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Aviation History
1936
1936 - 1656.PDF
JUNE 25, 1936. FLIGHT. 669 equipment and has a. longer endurance. The day-and-night fighter, or, as it is some times called, the general-purpose fighter, although loaded with a great variety of equipment, must be endowed in generous measure with speed, climb and manoeuvrability. For operation by night it must have a low landing speed, and must possess no vices which might distract its pilot during a night landing. Its tankage must be sufficient to permit it to patrol for, say, three hours, flying, of course, at a reduced throttle opening. Its main armament (normally of two or four Vickers machine guns) may be supplemented, at will, by four small bombs to be used when attacking targets on the ground. Two-way wireless is specified ; oxygen is carried—for the machine will frequently operate at great heights; and very complete night-flying equipment is installed. Standard R.A.F. day-and-night fighters are biplanes with radial engines. This does not signify any categorical preference by the Air Ministry for this type of machine, but means that those which have succeeded in winning the various competitions organised from time to time to determine the machine most suitable, lot-re-equipment purposes have been designed on these lines. In all probability every fighter in the R.A.F. will eventually be a monoplane, the main reason being that within recent years the speeds of bombers have approached so closely to those attained by contem porary fighters that the latter require every mile-an-hour which can be built into them. The well-designed mono plane to-day is invariably faster than a comparable biplane. Hitherto, great emphasis has been laid on the manoeuvr ability in a fighter, but it has been found that, at the very high speeds attained to-day, the rapid manoeuvring neces sitated by the aerial " dog fight " produces so many " g" (or, in other words, causes such violent acceleration) that the pilot is rendered temporarily blind or, to use the current phrase, "blacks out." Two types of single-seater day-and night fighter (the Bristol Bulldog and the Gloster Gauntlet) are, at the moment, in service with the R.A.F. A third, the Gloster Gladiator, is now in production and the first Gladiators should be in the hands of Service pilots in a very few months. Seven years ago a number of fighter squadrons were pleasantly anticipating their re-equipment with the Bristol Bulldog—a fighter of superlative performance. Now those URfter'as they await Gauntlets or Gladiators, speak of the "dear old Bulldogs, bless their hearts." During its life with the Service the Bulldog has been
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