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Aviation History
1941
1941 - 2038.PDF
134 FLIGHT SEPTEMBER 4TH, 1941. HERE AND THERE Canadian Contract for the 8-26 ACCORDING to the De^rtment oi•**• Munitions and Supply at Ottawa, a $25,000,000 contract has been placedwith National Steel Car, Ltd., for the construction of Martin B-26 bombers atiheir Malton (Toronto) factory- The contract cost excludes engines, airscrewsand instruments. No date for the start of deliveries has yet been set. Messerschmitt Me II5O NE of Germany's new types whichhas not yet appeared in combat is the single-seater fighter, Meii5. Thismachine is reported as having a wing span of 31ft., which is slightly less thanthe 32ft. Gin. of the Meioo,. Power plant is the more powerful Mercedes-BenzDB6O3, which is said to develop about 1,600 h.p , giving the fighter a speed ofabout 400 m.p.h. "Going to it" in USA. T OCKHEED-VEGA, whose employees-L» recently presented a Hudson to Coastal Command, are certainly "goingto it." The 28,930 employees of the affiliatedcompanies are now on a 24-hour produc- tion schedule, no fewer than 10,722 ofthem being on night duty. The company is said to be hiring at the average rateof more than 2,500 a month—April reached a peak of 3,540 men hired—andsome 8,000 employees are attending trade extension classes in the city schools ofBurbank and nearby centres. " Supercharged" Ignition Harness "DEFERENCE to the special provision•tv against the breakdown of insulation in the ignition system of high-altitudeaircraft, which was made in the August 21st issue of Flight, has brought to lightthe fact that, as long ago as 1932, Mr. Georges Messier, of Rubery Owen Mes-sier, Ltd., took out a patent for a "supercharged ignition system" of avery similar type to that now being de- veloped in the United States, which itwould appear to have anticipated. The device consists, briefly, in en-closing the entire ignition system from the magneto to the plugs within a casingwherein normal atmospheric pressure at sea-level is maintained—hence thephrase, supercharged ignition harness. Post-war Civil Flying SIR FRANCIS SHELMERDINE, whowill be 60 in October, is reported by The Times to be retiring from the postof Director-General of Civil Aviation very shortly. It is expected he will thenhead a committee to investigate the post- war problems of civil aviation, a taskwhich is likely to prove as intricate as it is important. Stalwart Fellows AllI T is with deep sadness that we onFlight salute the memory of P/O. Murray R. F. Baker, the youngestmember of our Editorial stafi. Baker was killed in action over enemy country during June, and is buried at Oldenburg,Germany. While he was with this journal he showed great promise, andwe feel that he would eventually have become as well accredited aeronauticallyas was P/O. H. A. Taylor, who now spends his time testing military aero-planes of all sorts, having given up a good position in the A.T.A. to do so. Fit. Lt. H. F. King, whose articles onmilitary aircraft and aircraft armament so intrigued and informed readers beforethe war, is now serving overseas. Other members of our Editorial staff who areserving include Lt. Cdr. (A.) C. R. Hodgson, R.N.V.R., and Fit. Lt. R. E.Casey, R.A.F.V.R., who were sub- editors; Fit. Lt. M. A. Smith,R.A.F.V.R., who is serving overseas; Sqn. Ldr. C. S. Watkinson, who was co-opted temporarily from The Autocar; A/C. L. Fish, on our staff of artists; andMr. L. W. Maclaren, of our photographic staff, a lance bombardier in the R.A. WOMEN WITH WINGS AS • chairman ol the '' Women withWings" luncheon arranged by Mr. W. A. Foyle at Grosvenor House lastweek, the Minister of Air Production, Lt. Col. J. T. C. Moore-Brabazon,introducing the speakers, observed that Britain to-day, judged by carryingcapacity, was building bigger and better bombers than any other country in theworld, as well as fiercer and faster fighters. He was emphatic in his praiseof the A.T.A. Service, which had done such great work and received solittle publicity. Lord Sempill, one of the speakers, quoted the names of manywomen famous in aviation and in aircraft production circles, and observed that theA.T.A. possessed 450 pilots, 50 of them girls, and Miss Pauline Gower, OfficerCommanding Women's Section, A.T.A., wanted 20 to 30 more. As to the record,3,900 aircraft had been delivered to date, only one had been written off and 14bent—an excellent record < f service. Miss Gower, responding, said that Col. Moore-Brabazon had always been theirfriend. When in January, 1940, the section started operations with TigerMoths, she felt the implication of "the hand that rocks the cradle wrecks thecrate." They were fortunate with the Tiger, a machine so easy to fly, but nowthere is no limitation upon types flown. She spoke in appreciation of her section,describing them as "a grand crowd." Feelingly she referred to the late MissAmy Johnson, and testified to her thorough, conscientious work. Throughthe memorial scholarship (the funds of which are being invested in War Bonds)women may get their licences. She described the result of investigations intothe accident that resulted in the death of Miss Johnson, and reaffirmed that shewas alone in the plane. It was just in- credibly bad luck that when MissJohnson baled out—due possibly to icing conditions—she was over water.Other speakers were Capt. Sir Malcolm Campbell and Mr. F. Handley Page. Many well-known air personalities attended a luncheon at Grosvenor House on August 26th. The occasion was the "WomenWith Wings" Foyle's Luncheon. Left to right are seen: The Rt. Hon. J. T. C. Moore-Brabazon (Minister of Aircraft Production), Miss Pauline Gower (commanding the Women's Section of Air Transport Auxiliary), Admiral Mark Kerr, C.B., M.V.O., R.N., and Mr. and Mrs. F. Handley Page.
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