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Aviation History
1945
1945 - 0956.PDF
53° FLIGHT the captain and his second pilot sit well forward on a floor raised about 2ft. 6in. above the normal flight deck level, their seats being reached by three central steps aft of the control pedestal. Visibility is truly magnificent as the designer has had the realism to provide a Perspex coup<£ top which permits a field of view all round. This field is enhanced by the sharp dropping-away of the nose forward oi the front screens and by the relatively quick tumblehome of the hull sides. Press-stud pips for the attachment of sunblinds are incorporated in the '' glasshouse '' frame- work—a sensible feature. Each pilot's seat is very comfortable and adjustable for position fore and aft and vertically. Control columns are slim, light alloy tubes surmounted by f wheels for aileron control, whilst rudder pedal assemblies are the standard S.B.A.C, foot-adjustable type. It might be as well to state here that the rudder control in- corporates an electric assister which provides three-fourths oi the power re- quired to displace the rudder, the pilot having only to provide one-fourth of the input. This measure is really an electrical servo system, although the title should not be confused with the use of servo tabs on a control sur- face. Electric servo assistance is also applied to the pilots' throttle levers, these being movable under finger pressure with the assistance, but need- ing considerable urge when unassisted. However, the throttle-control linkage is positive so that even in the event of assistance failure, control of the engines is main- . tained. This maintenance of control also applied, of course, to the rudder control system. Control runs tor all surfaces are push-pull tubes car- ried in Tufnol guides, and there is surprisingly little static friction. In flight the controls are excellent—in fact we were told that originally the elevator was too light and had to be given increased stick force. Rudder control is so good that in the extreme case of two engines on one side suddenly cutting out, the machine can be kept straight without difficulty on rudder alone. This is a very severe test indeed and will speak volumes to those who appreciate what it actually means. Flight Deck Layout Pilots' instruments are few, for other than the blind- flying panels and duplicate engine r.p.m. and boost gauges most of the instruments which usually confront one are under the care ol the flight engineer. Between the seats is a neat control pedestal comprising rudder assister con- trol, auto-pilot control lever, airscrew reversing indicator lights cockpit heating control, trim controls and indicators, throttles master engine cocks, airscrew feathering buttons, and the engine r.p.m. controls, all ol these being very well placed for convenient operation Behind and below the pilots are the navigation and radio operator's stations, each having adjacent tables and equipment panels against the starboard wall. Oppo- site is the staircase leading down to the lower deck, and aft of the landing at the stair head is a rest settee for off- duty crew. The back oi the settee is hinged at its top so that it can be swung up, the seat and back thus form- ing a couple of sleeping berths. At the rear and almost over the head of the radio operator is a hatch in the roof reached by a jack ladder, and a very clever arrangement it 4s. Normally the hatch door is* closed, but when the navigator wants to take a celestial sight, the ordinary hatch is opened and hinged Short This special Flighl cut-away dra interior arrangement for the 40. the Shetland, and at the same impression of the graceful appeara GLNTS DRESSING FcOOM forward out oi the way. In its place the astro-dome is hinged up into posi- tion and locked, and then a leather- padded armrest ring is undipped fiom its stowage and also swung into position under the dome. Further, the jack ladder is furnished with a series of notches on its rear side into which a generous platform for the sighting navigator can be fitted according to the man's height. Altogether a very ingenious, neat and practical arrangement. At the after end of the flight deck the flight engineer sits facing aft at his athwartships control panel, which is in three portions, the side panels raking forward so that every dial can be seen without parallax. Beneath the panels is a table top incorporating a drawer for the
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