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Aviation History
1940
1940 - 1139.PDF
APRIL 18, 1940 1912 TO 1940 (CONTINUED) in some ways the greatest. It is true that Mr. Hubert Scott-Paine, whose energy had done so much to build up the firm, had resigned and had become a director of Imperial Airways via the British Marine Air Navi- gation Co., Ltd., but orders were beginning to come in on a fairly large scale, and Commander James Bird decided to turn his firm into a public company with a share capital of £300,000. ~ ;-:,•;:;;-^ ;; r */-.:.. Metal Hulls v: ^-V Events and developments followed at an amazing pace. The Southamptons had been giving excellent ser- vice, but the Air Ministry had decided to go over to all- metal construction, and Supermarines made a start by producing metal hulls for the Southampton, using the old composite wing structure. At that time comparatively little was known in this country about protecting dura- lumin against corrosion, and there was some speculation as to how these metal hulls would fare. Troubles there were, certainly, but in the main they stood up. The great event of 1927, from the service point of view, was the flight of four Southampton flying boats to Australia, around Australia, and up to Singapore. The eastern cruise, as it was called, was under the com- mand of Group Captain T. R. Cave-Brown-Cave, R.A.F. The flight started from Cattewater, Plymouth, on October 17, and on December 11, 1928, it finished at Singapore. One curious feature of the cruise was that it was found that barnacles would attach them- selves to the black stripes with which the machines were painted for identification purposes. The white stripes they left severely alone. When the black paint was removed from the under-water portion of the hulls the nuisance ceased. The eastern cruise of 27,000 miles was by no means the only meritorious flight of Southamptons. In 1927 many visits were paid to British coast resorts, and one Southampton took part in a flying boat cruise to Scan- dinavia, on which the then- and present-Secretary of State for Air, Sir Samuel Hoare, was one of the distin- guished passengers. In that year also the Australian Government ordered Southamptons for the Royal Australian Air Force, doubtless as a result of the good service being given by the Seagulls. With so much work going on, the works at Woolston were becoming too small, and sheds at Hythe, erected by the Air Ministry during the war, were acquired as erect- ing sheds. ......_ ;:•_.. .„ . How it was done will ever be something of a mystery, but in 1927 the Supermarine works found time for de- signing and building machines for the Schneider Trophy Contest. The type was the S.5, with Napier Lion en- gine, and on one of these machines Fit. Lt. Webster won the race at Venice. In the following year, 1928, Southampton flying boats were sold, in addition to those built for the R.A.F., to Japan and Argentina. A new type of boat was also produced, this f^rnc a three-engined version. The hull was like that of the Southampton. Originally it was intended as a torpedo-carrier for the Danish Navy, but it was never taken over by them, and was afterwards converted into a civil machine and sold to the Hon. A. E. Guinness, who used it as an air yacht. In its civil form this machine was known as the Solent. It was fitted with three Siddeley Jaguar engines. Yet another milestone in Supermarine history was set up when, late in 1928, the firm was acquired by Vickers (Aviation), Ltd., thus becoming a member of that very powerful group of companies. The amalgamation did not, as so many feared, mean that Supermarines lost their individuality. The firm was permitted to continue its old policy of concentrating on marine aircraft, and many famous types have seen the light at Woolston since that time, all bearing the unmistakeable stamp of Mr. Mitchell's personality. ...- ... ..• , ,.~,-~ . ' •.,,.;;.",•• ••'•-...''- World's Records . v The outstanding type produced in 1929 was the Schneider racer, type S.6. With a Rolls-Royce racing engine developing more than 2,000 h.p. one of these machines, piloted by Flying Officer Waghorn, won the Schneider contest at an average speed of 328.6 m.p.h. A few days later Squadron Leader Orlebar established world's speed records, first of 336.3 m.p.h. and after- wards at 357.7 m.p.h. Another new type produced in 1929 was the Seamevv, a three-seater amphibian flying boat fitted with two Sid- deley Lynx engines. It was designed for reconnaissance duties, and in spite of the comparatively low power it had a speed of about 100 m.p.h. A minor event, but one not without interest, was the alighting of a Southampton on Oulton Broad, and a successful start from that broad. So far as is known, that was the first time in history that a flying boat had operated from the broads. Designed and built in 1929, the so-called Air Yacht made its first public appearance in 1930. This machine was a departure from pre- vious Supermarine practice in that it was a parasol monoplane flying boat. Wing tip. floats would have been difficult to mount, and so, instead, the hull was fitted with sponsons. On the leading edge of the wing three Siddeley geared Jaguar engines were mounted. The machine The Seagull, Mark V, deck-landing amphibian with Bristol Pegasus engine hasbeen bought in large numbers by the Australian Govern-ment. The R.A.F. version is known as the Walrus.
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