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Aviation History
1939
1939 - 1794.PDF
JUNE 8, 1939 ^0 @OT 591 A New Block AIR FRANCE technical chiefs in Paris are said to be enthusiastic about the new 33-passenger machine by Marcel Bloch—the Bloch 161—a flying model of which has during the past few days carried out a number of tests at ChalaisMeudon. This prototype differs substantially from its precursor the 160, and it is stated that a whole series of them will be ready for service by the beginning of 1941. The Bloch 161 will have four engines and weigh $j (metric) tons. It will carry between 33 and 35 passengers. Its economical cruising speed will be 220 m.p.h. for a range long enough to enable express non-stop services to be included on routes where two or more stops are now normally made. Whitsun Record MOST outstanding of, the various figures which have so far been given or guessed at for the air traffic during the Whitsun holiday period are those of Western Airways, hi five days this company carried 2,555 passengers, of which only 712 were joy-riding. The Weston-Cardiff ferry carried 1,622. During the period four new services were started. Even on these the traffic was fair, seventy-four being carried between Bristol and Cardiff, sixty-five between Cardiff and Swansea, sixty-nine between Swansea and Barnstaple, and thirteen between Barnstaple and Penzance. The Swansea- Barnstaple journey, which takes twenty-five minutes by air, involves nine hours' travelling by train. The total figures show an increase of 250 per cent, on those of last year, which were already extremely good. So much for frequency and comparatively low fares. Opening Up West Africa F OR some years now, a flying club at Luanda, in Portu guese West Africa, has been in operation with D.H., Tiger, Leopard and Puss Moths—the latter privately owned— a Cessna, and three Taylor Cubs. The chief instructor, Capt. Joaquin de Almeida Balthazar, has also been flying, since August of last year, a weekly mail service with the Puss Moth between Luanda and the Aeromaritime terminus at Pointe Noire. The State Railway administration of the country is now going ahead with the development of air services, and have recently purchased three six-passenger De Havilland Rapides, which should be delivered about the middle of next year. They will be based at Luanda, and will first take over the Pointe Noire service, afterwards operating south to Lobito and Mos- samedes, then inland to Lubango and Huambo, which is on the railway to Beira. Later on, there will be an extension to Luao, and in about a year it is hoped that the air route circuit will be complete—with D/F stations at Luanda, Lobito and Nova Lisboa. The chief pilot of the railway air service will be Capt. Balthazar. His assistants will be R. D. Barros, F. Branco and P. Gomes. Contact at Croydon T^ARLY this week work was started on the installation of *-* flush, or contact, lighting at Croydon. This will be carried out, as at Heston, in a series of sections, so that normal flying operations will not be unduly impeded, though the ultra-high-frequency blind-approach equipment will be in operative until the whole strip has been completed. In the meantime the main approach beacon will be re positioned and reorientated to give a longer landing run and to make the equi-signal line coincide with that of the contact lighting strip. The inner marker, too, will be moved further to the north to bring it into line. As at Heston, the line of contact lights will be preceded by parallel lines of mercury vapour and sodium lamps. The actual arrangement of the contact lights will be rather more elaborate than that at Heston or Ringway, a transverse line of lights being used to mark the end of each coloured section. After he has passed the threshold sodium and mer cury lamps, the pilot will see the line of fifteen green lights ended by a cross-line of green lights; then eight pairs of white lights with another white cross-bar; and, finally, fifteen pairs of red lights ending in a cross-line of red lights. While the blind approach equipment is out of action at Croydon, the Lorenz installation at Heston, which has not been much in use during the past year, will be made available. In the circumstances it will be operated temporarily on the Croydon frenquency. Derby's Airport T)REVIOUS to the official opening of the new Derby airport -t at Burnastou, which, as already announced, will be car ried out by Sir Kingsley Wood on Saturday, June 16, there will be an aviation banquet at the Rolls-Royce Works. This is being given by the Corporation of Derby and some 350 guests are expected to be present. After the opening ceremony on the Saturday, there will be the usual flying events, but the Fleet Air Arm will be seen for the first time at a civil air meeting. A squadron of Blackburn Skuas will show how "dummy" deck landings are taught, while there will be displays by fighters, bombers and Army co-operation types, as well as a demonstration of barrage bal loons. On the civD side Imperial Airways will probably be sending one of the new strengthened " C " class type boats, while the C.40 jump-stair. Autogiro will also be demonstrated. Private owners are invited to take part in the usual arrival competition, the zero hour for which is between 11.30 a.m. and 12.15 P-m. The D.C.6—and the Second Stratotiner A WEEK or two ago we gave details of two new machines which the Lockheed Corporation are developing for air transport work We now learn that the Douglas Company is also working on the design of a new medium-sized four- engined civil machine with an all-up weight of about 30,0001b. This will be designated the D.C.6, will be slightly larger than the D.C.3, and will, of. course, have a tricycle undercarriage. Presumably, at this all-up weight, the four engines will be Wasp Juniors. The idea behind all these new projects, including to some extent that of the D.C.5, is to meet interim air line needs before such large types as the Boeing Stratoliner and the Douglas D.C.4 become reasonable from an economic stand point. Incidentally, the second Boeing 307, or Stratoliner, has recently been going through further test flights in the hands of Mr. E. T. Allen. The first 307, it will be remembered, was over-stressed and suffered structural failure in an extremely severe pull-out. At the time of the accident, which involved the death of, among others, Mr. P. Guilonard, of K.L.M., the high-altitude cabin equipment, which gives the machine its name, had not been installed, and this remains to be tested during the flight programme with the second machine. MASTER INSTRUCTORS TN last week's issue the previously rumoured fact that the •*• G.A.P.A.N. have decided to institute a Master Flying In structors' Diploma was officially, though briefly, announced. The main objects of the introduction of this Diploma are to give fully qualified instructors the same prestige as that of transport pilots who have the Master Pilot's Licence; to pave the way for the official recognition of a higher status among instructors; and to enable thoroughly experienced instructors to have their qualifications recognised and recorded for rea sons of employment or otherwise. Before the formation of the Guild in 1929, no standard of qualification for instructors existed, and the introduction of a certificate for this purpose was their first job of work. In 1931 the certificate was officially recognised by the Air Ministry, and the necessary endorsement was made compul sory under the A.N.D. In more recent years the necessary standard has tended to become a minimum, and the Guild has considered the idea of further grading. The first move in this direction was the institution of an assistant instructor's tmlorsement. It was made necessary largely by the fact that the increase in training, both at Volunteer Reserve and Civil Air Guard centres, had shown a considerable shortage of the necessary training personnel. This was, however, a grading downwards, and the idea of the new diploma is not only to equalise the balance between transport and instructor pilots, but to increase the standards of instructional efficiency. There are actually two new certificates, one known as the Master Flying Instructor's Diploma and the other as the Extra Master Flying Instructor's Diploma. The former has already been awarded to any British subject who, on February 1 this year, had an instructor's certificate; has completed 2,500 in structional flying hours; had been engaged as an instructor within the British Empire for a maximum of five out of the preceding eight years; and had a satisfactory record in the matter of accidents or complaints. Additional applications will be considered in March and September of each year. The Extra Master Flying Instructor's Diploma will be awarded to instructors of "great experience as the highest honour the Guild can confer in connection with instruction, and this may be awarded to anyone in the world.
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