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Aviation History
1934
1934 - 1154.PDF
1156 FLIGHT. NOVEMBER I, 1934. If not, how can similar lesults be hoped for in the way of speed and regularity, and how can full advantage of fast machines be taken if the ground organisation is not there? It may be urged that this is a difficult problem, because of the many nationalities involved, but it is the one essentially international subject to be tackled, and attention had far better be given to this broad problem than to attempts to equal internationally technical differ- ences in regard to details of airworthiness certificates. Speed Range Needed The next lesson to be learnt from the Race is that if a service is to be run with regularity under all conditions, high speed must not be obtained at the sacrifice of slow speed and stability, otherwise there will be a crop of acci- dents on landing, particularly if landings have to be made under conditions of bad visibility. In this connection the results of the Rundflug are most illuminating, the R.W.D. 9 having a top speed of 255 km. (158.5 m.p.h.) and a slow- speed of 54 km. (33.6 m.p.h.), a proportion of no less than 5:1. If the confidence of the public is to be maintained it is most important that aircraft should under all conditions be landed safely, and this problem becomes much easier if the landing speed is low and the alighting gliding angle fairly steep. Finally, when a race has been run and an extraordinary demonstration given of engineering skill and pilots' stamina in navigation, it does not mean that similar speeds should be aimed for as essential in commercial aviation. The faster you fly, beyond a certain limit, the smaller must be the payload and the more costly the service. The speed of the service should be in relation to other compet- ing means of transport and to the needs of the centres between which the service is run. It is much more economical to spend money on good ground organisation which is available on a working route for all time, and to run services through day and night and so save time, rather than to push up the speed of aircraft unduly and endeavour to make up in the air what is lacking on the ground. "IT IS SPEED WHICH IS NOW REQUIRED." By P. D. Acland, London Representative of the WestlandAircraft Works and late Chairman of the S.B.A.C. and the Aviation Section of the London Chamber of Commerce. ON all sides the question is being asked, "What arethe lessons which the great flights to Australia ofthe last few days will teach us? " In aeronautical circles, of course, immediate and simple solutions are found to all such problems! But there are a number of obstacles to be negotiated before much can be done. We have all felt a keen sense of disappointment as each Budget Day goes by and but little mention is made of the practical steps for the expansion of our great Imperial airways. To those of us who had the privilege of being concerned, in even the humblest capacity, with the great flights of fifteen years ago, the bright vistas opening in front of us, instead of coming nearer, have seemed almost to have become dim. The famous dictum that "civil avia- tion must fly by itself" has become the corner-stone of our policy, and has appeared to be the foundation of any steps taken for the furtherance of air transport. All who read Flight are familiar with the progress of aviation, both military and civil. Each one is probably interested in some particular aspect or phase. There is thus no need to enter into a discussion of the details of past history, except that, in answering our question, it is impossible not to point to one or two principal events in an endeavour to offer suggestions as to certain directions in which ad- vantage may be taken of, what is, to put it bluntly, a serious setback to British aviation, paradoxically made evident to the nation at a moment of one of our greatest triumphs. • Foreign Performance Two practically standard large air liners of foreign design and construction have just put up a performance but little inferior to that of the "Comet," a machine which can only be described as a miracle of achievement. This performance is one which shows that there is no reason whatsoever, technically, why the proposed time schedules for the England-Australia service should not be halved. We are told that increased speed is merely a question of cost. For the last three or four years the com- mercial community has been urging, through the Press, in the House of Commons, in the Lords, and the appro- priate Departments of State, for fast, frequent air mail services. British Chambers of Commerce abroad have asked that our British services shall be at least as fast as those of our competitors. On several occasions the definite request has been made to the Government that, in view of the increasing technical competition, it is speed which is now required. Consequently, the whole of the policy of Civil Air Transport Subsidy should be reviewed, and British aviation be put at last into its rightful position of leading the world, not only in safety and efficiency, but, above all, in "service to be rendered." Business gener- ally is aware that this will cost money, but, provided the business community is treated openly and frankly, and given all the facts, surely there is no reason to suppose that it will do otherwise than to welcome '' service '' in the same spirit as was exhibited in assisting the building of the Queen Mary. Speed Great Britain is rapidly becoming air-minded, and is demanding that in the air, as in other means of trans- port, she must, and shall, be at least in the front rank. The lessons of the MacRobertson Trophy appear to be, therefore, that speed, the thing we have to sell, is proved ; that included in any terms of subsidy this fact must now be recognised ; that in the future there must be collabora- tion between all the interests concerned—Government, users, operator, and the industry—so that never again shall we be placed in the unenviable but avoidable predica- ment we are in to-day. The industry, without which air transport cannot exist, will then be able to get down to business at lasf. This will take time, and no doubt in the interregnum special steps will have to be taken, but this must not be allowed to colour in any way the deci- sions with regard to the future. We must start with a clean sheet, looking forward, not backward, never forget- ting that Aviation is Progress. Aircraft Works at South Shields A scheme for the encouragement of aircraft manufacturers toestablish works in South Shields was approved at a meeting of the Town Council last month. A special committee, con-sisting of the Mayor and six other members of the Council, is to be set up to consider and report upon the ways and meansof achieving this object, and, in addition, to arrange for a course of lectures in the science of aeronautics in the curriculumof the Marine School. '- '-'•"• Johnston Memorial Prize Names of" suitable candidates for this prize are now being considered. The prize is awarded for the best feat of naviga- tion during the twelve months ending June 30 by a person in a civil capacity and of British nationality. Any candidates wishing to submit their names and particulars of their claims to the Guild of Air Pilots and Air Navigators of the British Empire, 61, Cheapside, London, E.C.2, are asked to do so not later than Tuesday, November 13.
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