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Aviation History
1939
1939 - 2012.PDF
JUNE 29, 1939 SOMETHING EXCEPTIONAL The New Messerschmitt Me. 108 with c.-p. Air screw : Control in For tissimo IN the midst of a large number of very worthy, but somewhat normal, aero planes one does occasionally come across something outstanding in in dividual characteristics. The majority of these ordinary machines have at least one very good feature, but it can be said without exaggeration that the B.F.W.Me.108, or Taifun, tends to make every other machine in the civil class appear humdrum. The latest 108, one of which has re cently been bought by Mr. H. J. Aldington, of A.F.N., Ltd., the agents for the machine in this country, has been made still more remarkable by the htting of a multi-position controllable- pitch airscrew. Furthermore, the par ticular Argus in this machine gives rather more power than that in the Taifun which was demonstrated over here two years ago— and every little helps in a type as clean, aerodynamically, as this. The Argus is one of the new As.ioE type, giving a maximum of 270 h.p. for take-off. This fully controllable-pitch airscrew is a comparatively new one developed by the B.F.W. people themselves. It is manu ally operated by means of an easily turned crank below the dashboard, and the action is entirely mechanical. In fact, it appears to come somewhere near the ideal in c.p. airscrews for smaller civil types, which was advocated by " Indicator " in last week's issue. The infinite range of adjustment between fine and normally coarse pitch is covered in two or three seconds by half a dozen turns or so of the crank, and the fineness " is registered by a little red indicator which is part of the control. The new c.p. airscrew has removed the one criticism which could be made of the Me. 108 in its original form—that the take-off, at least when fully loaded, was not quite as good as it might have been. The run now is of the 200-yard order, and the climb appears to be in the region of 1,300ft. per min. Responsiveness But the Taifun's really outstanding qualities are those of control and stability. Certainly, no other civil machine (except, perhaps, one very light single-seater now out of pro duction) has aileron control which is so absolutely positive and light. Even at maximum speed, lateral movement of the control column is finger-light, and the machine can be tipped ove. from vertical to vertical in the time it takes to move the column itself. At the other extreme the weight of the control remains very much the same at 80 km./h. (50 m.p.h.), and even at this speed there is a verv reasonable amount of con trol left. The ailerons are of the slotted type. It might be reasonably said that the ailerons are lighter than the rudder and elevator controls, and such lack of proportion used, in the old days, to be considered as a very serious fault. In the machine of to-day, however, lateral control is by far the most important, and the criticism can no longer be fairly applied. More remarkable is the machine's absolute stability in all axes. Apart from any hands-and-feet-off flying, if the rudder the control layout of the new Taifun. On the left of the dashboard will be seen the crank controlling the airscrew pitch. The undercarriage pump handle is between the seats, while the trimming and flap-lowering wheels are on the left; the dial- indicators for these are on the side immediately above the wheels. is moved while the control column is left to itself the nose swings round, but as soon as the pressure on the pedal is re leased the machine settles down on its original course after one or two oscillations. The effect is rather as if tne machine was directionally spring-loaded. Once put into a turn, too, the Taifun remains turning at the same rate if the hands and feet are taken off the controls, and this applies both to level and climbing turns. The machine has Handley Page slots and flaps, the latter being directly operated by means of a wheel, which is on the same axis as that used for fore and aft trim. The flap angle is shown in a little dial above the wheel, and Herr Brindlinger, who demonstrated the machine over here last week, uses about 15 deg. for take-off. His approach method was to bring the machine in quite fast while applying the flaps, so that one did not obtain a very direct idea of their effect on the gliding angle, but their action as air brakes was quite obviously very considerable. Probably -the flaps are rather more effective than those of any machine normally flown over here, and without the wing-tip slots they might cause a certain amount of difficulty for inexperienced pilots. Because the ground angle is comparatively slight, landing is a simple matter, and the tail-down view on the ground is much better than is normally expected in larger single-engined types. So far as performance is concerned with the c.p. airscrew and additional power, the Taifun appears to have a ground-, level maximum of 315 km./h. (196 m.p.h.), and cruises at an indicated airspeed of 265 km./h. at 2,000 m. (8,000-odd feet) on full throttle at 1,800 r.p.m. When allowance has been made for correction and translation this speed is equi valent to 187 m.p.h. Curiously enough, no manifold pressure indicator was fitted. With standard tanks the cruising range is 1,000 km. (620 miles) at 265 km./h. (165 m.p.h ) in still air. Needless to say, the Taifun has a hydraulically operated retractable undercarriage, the pump lever (with " up " and " down " twist-grip handle) being placed between the two front seats. With all-metal stressed-skin structure, a very clean finish, and monocoque fuselage, the Taifun is far from being a cheap machine—but it seems to me to be worth it. H. A. T. A LIGHTWEIGHT AMPHIBIAN Z~r LIGHT has suggested from time to time that the seaplane, " small flying-boat, or, better still, amphibian, might have a limited but definite sale amongst private owners. in America the lightweight seaplane has become fairly P°Pular; and within the next two months it should be possible owners there to buy a 75 h.p. amphibian. This has been designed by Mr. Ray Applegate, of Chicago and is a pusher type with a cruising speed of 90 m-p-h. ana a top speed of 102 m.p.h. The approximate price of the new machine will be /500. , . , _,.__ The prototype has already been built and flown, and among its more unusual features are an electrically welded non- corrosive hull, stainless-steel tail surfaces, retractable rubber wing-tip floats and a sliding or removable cabin roof. The machine is a side-by-side two-seater. The designer has had a fairly long experience of commercial aviation and was the first air mail bidder in the United States in 1920. He also organised and operated Cuban air services— so that he ought to know something about the various main tenance problems in a machine of this kind. The Applegate amphibian is being handled by O. J. Whitney, Inc., of 9, Rockefeller Plaza. New York.
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