis," has been read with considerable concern by aero engine manufacturers who are members of our society. Our members are of opinion that it is unprofitable and use- less to draw comparisons between conditions which existed at the beginning of the Great War and those which exist to-day. .In 1914 there was no effective aero engine constructing industry in this country, whereas ever since the War there: has been a virile industry which it has not been possible (o employ fully with orders for civil or military engines. This industry, which can claim to possess the highest technical and administrative knowledge, is quite capable of supplying all the engines which might be required by the Air Ministry in a time of national emergency, and it should not be assumed in a newspaper article that the firms which now exist are not able to meet the requirements of an emergency, or that this country would be dependent on foreign sources of supply for our engines. Our society is of the opinion that statements of this kind in the British aeronautical technical press lead to misunder- standing, and cause the uninitiated to draw the inference that the British aircraft industry might be incapable of meeting the needs of the Royal Air Force; this is not so, and never will be so. and therefore our society ask that greater care be taken in the future in regard to the substance of your articles when they touch on matters dealing with the efficiency of the aircraft industry. H. R. GILLMAN, Secretary. The Society of British Aircraft Constructors, Ltd., London, W.i. [Safety First was the burden of the comment to which the S.B.A.C. draw attention No reflection upon the efficiency of the aircraft engine industry was suggested or inferred in our comment, for we give way to none in our admiration for British aero engines and their achievements. The observation was made on the same principle which prompted the Govern- ment to examine the position of Woolwich Arsenal, viz., the vulnerability in time of war or national emergency. If we are solely dependent upon. say. one factory for the supply of all engine requirements, the risks obviously in such circumstances, and in case of fire, strikes and lock-outs, are greater than if we had, say. ten widely spread factories capable and accus- tomed to produciiig oui engine supplies.—ED.] IRISH-BUILT MONOPLANE TESTED - [2949] Your reference to a monoplane being designed and built by Mr. Joseph Gilmore, ground engineer to the Irish Free State Air Corps, and appearing in the current issue, is incorrect. This aircraft is a rebuilt Civilian Ccup6, Genet engine, which was purchased by him in England last year, and crashed at Stranraer when flying this machine back to Ireland. It has been rebuilt with the aid of the stafi of the Irish Aero Club, and was recently submitted for renewal ot C. of A. Furthermore, it is doubtful whether a C. of A. would be renewed for this machine in England, taking all the circumstances of the case into consideration. As up till the present the writer has never known of any of the strict detail inspection which is to be found across Channel, arid called for by the A.I.D. before certificates are recommended by them. Finally, no aircraft or aero engines have ever been designed and built in Ireland that could fly, except Harry Ferguson's of the old days. " A " LICENCE. Belfast. [We are glad to have this correction of a news item which reached us from a source we have hitherto found reliable. —Eu.]
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