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Aviation History
1944
1944 - 2570.PDF
a FLIGHT DECEMBER 14TH, 1944 Glass-lined Cabins New "Blanket Insulation" for Curtiss Commando ; Weight Only 185 Pounds per Machine T \HE Curtiss-Wright Corporation announces a new development in thermal insulation, achieved by their engineers at the St. Louis works of the corporation's aircraft division in conjunction with the Owens-Corning Fiberglass Corporation of Toledo, Ohio. The material used for reducing temperature transfer through the walls of an aircraft cabin is a " blanket'' made of glass fibres set in a synthetic resin. Woven from glass threads only 0.0002m. thick the '' blanket'' can be made in any desired thick ness. For the Curtiss Commando the thickness is half an inch and, with the resin used for setting, the weight is only 1 oz. per sq. ft. For an aircraft like the Commando, which has a cargo compartment of about 2,300 cu. ft. capacity, the weight of the insulation is only 185 lb., which repre sents a weight-saving of some 200 lb. compared with the material previously used. It is pointed out that this saving alone, stepped up to 1,000 aircraft flights over the Hima layan " Hump " into China, means an extra 200,000 lb. of war material, ammunition, fuel for the Superfortresses, food, medical supplies, guns, jeeps or repair parts. In addition to its light weight, the new material has other advantages.' For example, it is so pliable that it can be fitted over any shape, including windows, air ducts, control boxes, corners, and electrical outlets. Being chemically inert, the material does not cause corrosion of metals, and will not support any kind of fungus growth. It is also non-inflammable, and the combination of glass and resin has been found to have very low moisture absorp tion. Lengthy tests carried out in the laboratory showed that when subjected to tropical heat and humidity, the increase in weight due to moisture absorption was only 1 per cent., compared with something like 190 per cent, for kapok. The advantage of this will be obvious when it is INSIDE A COMMANDO : The walls are lined with Fiberglass glass threads set in a synthetic resin Jin. thick. The weight per sq. ft. recalled that the insulating material is in contact with the metal walls of the cabin, where condensation of mois ture caused by differences between inside and outside tem peratures is greatest. , Yet another advantage is that, owing to the thinness of the glass threads, the material does not disintegrate under vibration. The resin-set glass material is also quite effective for soundproofing. The half-inch thickness used in the Com mando, plus the aluminium-finish trim cloth by means of which it is installed, was found to give a sound attenuation of 63.decibels. In the Commando a thicker "blanket" has been used in the pilots' compartment. This is one inch thick, and has been found to make the cabin very quiet, a very important factor in reducing fatigue on long flights. No Tools Required "^ Ease of installation is another advantage of the new material. The blanket is attached to the aircraft structure by snap fasteners, so that it can be put into place or removed in an instant. If, for example, a machine is • variously used for transporting cargo and troops or casual ties, the material can be removed and reinstalled very quickly. The complete insulating equipment for an air craft can be rolled into compact bundles and sent to centres and stations for installation. No tools are required, and the necessary instructions are simplicity itself. The new blanket material, will be used in the Curtiss CW-20 post-war version of the Commando. This machine will carry 36 passengers and will be powered by two Wright Cyclone engines driving Curtiss electric airscrews. Two major U.S. airlines have planned for the inclusion of CW-20S in their post-war operations. It will be possible to keep the cabin temperature at a comfortable level even when the outside temperature is 40 deg. F. below zero. RELEASE OF LIGHT METALS F OR the first four years of war, the use of aluminium and magnesium had to be re stricted almost entirely to military applications, predomi nantly aircraft. Even for this purpose, substitutes had largely to be adopted to conserve sup plies. During the past year it has been possible to make them freely available for other mili tary purposes while still meet ing the needs of the aircraft programme. The stage ha? now been reached where light metals can once more be released to manu facturers for civilian produc tion, subject, of course, to their labour and capacity not being required for more urgent and important purposes. Light metals are also available for work on prototypes to form the basis for subsequent bulk production and for samples re quired in preparation for re opening markets for established uses. Manufacturers can also now apply for release of materia' to build up working stocks^ a advance, against the time when machine tools, space and labour will become available for peace time activities. 1 " blankets " made of very thin of the material is only 1 oz.
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