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Aviation History
1944
1944 - 0239.PDF
\ FEBRUARY 3RD, 1944 FLIGHT 121 Behind the Lines Safe-conduct FROM neutral sources it is learned that negotiations are in progress between the Swedish and German Governments for a German safe-conduct for Swedish air traffic to Britain. As yet it is not known whether these negotia tions have met with any measure of success, but it can be assumed that the difficulties are in the conditions which the Germans try to impose. Jap Display A MORALE-BUILDING parade of the Japanese Air Force is reported by German correspondents to have taken place during the last month in Tokyo. About 750 aircraft of the Army Air Force, led by Lt. Gen. Matsuoko, are said to have participated in the display, in which formations of Japan's latest bombers, the Donryu, the Shintei recon naissance aircraft, and the Skoki fighters took part. F^ Comment REINHARD ALBRECHT, German war correspondent, who watched the Allied landing at Nettuno, described the operation as " a spectacle—beautiful and awe-inspiring alike." "This hand-in- hand play of enemy fighters, bombers and men-of-war, the drum-rolls of fire from the sea and the air; the continu ous thunder of broadsides, the crushing bangs of tank cannons—all combine to make a spectacle beautiful and awe- inspiring alike." '' The naval escort, comprisjjigjaatile^ ships and aircraft cajp3ers"Twas very strong. Its covering-fire enabled the in vading forces to build a corrugated tank road along which the heavy armourer vehicles are rolling on the land planes have/tihOMn it as their t but as matters sllnd, cannot spoe t Italian skies to-dAy| unjess yqj^iaYe alliance witlVtbe d Service and Industrial News from, the Inside of Axis and Enemy' occupied Countries Award ACCORDING to the Hungarian official gazette, the Regent has awarded the Middle Cross of the Hungarian Order of Merit to Directors K. Korbuly and A. Schnetzer for services in the development of Hungarian aircraft production. Air Traffic IT is reported from Sofia that in the preliminary budget proposals of the Bulgarian Government, provision has been made to extend the agreement with Ala Littoria up to August 15th, 1944. The Ala Littoria operates the service from Rome via Sofia to Bucharest. Special legislation has been passed to release Air France from its agreement on the basis of which the French company operated the service Dragoman-Sofia- Plovdiv-Svilengrad. Richthofen Squadron SO great have been the losses of the Tamous Richthofen squadron, now operating on the Channel coast, that the Npresent commander. Major Egon Mayer, r of the Oak Leaves decoration, is e only surviving officer who knew the t\jo preceding commanders, said a front "pe report over the German radio, oted by Reuter. The squadron lost its first commander nd ace fighter, Major Weist, in the battle of Britain. His successor, Captain EXPECTATION : German fighter-pilots waiting near their Focke-Wulf Fw 190s at an airfield on the Channel Coast. Balthasar, was shot down in the sum mer of 1941, " when," said the reporter, '' we found ourselves outnumbered for the first time owing to the Russian cam paign. We have been outnumbered ever since. Year by year the enemy has come over with heavier bombers covered by strong fighter escort, which looked like spitting hedgehogs. It takes courage to attack them, and the physical and mental strain on the pilots has increased enormously with the speed of their machines." French Development GNOME AND RHONE the French aircraft engine company, is reported to be developing a 28-cylinder high- performance engine derived from the models 14R of 1,590 h.p. and 14-cylin- ders, and the 2,200 h.p. 18-cylinder 18R type. In the new engine, which is composed of four radial rows of cylinders,. the cylinders of the first and third rows are to be placed in line behind each other, whereas those of the second and fourth rows are offset to the first row by half a cylinder space. For the positive feed ing of the cooling air a blower will be mounted in the air intake area of the engine cowling, resembling the arrange ment adopted in the BMW 801. The engine is to be equipped with two super chargers and direct fuel injection. A drive will be provided for coaxial contra- rotating airscrews. Following are the preliminary charac teristics and performance data: bore, 5|in. (146 mm.); stroke, 6£in. (165 mm.); total volume, 4,719.5 cu. in. (77.34 lit.); compression ratio 1 to 6.4; diameter 5iin. (1,297 mm.); max. power, 3,750 h.p. at 19,700ft. The VG 50 experimental aircraft devel oped by the State Arsenal at Lyons- Villeurbanne, and previously reported on this page was intended to test a new power plant arrangement consisting of two 1,200 h.p. Hispano-Suiza 12Y liquid- cooled 12-cylinder in-line engines mounted in tandem and driving coaxial contra-rotating airscrews. The extension shaft of the rear engine features a " homocinetic " coupling com posed of four flexibly-mounted ball joints, and uses the bearing originally provided in the front of the engine for . the mounting of the cannon. According to reports the " homo cinetic " coupling has already been de veloped for a new 24-cylinder Hispano engine which is credited with an output of 4,000 h.p., bj>t which is still under development. The studies conducted at the Arsenal are concerned with an arrangement which dispenses with a rigid mounting on the front engine—such as the gun bearing of the Hispano 12Y—and pro vides for coaxial extension shafts be tween the engines and the airscrews; corresponding coaxial coupling pairs for the latter are under development. The possibility of four coaxial airscrews rotating in opposite directions are also reported to be under investigation. Under development at the Arsenal is also an aircraft powered with four Hispano 12Z 12-cyl. engines, equipped with a pressure cabin and constructed in improved wood.
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