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Aviation History
1934
1934 - 0966.PDF
g68 FLIGHT. SEPTEMBER 20, 1934. FCIR TIHE ADR RACE THE DE HAVILLAND "COMET" Boat-building practice has been extensively adopted in the construction of the machines for the MacRobertson Race STRESSED-SKIN construction has been used ex-tensively in the new de Havilland machines speciallydesigned and built for the England-Australia Race. For the benefit of the less technically-minded of our readers it may be pointed out that this expression is applied to a form of wing or fuselage covering which, in addition to giving the component the desired external form, helps also to give it strength. In an ordinary biplane wing, the strength is provided by the primary structure: Spars and ribs; the doped fabric is not taken into account, although it may under certain conditions contribute something to the strength. The " stressed- skin " covering may, of course, be of any material capable of resisting compressive loads, such as wood or metal. When metal is used, it is of necessity applied in very thin panels in order to reduce weight. This means that unless stiffened by some internal framework of stringers or the like, the metal skin will crinkle. When wood is used for the skin, less stiffening is usually necessary because the wood, being much lighter than metal, can be and is used in much greater thicknesses. In the case of the de Havilland " Comet " the use of a stressed skin was, once wooden construction had been decided upon, forced upon the designers by the fact that THE BUSINESS END : Note how carefully the engine nacelles are faired into the wingof the " Comet." The wheels retract, and the mudguards form part of the engine cowlings. The engines are high-compression " Gipsy Sixes." Flight Photo.)
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