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Aviation History
1934
1934 - 0935.PDF
SEPTEMBER 13, 1934. FLIGHT. 937 The Outlooks Running Commentary on Air Topics De HavillancTs Racer E LSEWHERE in this issue will be found the firstphotographs of the new de Havilland "Comet,"specially designed and built for the England-Australia Race. It is too early to express an opinion of the speed which may be developed when the machine has been thoroughly tested out and tuned up, but the first test flights give grounds for optimism. Capt. Hubert Broad has had the first of the three machines built out for a few rela- tively short flights, and we gather that it showed no obvious signs of having any serious vices. A good deal of flying will still be required to test out the controllable pitch propellers, the working of the retractable undercarriage gear, the trimming effects of the particular petrol tank arrangement chosen, and similar minor problems; but in the main, the machine can already be said to be "right." There was an amusing incident during the first flight, when Capt. Broad had forgotten which way the retracting gear worked, and was uncertain whether the wheels were " up " or " down." (The indicator had not then been fitted.) He thought of a good way of finding out: Flying low over Hatfield Aerodrome as if about to land, he watched the reactions of those on the ground. A frantic waving of arms and handkerchiefs told him plainly that the wheels were decidedly "up." While making another circuit he lowered the wheels and landed. It will be remembered that when the de Havilland Com- pany first announced their preparedness to build machines specially for the MacRobertson Race, a speed of 200 m.p.h. was guaranteed. Already it has been ascertained that this will be quite easily attained. The designers refuse to make '' guesses,'' but speculative estimates made by people outside the firm range from 225 m.p.h. to 250 m.p.h. If one looks at the machine when it is resting on trestles and the wheels are retracted, there is in truth little to stop it from being very fast. Within a week or so the actual speed should be known. A Potential Mailplane LTHOUGH specially designed for the MacRobertson Race, the "Comet" is very far from being a mere racing "freak." The fact that it has to pass the official take-off tests with full load has kept the loading down to reasonable values, and yet the speed has been obtained with what must be regarded as very moderate power. To attain well over 200 m.p.h. with a machine carrying a crew of two and a pilot for over 2,000 miles for an engine power of only 460 b.h.p. or so indicates real efficiency. As previously pointed out in Flight, the "Comet" would make a very fine mailplane if slightly modified, but whatever success the type has in the race we regard its potential utility afterwards as far more important. Racing Technique TV 7 UMBERS of amateur pilots take up racing each year, I V and many of them tumble into the pitfall of putting down to the handicapper their failures to get past the winning post before others in the race. They ought to ask themselves whether there was anything in their piloting which might account for their not getting a prize. It is so easv to blame the handicapper and to assume, often out loud in public, that they could not have flown straighter than they did. We have for many years, in the course of our work, attended the majority of the races held in this country, and can, from personal observation, state thatvery few pilots fly so well that they lose nothing in time or distance. The handicappers cannot allow for errors of thisnature ; they must assume that all the pilots will get the utmost oi't of their machines, though in point of fact it isonly a few of the old hands at the game that do so. Watch the start of any race, and it is certain that you will seequite a wide divergence of direction in which the various pilots leave the aerodrome after their take-off, and theresult is bound to be a loss of a second or more to some of them. Watch the finish, and you are sure to see some pilotsarriving from different directions and not dead on the same line as they would were they all on the correct course, andagain more seconds are lost. Get behind any turning point in a race and watch once more the way some pilots flystraight on the next course, while others go for a short tour round the country before doing so. Some pilots think thatthe key to success is to fly very low, quite regardless of the wind direction. They know that the wind is generallyless strong near the ground, and therefore imagine that to win the race they have only to "hedge-hop." Actually,many of them lose far more time than they gain, because in flying low they lose sight of their objective and covera lot more ground than is necessary. They would have gained if they had flown a little higher and gone straight,despite the wind. Cornering in Races NOTHER source of loss in a race is cornering. Fartoo many young pilots who have not taken the trouble to study the subject and to practice, think that thequickest way round a corner is the shortest. It is not. Slow machines can, of course, be pulled round quitesharply without dropping much speed, but the faster the machine the greater the drop. Time and again tests haveshown that a gentle sweep with a slight climb and subse- quent dive is the method of cornering which loses less thanany other. Let the younger generation of pilots learn the technique of racing. There is far more satisfaction inwinning a race by sheer skill in piloting than there is in doing so by getting easily handicapped ; and while they arelearning let them remember that not only is there far more to be learnt than is usually admitted, but that "S.A."riving, as it is known among pilots, is seldom the most efficacious in races. - Air Route Lighting M UCH money and time is being spent on lighting airroutes with beacons placed at intervals along theroute. Authorities responsible for these lights say that they are necessary, but many of the pilots flying over those routes say the reverse. Who is right? Nowadays, in our country in particular, when flying during the day- time, flights are more often than not made at an altitude of several thousand feet. This not only ensures a " bump- less " passage, but also puts the machine in clear, cloud- free, and pleasant air. Flying in this manner, when a large proportion of the time may be spent above the clouds out of sight of the ground, presupposes adequate ground control by wireless, and that is just what we have got, on the Continental routes at any rate. Is it not natural, therefore, to assume that it makes but little difference to pilots whether that ground is clothed in darkness or day- light? The general opinion of pilots on these lines seems to be that, providing the airports are adequately lighted, there is little to be gained by the expenditure of money— probably taxpayers' money—-on intermediate lighting.
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