FlightGlobal.com
Home
Premium
Archive
Video
Images
Forum
Atlas
Blogs
Jobs
Shop
RSS
Email Newsletters
You are in:
Home
Aviation History
1941
1941 - 0045.PDF
RY 2ND, 194I. B E R (Continued Final assembly. It can beseen how the wing is made in one piece and the fuselage intwo pieces, front and rear, which are attached to thewing. engine speed of 3,000 r.p.m. With this power plant the makers' figures for the Whit- ley are maximum speed of 240 m.p.h., cruising speed of 211 m.p.h., and range of 1,940 mijes. The service ceiling is 23,000ft., and the time to climb to 15,000ft. is 21 minutes. The normal crew of the Whitley is five, being pilot, second pilot-navigator- bomb aimer, radio operator and two air gunners. .The span is 84ft. and length 69ft. 3111. he Whitley is well equipped to fight against the icing .Snace, the leading edges of wing, tail plane and fin being fitted with the B.T.R. de-icer. On the wing this consists of five parallel rubber tubes underlying the external cover- ing of sheet rubber on the leading edge. These tubes are made to pulsate in rhythmic fashion by means of com- pressed air, so freeing the wing of ice mechanically. Ice formation is one of the night bomber's greatest perils, par- ticularly in winter time, for with the added weight and the alteration of wing shape which the ice deposit causes, it only needs a small amount of ice to form to compel the descent of the machine. Being a cantilever midwing monoplane, the structure of the wing goes through the middle of the fuselage. This has necessitated the front and rear webs of the spar being converted into tubular members at this section, and suit- ably arranged so that a man can crawl through from the rear fuselage to the pilot's cockpit. Otherwise the Whitley body is a roomy affair, it being possible to walk right down to the rear gunner's turret in the extreme tail, a position of considerable loneliness on a long night flight. If any other proof were needed of the strength of the Whitley other than the reputation of Armstrong-Whitworth as one of the firms approved for design by the Air Ministrj' in years gone by, %3&ghas only to mention the two astound- ing cases of damageThich have occurred in this war. The (Above) A row of Rolls-Royce Merlins mounted and awaitingattachment to thi airframe. (Above Applying fabric to 'he rear section ot the wing (Right! Front fuselages being fitted with hydraulic, electricand control gear.
Sign up to
Flight Digital Magazine
Flight Print Magazine
Airline Business Magazine
E-newsletters
RSS
Events
