FlightGlobal.com
Home
Premium
Archive
Video
Images
Forum
Atlas
Blogs
Jobs
Shop
RSS
Email Newsletters
You are in:
Home
Aviation History
1937
1937 - 2178.PDF
144 FLIGHT. AUGUST 5, 1937. MODELS Although built as a replica of no particu lar type of flying boat, Mr. White's Ganda is of very pleasing design and " full- scale '' aspect. France Wins the Wakefield Trophy : A N o t a b I e Marine Air craft Model By M. R. KNIGHT France Wins Wakefield Cup THE Wakefield Cup was won for France by M. Fillon, at Fairey's Great West Aerodrome last Sunday. His model was timed foi 11 min. 23 sec. when it disappeared from sight. Too late to make its third flight, it was retrieved from the grounds of a college three miles from Woking, some 16 miles away! Its two flights, divided into three, gave the best average of the day, 253.23 sec. This was France's first Wake field victory. The successful model, designed by M. Vincre, had a straight-chord wing mounted on, and braced by two short wires to, a fuselage of diamond cross-section. Great Britain secured second and third places, Mr. R. N. Bullock (Blackheath M.F.C.) averaging 194.53 sec. on three rise-off-ground flights with a shoulder-wing model of fine lines and proportions. It was constructed in haste, to replace the one flown in the eliminating trials and lost on a subsequent flight. Innumerable parts went to the making of the circular- section fuselage, including 12 to every bulkhead. Unlike any other model, hinged ailerons, elevators and rudder were em ployed for final adjustments. Mr. R. T. Howse (Bristol W.M.A.C.) averaged 193.46 sec. with a straight-cord high- wing, with monocoque fuselage. Fourth and sixth places went to Belgium, and fifth to Sweden. Teams from America, Belgium, France, Germany, Great Britain, Holland and Sweden took part, and also one youth from Norway. Models from Canada, New Zealand and South Africa were flown by British modellists. The American models got away with an almost vertical climb, hung on their air screws., and stall-turned down-wind, a. procedure calculated to contact any thermals, which, by the way, did play their part in the contest, despite the raising of the minimum weight from 4 02. to 8 oz with the idea of making sheer efficiency the sole determining factor. The new rule did, at any rate, result in greater diversity in design, including sundry beauti ful tnonocoque and semi-monocoque types. I propose to return to the design aspect on a later occasion. A most enthusiastic concourse of aero-modellers gathered at the Park Lane Hotel on Monday evening as guests of Lord Wakefield of Hythe, who sent through the chairman, Dr. Thurston, a most encouraging message to the twelve nations assembled. The winning French team was enthusiastically cheered, and M. Guillet, who received the Wakefield Inter national Trophy, offered a welcome to all teams in France next year. The Ftying Boat "Ganda" THE model described this month is the flying boat with which Mr. H. E. White, B.Sc., won the C. H. Roberts Trophy of the North Kent M.A.S. Normally, the flying boat is neglected, largely because of the difficulty of combining the necessarily high thrust-line with a satisfactory location of the rubber motor. Mr. White's solution is to adopt a twin-engined layout, an uncommon arrangement for a model, and particu larly meritorious in connection with a large boat. Ganda weighs i\ lb., of which 6 oz. consists of rubber, and has approximately 3 sq. ft. of wing surface. The hull is 45 in. long, 7 in. wide, and 7 in. deep, and weighs 6J oz. It consists of spruce longerons and plywood bulkheads, covered with ^ in. balsa and then Jap silk, thoroughly waterproofed by four coats of banana oil. The \ in. step is situated 14 in. from the nose, and 3 in. ahead ot the e.g. The tapered, back-swept wing, and the nacelles, are built as a single unit, and coupled to the hull by means of rubber strip. The wing section is Clark Y, the span 5 ft. 6 in., and the chord tapers from 7! in. to 5 in. For the leading edge, which is swept back 10 in., \ in. x \ in. balsa, rounded off, is used, and for the trailing edge, -fe in. square birch with \ in. balsa fairing. Each of the two main spars consists of a length of 33? in. square birch at the top and bottom of the ribs, with •£% in. balsa connecting them. There are 42 ribs of -^ in. balsa, spaced ij in. apart. The centre section is covered with -^ in. balsa; from there to the nacelles Jap silk is used, and for the outer panels bamboo paper. Each nacelle is 23 in. long, 3 in. wide, and 4 in. deep, and consists of four \ in. square spruce longerons and numerous balsa stringers and cross-pieces. It houses two 24 in. skeins of \ in. rubber, turning an airscrew 16 in. in diameter and 16 in. in pitch, at a higher speed through a 2:1 gearing. There are 4 degrees of downthrust. The wing floats are built of 3^ in. balsa with solid balsa bulk heads, and are covered with silk. They are carried on a single bamboo strut which plugs into a socket in each nacelle. The tail-plane, which lifts throughout the flight, is 28 in. in span, and has a maximum chord of 7 in. Built integral with it is the 12 in. fin, both being covered with bamboo paper. The complete unit is secured to&the hull with rubber strip. Hand-launched, Ganda has flown for 30 sec. and reached a height of 200 ft. Flown from the water in rough weather, 25 sec. has been recorded. A smaller and handier boat, by the same constructor, with a span of 4 ft., a wing area of 2 sq. ft., and weighing 12 oz., has flown hand-launched, and is about to undergo water trials. Ganda in flight at Fairey's Aerodrome.
Sign up to
Flight Digital Magazine
Flight Print Magazine
Airline Business Magazine
E-newsletters
RSS
Events
