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Aviation History
1946
1946 - 0562.PDF
290 FLIGHT MARCH 2IST, 1946 Control Cabin Layout An M.A.P. Postscript to a "Flight" Article : What is Being Done THE complicated problems involved in the designof orderly and convenient control and instru-ment layouts are becoming of still greater interest and importance from year to year. In Flight of Decem- ber 13th last, the subject was discussed in extenso by a pilot who made an ingenious suggestion whereby all the controls and instruments would be classified and grouped by colour according to their place in the normal cockpit " drill." In this short article, which is published below with the blessings of the Ministry of Aircraft Produc- tion, some up-to-date and " official " views are expressed. INLYING has indeed become a very complex business.-*- More equipment of greater bulk and complication now has to be installed in an aircraft cockpit. Modificationafter modification to new designs often causes the cockpit to be very small, but it is still not possible to modifythe htiman being whose job it is to fly the aircraft. All efforts to produce a Man, Mark II, of reduced size, butwith an extra pair of hands, having failed, the alternative has been adopted of making the cockpit the most satisfac-tory work-place possible for the pilot. British scientists have initiated much research with that end in view. Experts at the Ministry of Aircraft Production and theRoyal Aircraft Establishment first concentrated on the plan of standardizing cockpit layout, and during the early daysof the war R.A.E. constructed and exhibited mock-ups of single-seater and side-by-side-seater cockpits in an attemptthus to standardize layouts. This attempt, however, was short-lived owing to the rapid development of equipmentand the inflexibility of standardization. In February, 1945, all the work then being done to im-prove cockpit layout was co-ordinated under a section of the Ministry of Aircraft Production, and advice andopinions were sought from experienced pilots of Commands, Experimental Establishments and Development Units, aswell as from designers and technicians throughout the air- craft industry. Valuable information was provided by theDirectorate of Accident Prevention and the Institute of Aviation Medicine, who were consulted so that the phy-siological and psychological aspect should not be over- looked. At a series of meetings the whole question of loca-tion of controls and equipment in the pilot's cockpit was discussed in the greatest detail. At these meetings also were, representatives fromAmerica, who had much valuable and interesting infor- mation to give, and who returned to their own country withmany British ideas which they hoped to adopt. Alto- gether, the fullest exchange of ideas and information hasbeen made between those responsible in Britain and America and a very large measure of agreement has beenreached on the general question of cockpit layout. There is obviously much to be gained by adopting principles oflayout common to all aircraft, and it is to be hoped that this welcome interchange of ideas will continue. Reasonable Expectation No attempt has been made to achieve complete stan-dardization of cockpits, but rather to produce a functional layout presenting a cleaner and simpler general appear-ance, greater comfort and convenience for the pilot, and with the controls and equipment grouped logically in posi-tions where they are accessible and where the pilot might reasonably expect to find them. Only a few of the improvements likely to appear in thenext few years can be quoted here. Among them is the design of the .main flying controls so that the pilot hascomplete freedom of movement of his legs and feet; com- plete cockpit flooring ; a general adoption of the '' console ''system of a faired-in mounting of the controls at the sides of the cockpit. Undercarriage operation will be by meansof push-button controls mounted immediately forward of the throttles, and flap operation by means of a lever aftof the throttles. With the perfection of completely auto- matic operation, many controls will disappear. Although few of these ideas will be incorporated in pro-duction aircraft for some considerable time, they do show that vigorous efforts are being made to improve and sim-plify the lot of the pilot. HOME FROM FAR EAST "pHE first complete wing of aircraft from the Far East to landJL in this country from an aircraft carrier landed from the Indefatigable at the Royal Naval Air Station, Gosport, lastweek. The wing was composed of 30 Seafires attached to No. 887 Squadron, commanded by Cdr. N. G. Hallett, R.N.,D.S.C. and Two Bars, and No. 894 Squadron, commanded by Lt. Cdr. J. Crossman, R.N.V.R., D.S.O. The wing was underthe command of Cdr. Hallett as group commander. RECOMMENDED FOR F.R.S. TWO Scientists who have made valuable contributions to aero-nautical knowledge are among the list of candidates re- commended by the Council of the Royal Society for electionto-day as Fellows of the Society. They are Robert Alexander Frazer, of the National PhysicalLaboratory, distinguished for work on aerodynamics, particu- larly on problems of nutter, and Louis Rosenhead, professorof applied mathematics at Liverpool, and distinguished for his researches in hydrodynamics and aerodynamics, which havecontributed to the fuller understanding of vortex motion. During the war Professor Rosenhead led a team of mathe-maticians working on rocket projectiles. R.A.F. APPOINTMENTS AIR CHIEF MARSHAL SIR GUY GARROD, who was re-cently appointed to' the Military Staff Committee of the United Nations, will shortly also assume the duties of head of the R.A.F. delegation in the U.S. He will have as his Per-manent Representative in Washington Air Marshal R. V. Goddard, who has recently been serving as Air Officer in Chargeof Administration in Air Command, South East Asia. Air Chief Marshal Garrod will be taking over from AirMarshal D. Colyer, the present head of the R.A.F. Delegation, at the end of the present month. At the same time Air MarshalGoddard will be taking over from Air Vice-Marshal R. Willock, the present deputy head of the R.A.F. Delegation in Washing-ton. FOR THE A.T.A. HPHOSE members of the A.T.A. who were injured in theJ- course of flying duties will be interested in the request from Mr. W. J. Drake, of the Decca Navigator Company, thatthey should write to him at 103, Ladyfield Road, Chippenham, Wilts. He has written to us to say that he has a proposal toput to them which " will be to their advantage," and asks that they will communicate with him as soon as possible. ILIFFE'S NEW MIDLAND OFFICES OUR readers and advertisers are asked to note a change iathe address of our Midland office. As from March 25th, 1946, the Associated IliSe Press offices in Birmingham will betransferred from Guildhall Buildings, Navigation Street, to King Edward House, New Street, Birmingham, 2 (Telephone:Midland 7191; Telegrams: Autopress, Birmingham). The new premises in King Edward House are modern andvery spacious, and should prove a great asset in the busy days ahead.
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