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Aviation History
1946
1946 - 2268.PDF
FLIGHT NOVEMBER 14TH, 194O thrusts of more than 4,000 lb being by no means un- common—and we are only at the beginning ! Great as is the development in aircraft and power plants that has taken place during the interval between the two shows, it is matched by the almost innumerable items which go to the making of a modern aircraft. Instru- ments and equipment which in 1938 were dreamed of by visionaries only have become realities. That they have added still more complication to an already intricate piece of mechanism must be admitted, but the mechanical com- plication makes for greater operational simplicity and safety, and so must be accepted. A Psychological ErrorW HILE everyone is in full agreement with the Air Ministry's declared policy of improved condi- tions in the Royal Air Force, there must have been many who felt that some of the R.A.F. items in the Lord Mayor's Procession were ill advised. The ancient music hall gags about tea in bed, and the sergeant never speaking harshly to a man are all very well; the sarcasm was well founded originally, and there is ample room for improvement. But to stress the point that the men of the R.A.F. will be better treated in the future, as was done in the procession, by showing a man sitting-up in bed reading a book strikes us as a result of faulty psychology. The next tableau was little better. It was presumably intended as an appealing encouragement to service over- seas, the said appeal taking the form of three men, in drill uniforms, sitting around a table drinking beer. It is difficult to understand how anyone could imagine that such representation of the R.A.F. as a "soft" ser- vice would appeal to the right type of man. Let us by all means make life pleasanter for the men in the Royal Air Force, and let us treat them properly—but as men, not as " sissies." The motto of the Service is still " Per Ardua ad Astra." CONTENTS Outlook 515 Britain at the Paris Show ... 517 Military Aircraft To-morrow 518 Flat-six Engine ... ... ... ••• ••- -•• 520 Here and There 521 British Military Aircraft 523 To-day's British Transports 532 Smaller Civil Types 538 Nuffield Flat-Four 541 Civil Aviation News 2 Industrial Exposition ... ... ... • -• ••• 545 Correspondence ... ... ... ••• ••• 548 Service Aviation ... 550 The New Flat EnginesF OLLOWING upon the first brief announcement concerning the new Nufneld engine, on which w^ commented on October 31st, details disclosed in this issue reveal that the engine is a flat-four of approxi- mately 100 h.p. (70 h.p. for cruising). In our previous comment we ventured to forecast that it might have fuel injection. It now emerges that the first engine to be built will have a down-draught carburettor, but that at a later stage a fuel-injection system may be developed. The power of the Nuffield engine has been well chosen, and it should find ready application to light aircraft. A second new engine announced this week is the Fedden flat-six sleeve valve, giving some 160 h.p. for take-off and about 120 h.p. for cruising with direct drive and slightly higher powers in the geared version. One of the attractive features of the Fedden engine is the small height—just over 12 inches—which enable it to be buried in a wing some 14 inches thick. This should be useful for light twin installations. Between them these two engines cover a very useful range of powers, and the British light plane market should benefit substantially from the addition to existing light power plants which they afford. LORD MAYOR'S SHOW : Airmen following their various trades formed the major portion of the R.A.F. section of the procession. The crowd on the port side were treated to a tableau of an airman comfortably ensconced in bed reading a book.
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