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Aviation History
1938
1938 - 0086.PDF
FLIGHT. JANUARY 13, 1938. HERE and THERE Sky Broadcasts BROADCASTS from aeroplanes in flight, received and re-diffused for entertainment purposes, are no novelty, but the technique is being improved. (Which, if our recollection of hearing an air-borne dance-band does not play us false, is either a good or a bad thing, according to how one reacts to such entertainment.) From America comes the news that United Air Lines, after many years of experiment, have acquired an aircraft trans- mitter which enables them to transmit a programme for re- broadcast from any. location in the United States without the use of local pick-up facilities They demanded that the equipment be capable of transmit- ting a usable signal for a distance of two thousand miles. Bendix Radio Corporation designed and built a transmitter fulfilling these requirements. The equipment was capable of a power output of ioo watts, using a frequency range from 2,790 kc/s to 12,862.5 kc/s. The equipment was built into a rack which could easily be adapted for installation in any modern transport aeroplane. The transmitter was quartz crystal-frequency-controlled, and was capable of one hundred per cent, modulation. The primary source of power supply was a bank of five 12-volt batteries, which enabled the equipment to be operated at full power for one and a half hours. The high voltage for transmitter, receivers and speech input equipment was secured from two dynamotors. The first practical use of the equipment was made early last spring when six programmes were broadcast over the N.B.C. Network from positions over the National Parks in the West, and satisfactorily picked up and redifiused from a station in California. America Honours British Scientist THE Royal Aeronautical Society has for many years held anannual Wilbur Wright Memorial Lecture. It may seem a little curious that the land of their birth has not hitherto honoured the Wright brothers in similar fashion. This, how- ever, has been due to the absence, in the United States, of an institution comparable with our R.Ae.S. A few years ago, how- ever, there was founded the Institute ol the Aero- nautical Sciences of America. This body corresponds closely to, and is very largely moulded upon, our R.Ae.S., and at the first "Honors Night" of the Institute, held in New York on December 17, the first Wright Brothers Lecture was given by Professor B. M e 1 v i 11 Jones, of Cambridge. Its title was "Boundary Prof. Mel vill Jones in flying kit. Layer Experiments in (Flight photograph.) Flight." The honorary fellowship of the Institute was presented to Professor Melvill Jones " for contributions to the science of aeronautics, for introducing conception of the streamlined aeroplane, and for his full-scale research on boundary layer flow." Only one American and one foieign honorary fellowship may be given each year. The other recipient in 1937 was Mr. Glenn L. Martin, "for his outstanding achievement in the construction of notable aircraft of all types." The Institute's Guggenheim Medal was awarded to Dr. Hugo Eckener, "for notable contributions to transoceanic air trans- port, and to international co-operation in aeronautics.' The Sylvanus Reed Award was given to Mr. Eastman N. Jacobs (on the staff of the American N.A.C.A.) "for his con- tribution to the aerodynamic improvement in airfoils used in modern military and civil aircraft," and the Lawrence Sperry Award went to Mr. Clarence L. Johnson, "for important im- provements in the aerodynamic design of high-speed commercial aircraft." Mr. Johnson, it may be explained, is in charge of Lockheed research and recently completed tests of the type 14, which is claimed to be the fastest commercial aeroplane in the world. An Air Ministry Move THE Department of the Air Member for Research andDevelopment, including the Directorof Technical Develop- ment and his staff, is now accommodated at York House, Kingsway, London, W.C.2. A Dutch "Air Pilot" QUITE recently a new edition of the Gids voor Luchtvaren-den (Guide to Air Navigators) has been published by the Aeronautical Service side of the Netherlands Department of Waterways. This guide covers much the same ground as that covered by our Air Pilot, but is a good deal more compact, and photographs of each aerodrome and landing ground, as well as maps printed in four colours showing their general location and details, are reproduced. The book is in loose-leaf form with the alphabetically arranged illustrations and diagrams, with the information for each aerodrome segregated so that replacement is simplified. It is obtainable from Dienst der Nederlandsche Staatscourant (Postrekening No. 39500), The Hague, at a price of fi. 5.50 ; the subscription for the '•Hpplements service is fl. 1.50. Dumfries Works and Isotta Engines A STATEMENT made recently that the reason why theHeathhall engineering works at Dumfries had closed down was due to lack of skilled labour was officially denied re- cently by the directors of High-Powered Aeronautical En- gines, Ltd., the present owners of the works. They state (writes a correspondent) that the main reason was the lack of encouragement from the Government. As regards labour, they knew of no place where the position was so happy. Since starting the works fifteen months ago they had had no fewer than 2,500 applications for employment. Many of these were from old employees of the former Arrol- Johnston Motor Co. It was rather astonishing that such a place should be empty under the present state of trade in Britain, and it was hardly understandable that the Govern- ment should proceed to build new works in the shape of shadow factories when such works as these were available for the pur- pose. They were as suitable for the manufacture of the products now being made in the shadow factories as were the Government factories themselves. "In an effort to get these works going all the high officials of the Government were approached, but we failed to get them interested," continued the directors. "Right from the incep- tion the Air Ministry gave no encouragement to our original intention of making Isotta-Fraschini engines. The Air Minis- try are to be admired for the stand they took, as right from the start they made it perfectly clear that they could not en- tertain the use of this engine. The same, however, cannot be said for the Admiralty." They then went on to explain how they had been dis- appointed at the outcome of lengthy negotiations concerning the use of these engines for special motor boat work. They concluded: "The present directors are not financiers. They are simply technical people brought to carry on the works, and it is with regret they have seen their hopes thwarted and their labour lost. The works are now for sale." NEXT WEEK: AIRPORTS NO Airports Exhibition is being held this year by the AerodromeOwners' Association, but the Airports Conference will take place as usual, and delegates from all over the country will come to London next week to hear papers read by experts on various aspects of the subject. The Conference fakes place on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, and coincidentally with it, on Thursday, " Flight" will publish its Annual AIRPORTS NUMBER. This considerably enlarged Special Number will in many ways fill the gap created by the absence of an Exhibition, for the latest developments in airport construction, operation and maintenance will be discussed in detail. Specialists will deal with particular aspects. Manufacturers' new Equipment will be described, and there will be a graphic, fully illustrated review of the world's leading airports. NEXT THURSDAY JANUARY 20
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