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Aviation History
1934
1934 - 1269.PDF
NOVEMBER 29, 1934. FLIGHT. 1273 The Outlooks Buying Foreign Aircraft 5 OME surprise appears to have been caused in certainquarters by the recent announcement that the BritishAir Ministry has purchased an American day bomber —a Northrop—and the impression seems to have been gained that the purchase is in some way a reflection on our British aircraft designers and constructors. This is, of course, far from being the case. For a good many years it has been the custom of all aircraft manufacturing nations occasionally to purchase types of aircraft from one another. It is natural that in the normal course of progress one nation may at any one moment have concentrated on the development of a particular type of machine for which there has not previously been any need or demand in another nation. The type may incorporate certain features which make it attractive, possibly even for a purpose dif- ferent from that for which it was originally designed. In the circumstances it is obviously the quickest and cheapest way to purchase a specimen and to try it out thoroughly. Great Britain has in the past bought French, Dutch, and American machines, and no particular signi- ficance need be attached to the recent acquisition of the Northrop. The United States have from time to time purchased aircraft from us. So have other great aircraft manufacturing nations, such as France. ---- The "Pusher" Again T regular intervals since the appearance of the genuine private owner's machine, the "pusher" arrangement has been suggested, either on paper or in fact, as the ideal one for small civil craft. The advantages in the matter of field of vision, comfort, and convenience do not need to be stressed again, and it is significant that the design selected by the U.S. Department of Commerce, after bids had been invited for suitable machines for use by their inspectors, is a " pusher '' mono- plane of comparatively low power. Pilots have become accustomed to the more normal lay- out, and think, perhaps, rather too often of the " rear- engined " dangers in a mild crash. Actually, in the days when the "pusher " was more common, engines very rarely fell on the surprised occupants. Furthermore, the win- ning design, the Hammond Model Y, carries a fully castor- ing wheel ahead of the normal undercarriage, so a "nose- over " as a result of a bad landing or of fast taxying into heavy ground would be an unlikely event. :- Ground Control O NE development of the modern machine may eventu-ally force the '' pusher '' to the fore. At present wheel brakes are used primarily for manoeuvring pur- poses, and the pilot of the light machine uses his brake lever gingerly, fearful that his tail will lift and his propeller be damaged. A third wheel would allow the pilot to treat his machine, when once on the ground, rather as he treats his car. Whether the single wheel should be steerable or other- wise is not of great importance, but some of the best of differentially controlled wheel brakes are extremely sensi- tive to rudder movement at low speeds, and the pilot some- times has a great deal of difficulty in placing his machine accurately. Although we have passed the time when one " blew " a machine round with full rudder and judicious burots of throttle—or signalled to the ground staff—perfection in driving control has not yet been reached. The best of pilots finds that his craft is an unwieldy and sometimes uncontrollable affair on solid earth. A Diesel-engined Flying Boat WELCOME announcement gives hope of the fairly imminent appearance of British-built diesel engines in a British flying boat. Three of the Napier " Cul- verin '' compression-ignition engines are about to be put into one of the Blackburn "Iris" flying boats, and the results will be watched with unusual interest. The flying boat is particularly suitable for trying out the diesel type of engine in that it is designed for long-range work, and the full advantage of the low specific fuel consumption of the diesel does not arise until durations of seven hours or more are wanted. Figures are not yet available, but a flying boat fitted with diesel engines should be able to make non-stop flights from England to Gibraltar. The strategic advantages of this are obvious. ' Teaching Army Co-operation ^:~ O N another page we publish a special article on the.K.A.F. School of Army Co-operation at old Sarum..Probably it is not generally realised what an ex-, tremely exacting, though interesting, part of R.A.F. work army co-operation has become, and how very necessary it is. to have a really good school to teach pilots the finer points of this work. As a mere matter of routine the Army Co-' operation pilot has to carry a great deal of procedure in his head, for once he is in the air there is no means of reference, and if procedure is not followed in detail failures may occur. Though he would be quite incapable of com- manding a platoon, he must, in effect, transform himself into an Army officer of at least Field rank. To teach all this in a course of twelve weeks makes great demands on the Commanding Officer and instructors at the School. It is no wonder that they call to their aid all possible devices, such as pictorial miniature targets, slides illustrating military formations as seen from the air, "talkie" films, and so forth. The School has to train officers for ten A.C. squadrons at present, which seems a very small number when it is remembered that they are scattered over Great Britain, Egypt, and India. Some time or other the Army will have to be increased, as the Air Force is now being increased, and then there will surely be a demand for more Army Co-operation squadrons. The School at Old Sarum will have to grow in conformity. TO THE EAST ^ - T~>OLLOWING the increased prominence into x which the East has been brought by such events as the Melbourne Race and various individual flights, private owners are showing an ever-growing interest in the possibilities of flying to Baghdad or beyond. The problems they will have to face have been investigated on behalf of Flight by Lt. Cdr. C. N. Colson, R.N., who recently made such a journey by air, and in next week's issue he will describe the first stages.
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