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Aviation History
1939
1939 - 1022.PDF
FLIGHT. is, however, expected to have a fairly good basic knowledge of the subject. The absolute beginner is virtually dismissed in a fourteen-page opening chapter. On the other hand, the writer has endeavoured, as far as possible, to reduce the unnecessary use of mathematics and the only really advanced chapters are those concerned with thei mo-dynamics and circulation. Essentially the book is a practical one and, apart from thorough sections explaining weather-chart layout methods, analysis and forecasting, there are chapters on the methods used by the American airline com panies' meteorological departments and on what is known as climatology—in which such matters as airway and airport location are discussed. Probably the most interesting chapters deal with "air masses '' over North America, Europe and Asia, and with modern methods of forecasting conditions over really large areas. Altogether this book is probably the most complete one to be produced on the subject of meteorology from the flying point of view, though the author is an American—actually the chief meteorologist of Western Air Express—and his theories may not necessarily be those held by experts on this side of the Atlantic. It is worth mentioning here that in the United States each of the major airline companies has its own meteoro logical department, working in collaboration with the Govern ment Weather Bureau. The complete nature of Aeronautical Meteorology may be gathered from the fact that references to books and papers are given at the end of each chapter, while, in order to make the book self-sufficient, all the essential tables are provided in an appendix. In the Grand Manner " A Flying Start." by Rene MacColl; 8s. 6d. Jonathan Cape, London. A MOST entertaining story by a Fleet Street man who, soon after a not-too-auspicious incursion into a business life, tound himself appointed as private secretary to that almost legendary flying millionaire, the late Van-Lear Black of Baltimore. Mr. MacColl describes theii various long-distance flights to gether first in machines chartered from K.L.M., and then in Black's own Fokker. to fly which he engaged the two K.L.M. pilots who Had flown him on his previous trips, Geysendorffer and Scholte The authoi is entertaining all the time, whether describing his own undergraduate days at Oxford, a Rugby match in Belgium "ci\il disobedience" riots in India or Van-Lear Black's prodigious tipping—once, after a casual dinner in a Copenhagen restaurant, he handed a ^10 note to each of five waiters. As an example of Mr. MacColl's style, here is the climax oi a return flight from South Africa in the Fokker: — " The Maryland Free State was flying about a quarter of a mile out to sea at 150ft. altitude. " As the sunlit and sleepy coast slowly unrolled its pic turesque length the symptoms from the faulty engine grew alarming. Blue smoke came belching out, and the mechanic, who had been sitting staring at it, gave a sudden gesture of dismay. While we gazed in silent unison the engine fell to pieces before our eyes. Piston rings, bolts, nuts and other objects dropped away in a continual stream. Two of the cylinders began to vibrate violently. It seemed as though at any moment they would join the rest of the debris and seek the Mediterranean. " One of the three engines that had so unfalteringly borne us to Cape Town and almost back again, whose steady efficiency we had come to take for granted, was disintegrating in the air like a lump of sugar in boiling tea." Fearing that the erupting engine might damage the structure, the pilots decided on a forced landing on the beach: — " The stream slid by just below The beach, all loose sand and large rocks, followed. Were we going to run into the fence? There was a jar as the wheels touched ground, fol lowed by a succession of lesser shocks as the stones and rocks- were negotiated. The 'plane slewed violently to one side in the soft sand—then recovered. The fence and houses rushed to meet us, slowed, stopped. 'And dat's dat,' said Geysen dorffer, opening the cockpit door. . ." Seeing Africa—and Europe Vmgt Mille Lieues dans les Airs, by Baron de Foucaucourt; 32 francs. Published by Payot, 106, Boulevard Saint- Germam, Paris. D ESCRIBING 'a long-period tour of Europe and, later, oi Africa, including both the west and east coast routes, it is unfortunate for prospective English readers who are inter ested in this type of book that it is published in French. Baron de Foucaucourt is the owner-pilot of a Percival Vega Gull, which he named VInch'Allah, and during last year he took this machine from Paris up to the Baltic States, down again through Central Europe, across the Sahara, down part of the east coast of Africa and north again round the whole of the west coast. Only those who are intimately conversant with the French language would be able to judge whether the story is of literary merit, but the author certainly seems to have had any number of amusing and interesting experiences, and he writes with elan. It is illustrated by quite a large number of photographs, mainly of subjects of terrestrial interest. In an introduction, General Pierre Weiss says some very nice things about both the book and the author. Stopping the Raider " Views on Air Defence," by Lt.-Gen. N. N. Golovtne in col laboration with a technical expert; 5s. Gale and Polden, Ltd. S PECIALISATION of aircraft, advocated in 1936 m the authors' first book, Air Strategy, is still one of the basic themes in this provocative work. The fact that the volume embodies a series of articles published in the Royal Air Force Quarterly during the past two years detracts little from the interest of what is stated to be "in a way ... a record of the evolution of a defensive theory " which the authors believe must come into being in one form or another. In their foreword the authors opine that no "retaliatory" methods or A.R.P. developments can provide the necessary measure of security for the citizen who lives in an overcrowded city. Attackers, they claim, must be met in the air and further raids prevented by inflicting severe losses on hostile units and by breaking the morale of enemy crews. Telegraphists' Textbook A Handbook of Technical Instruction for Wireless Tele graphist^, by H. M. Dowsett; 21s. Published by lliffe and Sons Ltd P ROVIDING as it does a thorough theoretical course for the wireless operators' P.M.G. certificate, this textbook covers the theory of wireless communication with very comprehensive explanations oi the latest designs of transmitters and receivers. These are solely of the marine type and no items of equipment suitable for aircraft are described. Nevertheless, the principles are, of course, very similar, and only the more modern appli cations of ultra-high-frequency transmission and specialised direction-finding reception are lacking. The book has a fairly elementary opening, but'after dealing with the theory of electricity and of the operation of the various basic items of radio equipment, the author plunges directly into discussions of modern circuit arrangements. This is actually the sixth edition of the Handbook, which was first published in 1913 under a somewhat different title. The present author has been in charge of all the editions since 19T5.
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