FlightGlobal.com
Home
Premium
Archive
Video
Images
Forum
Blogs
Jobs
Shop
RSS
Email Newsletters
You are in:
Home
Aviation History
1947
1947 - 0157.PDF
JANUARY 30TH, 1947 FLIGHT disintegrated, this may save the pilot. Yet stronger seatsare on the way. On the subject of "g," it seems that the Odiham pilotscan stand their full share. This was suggested by a flying demonstration by F/O. "Nick " Carter of No. 247 Squad-ron and by the story of a "g" recorder which, removed from beneath a Vampire's seat after a number of flights,showed 10\. The identity of the stalwart who unknow- ingly attained this acceleration has not yet been established. The Captain and the Vampire Colonel Persons, though he has flown more than his shareof aircraft types since he served in the R.F.C. during the 1914 war, has so far had no experience on jet-propelledmachines, and he thought it prudent not to be initiated while at Odiham. Captain Saunders, however, is familiarwith both the Shooting Star and Thunderjet, and after he had been briefed by S/L. Courtney and by Mr. R. Norman,^fe Havilland's resident representative at Odiham, the last we saw of him he was raising the wheels of a Vampire afteran exemplary take-off. One heard later that after about half an hour in the air he made a perfect landing and pro-nounced enthusiastically on the Vampire's flying qualities. The aircraft he flew was of the newest Mk FI series withbubble canopy, provision for pressurization, a Goblin II turbine jet, a Machmeter and other refinements. The Colonel contented himself with a flight in the elegantyellow Spitfire Trainer which Lt. Cdr. Lithgow brought " Flight " photograph. The Supermarine Spitfire Trainer, now bearing civil registration\niarkings. (The diminutive fuselage markings are presumably for the benefit of thos%~i ad ulging~~Tn unofficial low-flying practice.) On the left is G/C. A. F. Anderson, D.S.O., D.F.C., DeputyDirector of Accident Prevention. (Right) Lt. Cdr. Lithgow and Col. Persons bafore flying in the Spitfire Trainer. over. Another Vickers-Armstrong's contribution—presum- ably unofficial—was a Viking which flew across on one engine. After a cold, windy afternoon on the airfield our Ameri- can visitors were duly warmed in the evening at a " dining- in •''—cum-guestnight, attended by Air Vice-Marshal S. D. Mac- donald, C.B.E., D.F.G., A.O.C. No. 11 Fighter Group, and his S.A.S.Ck, G/C. V. S. Bowling. The itinerary planned for Col. Persons and Capt. Saunders in- cludes the R.A.F. stations at Bassingbourne, Upwood, Mar- ham, West Raynham and Hul- lavington, so they will see—and in some cases fly—representative aircraft of all classes, including the Meteor. This, it is to be hoped, will be a short-span Mark IV, from which they may judge the performance and manoeuvra- bility combined to such an ex- ceptional degree in this standard fighter. They will also be inter- ested in the Avro Lincoln and in various Service trainers, particu- larly the3-seater Percival Prentice which introduces a new instruc- tional technique. A HAWKER-SIDDELEY APPOINTMENT^'M R. 'MICHAEL GOLOVINE, M.B.E., A.C.G.I.,A.F.R.Ae.S., has been appointed sales co-ordination manager to Hawker-Siddeley Aircraft, Ltd. During the war Mr. Golovine was a Squadron Leader in theTechnical Intelligence Section at the Air Ministry, and was latterly Technical Representative, Armstrong Siddeley Motors,td DEATH OF MR. A. W. MARTYN \S T)OSSIBLY few of the younger generation are aware of the•*- fact that the Gloster Aircraft Company was founded by Mr. A. W. Martyn, whose death in a London nursing homeoccurred on January 18th, at the age of 76. During the first world war his firm, H. H. Martyn and Co., of SunningendWorks, Cheltenham, built de Havilland machines for the Air- craft Manufacturing Company. In 1916 the new firm wasfounded under the title Gloucestershire Aircraft Co., Ltd., later chj^iged to Gloster Aircraft Company. It was under thecontrol of the Aircraft Manufacturing Company, with Mr. Holt Thomas as chairman and Mr. A. W. Martyn as managing direc-tor, Among the other directors on the board were Mr. David Longden and Mr. Hugh Burroughes, the latter of whom is stilla director. In 1921 Mr. H. P. Folland was engaged as chief designer, and there tollowed a line of successful aircraft, such as the racing'"Bamel," the Grebes, Gamecocks and Gauntlets, and some Schneider seaplanes. Two years later Mr. Martyn bought theSteel Wing Company and also took over the development of the Hele Shaw variable pitch airscrew, which has since becomethe Rotol. Mr. Martyn Tetired from the Glostcr company in 1927 andgave much of his time to local activities in Cheltenham. In !935 he became a director of Dowty Equipment, Ltd., andwhen this business became a public company in 1936 Mr. Martyn became chairman, a position which he held untfl hisdeath. His business associates have lost £ great friend and a kindly adviser. FORTHCOMING EVENTS Jan. 30th.—" Aerotech " Flying Club No. I: "Gliding and the A.T.C." S/L. E. J. Furlong, D.F.C. Jan. 30th.—R.Ae.S. London; "Wartime Developments in Air Trans- port," Air Marshal Sir Ralph Cochrane. Jan. 31st.—Inst. of Welding, East Scotland; " Recent Processes in Plastic Welding," J. H. Paterson. Feb. 1st.—British Interplanetary Society; " Interplanetary Flight— Is the Rocket the Only Answer f " L. R. Shepherd. Feb. 5th.—R.Ae.S. Glasgow; "General Aspects of Aircraft Design," R. W. Mclntyre; Royal Tech. Col. 7.30 p.m. Feb. llth.—R.Ae.S. Belfast; " Electrics in Aircraft," Mr. Woodford. Feb. 15th.—Pathfinder Association; Grand Ball, Dorchester Hotel.
Sign up to
Flight Digital Magazine
Flight Print Magazine
Airline Business Magazine
E-newsletters
RSS
Events
