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Aviation History
1941
1941 - 2241.PDF
SEPTEMBER 25T1:, 1941. FLIGHT 199 S" AND THERE Capitol Airport BIGGER than New York's La GuardiaField, the new airport at Washing-ton, D.C., was opened recently. A very modern administrative buildingwith a glass front looks out on the huge 729-acre aerodrome. This airport wasconstructed to replace the former one, which was regarded as much too smallfor present-day needs. Air Cadet Corps in Australia A DM1NISTERED by R.A.A.F. Head-il quarters, the Royal Australian Cadet Corps has been formed on the samelines as the A.T.C. here. Mr. W. A. Robertson, deputy chairman of the Vic-torian State Rivers and Water Supply Commission, has been appointed directorof the Corps with the rank of Group Captain. He was flight commander in anAustralian fighter squadron in the last war. Boys are eligible to join when theyreach the age of sixteen, pass a medical examination, and indicate that it is theirintention to join the R.A.A.F. at the age of eighteen. Aiore B-19 Data THE gigantic Douglas four-enginedB-19 bomber, whose recent successful test flight we reported, is said to havecost between ^800,000 and ^900,000 and to have required 700,000 engineeringhours for design and construction. The two main landing wheels are 96in. indiameter and each wheel.assembly weighs 2,700 lb., which is considerably morethan one ton. The airscrews on the 18- cylinder 2,000 h.p. Wright DuplexCyclones are three-bladed Hamilton Hy dramatics of 17ft. lin. diameter and696 lb. in weight. Pitch-changing is done by hydraulic means and the pumpssupplying pressure for feathering are driven by two alternating-current motors.This alternating current is obtained from two generators driven from petrolengines. The same generators also supply power to operate the landing gear andwing flaps. Crew of Ten "TURNING to the question of crew, the-*• B-19 has six men in the operating cabin, which is sound-proofed, heatedand ventilated. The chief pilot is on the left with the second pilot on theright. The commander is slightly to the rear. In addition, the flight engineer,radio operator and navigator are in the cabin,which is referred to as the "bridgedeck." The remainder of the ten-man crew, the chief mechanic and three reliefmembers, have stations elsewhere in the aeroplane. On operational flights,though, of course, the first B-19 is only mtended for experiment, the crew wouldnumber about eighteen. Fuel capacity, is 11,000 U.S. gals,(approximately 920 imperial gals.) and bomb load is given as 18 tons, although•t is not stated if this can be carried with the maximum fuel load. As a troopcarrier, the B-19 can accommodate 125 fully equipped men. Its total loadedweight is 164,000 lb. Cruising speed is given as 186 m.p.h., but on its first longflight the B-19 was not flown faster than 150 m.p.h. Names to Live Up ToT WO West Country volunteers whorecently enrolled in the R.A.F. are named Lloyd George and WinstonChurchill. The latter, moreover, has a younger brother named Randolph ! Determination A YOUNG American from Chicago,now training as a pilot in the R.A.F., spared himself no effort in hisdetermination to reach this country. He hitch-hiked from New York to NewOrleans, where he joined the crew of a Norwegian tanker bound for Le Havre,describing himself as a Canadian. But the F'rench police would not let him land,so back he had to sail to Venezuela, where his ship collected a cargo of oiland sailed for Toulon. While his ship was lying in Toulonharbour, Italy entered the war and France collapsed, so the Norwegian cap-tain ran across to Oran. Here the "Canadian" left the ship and, afternumerous adventures, reached Gibraltar, from where he obtained passage toEngland. This young American has variouslybeen a soda-fountain "jerker," railway hand, factory timekeeper, lorry driver,margarine salesman and theatre usher. Back to the LandQ UANTAS AIRWAYS, Australia,started as a service oi landplanes across Queensland and the Brisbane-Darwin run was their most important route. Now the company is best knownfor its flying-boat service between Singa- pore and Sydney, although it has alwayskept up one of its landplane routes be- tween Brisbane and Newcastle Waters. 'But the Brisbane-Darwin run with a Lockheed Electra has been restored torelieve the flying boats. The time-table is once weekly and the trip is rpreadover two days. Aero Engines in TanksT HE Wright 450 h.p. nine-cylinderWhirlwind is being used as the motive power for the Chrysler M-3 tanknow being produced at several factories in U.S.A. The Wright AeronauticalCorporation reveals that when the choice of engines was made there were twotypes available, the liquid-cooled marine engine and the air-cooled radial aero-engine. The marine types, being of low speed,were bulky and took up too much room in the tank, leaving insufficient space forthe crew and armament. The Whirl- wind has a diameter of only 45m. TheM-3 tank is known as a medium type and weighs 28 tons. Its armament isone 75 mm., one 37 mm. anti-aircraft, and several machine and sub-machineguns. HURRICANE II : In addition to fitting a later type Merlin engine oi greater power,the Hurricane II has considerably increased armament. Some are fitted with 12 machine guns, while others—as shown in the photograph above—have four 20 mm. shell-guns.
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