FlightGlobal.com
Home
Premium
Archive
Video
Images
Forum
Atlas
Blogs
Jobs
Shop
RSS
Email Newsletters
You are in:
Home
Aviation History
1946
1946 - 0648.PDF
33* FLIGHT APRIL 4TH, 1946 Britain's Test /Pilots G!I EORGE '' BULMAN might never have been knownrin the aircraft industry had he continued at hisoriginal occupation. In fact, he would have been more nationalized than he is now, because he started his business career in the Bank of England. Perhaps that is where he got his meticulous attention to detail. Group Capt. Bulman is seldom known by his proper Christian name Paul, and it is interesting to learn how he ever came to be known universally as "George." He always confessed to a shocking memory for names, and during the 1914-18 war addressed almost everyone as "Colonel" or "General." When peace came, a civil edition had to be found, and his friends and acquaintances be- came Georges. They, in their turn, -ailed him "George" Bulman. A little more than a year be- fore the Royal Flying Corps be- came the Royal Air Force in April, 1918, Bulman learnt to fly on a "Rumpety" (Maurice Farman Longhorn) of No. 4 Reserve Squadron at Northolt. Previous to this he had been in the Honourable. Artillery Com- pany, but was dead keen to be- come a motor cyclist despatch rider. A motor-cycling friend, however, managed to persuade him that flying was the thing really worth doing, and got him transferred to the R.F.C. After his training, "George" was with fighters exclusively. First in No. 46 Squadron under Major (now Air Marshal, retired) Philip Babington, flying Sopwith Pups and then with No. 3 Twenty-three years ago. Squadron, when it changed over to test the Blackburn from parasol monoplanes to Sop- 1,000 h.p. Napier A Maurice Farman of the typeon which Group Capt. Bulman learnt to fly, compared withthe High Speed Fury of 1933 and the last Hurricane builtin August, 1944. Bulman is seated in a prototype Hurricane. No. 3* CROUP CAPT. P. W. S. BULMAN, C.B.E., M.C., A.F.C with Camels. He went to No. 3 as a fighter expert, and in the fighting at Courtrai these tiny Camels—carrying four 2olb bombs each—operated with the tanks. This was the birth of the operations by Typhoons, the direct descen- dants of the Camel, in the Falaise Gap in the Battle of Normandy nearly 30 years later. It is impossible to get Bulman to talk about his deeds in the 1914-18 war. He was heard to let it slig on one unguarded occasion that he was a bloodthirsty young man, but farther than that he never goes. Asking how many enemy aircraft he got to his credit always brings the same answer: '' We flew as a Flight, and did no individual operations. All victories belonged to the Flight." Nevertheless, he was awarded the Military Cross for his share. First Test Work At the close of hostilities in 1918 he was granted a permanent commission, and almost immedi- ately took up his first test flying. He was posted to the Daimler air- field at Radford, where Sopwith Snipes and S.E.5AS were pro- duced, and shortly afterwards went to the ferry pool in the Mid- lands at Castle Bromwich. Here experience on twin-engined types was gained as the unit had to test and ferry D.H.ios (made by the Birmingham Carriage Co.) and Handley Page 0/400S. It was because of his work here that he came to take up test fly- ing as a permanent occupation. There happened to be a number of one-engined failures on the D.H.ios which had caused some loss of life among the ferry pilots. " Farnborough " was investigat- ing the trouble, and "George" George Bulman about Cubaroo which had a Cub X engine.
Sign up to
Flight Digital Magazine
Flight Print Magazine
Airline Business Magazine
E-newsletters
RSS
Events
