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Aviation History
1947
1947 - 1110.PDF
FLIGHT JULY IOTH, 1947 Braving it at Blackpool (Top left) Part of the Royal Navy's static show, with the Barracuda amghy stowage and A.S./reJji/iJJment (Top right) A faithful recon- struction of a normal R.A.F. dispensary and treatment room. (Bottom left) An A.A. gun team on the R.A.F. Regiment stand demon- strate how to get a Bofors into action in a hurry. (Bottom right) Now retired from record breaking the Lancaster "Aries" is a major attraction in the R.A.F. hangar. display of recognition models is somewhat marred by careless-captioning, which many R.A.F. Apprentices, who have a stand to themselves nearby, would doubtless rectify if consulted. Anexceptionally fine show is put up by the R.A.F. Regiment. At a rehearsal we saw a Bofors gun team bring their gun intoaction in 57 seconds. They are bound to attract crowds. The radar and Link Trainer exhibits will cater admirablyfor the more technically minded visitors, as will the night vision trainer, with a gunner, wearing dark glasses, dealing with amodel Do 217; but everyone, particularly mothers, will fleck to sec specimens of the new R.A.F. living quarters, includingkitchen, bathroom and living room. Their interest in the Ser- vice thus aroused, they may pass along and discover that thesymbols " ASR " have a different significance from " A.T.C." ' Evidently the Royal Navy is out to appeal not so muchby polish and elaboration as by a presentation of workaday items' which can be operated and explained in *eal intimacy.A party of Naval airwomen, for instance, can be seen patch- ing a wing, and at certain time? of the day the dinghy lidcan be blown off a section of a Barracuda fuselage, complete with immersion switch. Taking full advantage of theirdifference from other Services, the Navy further shows an engine servicing unit as used on aircraft carriers, their ownA.S.R. gear, and positively the last Swordfish. Accentuating safety, the Ministry of Civil Aviation standis basically an exposition of the workings of the service pro- vided by the M.C.A. at all state-owned airports. In a modelcontrol tower air traffic control officers show how they plot and control aircraft and avoid collisions. To the question "What is Gee? " B.E.A. provide a well-illustrated answer on their modernistic stand. They also dis- pense information about their routes as, of course, doB.O.A.C.situated nearby. For those who wish to see how a really big airliner of the future will be arranged and equipped there isthe unique transparent model of the Brabazon I. A guide to what the immediate future offers is provided by a verylarge model of the Tudor II fuselage. There is no S.B.A.C. stand, but several manufacturers haveweighed in with models and photographs. Saunders-Roe show a really beautiful series of flying-boat models, culminating inthe SR45 and including an unfamiliar project—the four- engined R.2/33. Fairey, Blackburn, Gloster, Rolls-Royce andMiles also show the flag, and there is a rotating model of a Portsmouth Aerocar, impressively large considering the sizeof the original. A drawing shows the Christie-Tyler interior proposed for the SAABgo " Scandia " twin-engined transport.Loxham's Flying Services, the Lancashire Aircraft Corporation and Skytravel, who operate from Squires Gate, are well repre-sented, and Dunlop, B.T.H., and Iliffe and Sons Ltd. illus- trate their renowned products in becoming stvle. The Warden Aviation Company have a good pitch on whichto display their Bleriot monoplane. (This wonderful relic was bought second-hand by a Bedford carriage proprietor, wascrashed in 1912, stored in his loft, and discovered and rebuilt by the late Mr. R. O. Shuttleworth.) Bridging the flying and static displays is an aircraft parkcontaining, inter alia, a Lancaster, two "Halifaxes, a Mosquito 30, a Wellington, two Spitfires, a Lincoln, a Viking, and aJui88, an Me2G2 night fighter and a Me 163. Some of these types are available for close internal inspection, or even, weunderstand, for some discreet climbing, waggling and prod- ding, but these facilities certainly do not apply to theimmaculate Transport Command Viking. Even this comprehensive collection does not complete theattractions. The W.A.A.F. Central Voluntary Band demon- strates marching and counter-marching as part of a ceremonialdrill display (they are to march daily through the town), physical training displays are put on by the R.A.F. and voluntary W.A.A.F. teams, and there are appealing demonstration- by police dogs of the R.A.F. Dog School and Breeding Estab-lishment at Staverton. Music, ceremonial and otherwise, is provided by the R.A.F. No. 2 Regional Band and the Bandof the R.A.F. Medical Depot. Detachments of the A.T.C., Sea Cadets and members of the Women's Junior Air Corpsand Air Rangers do credit to their respective organizations. Finally, acknowledgment must be made of the work put inby the organizers, particularly Messrs. Eric Rylands and R V. Perfect, Major R. H. Mayo, Air Cdre. Sydney Smith theMayor and Deputy Mayor of Blackpool, and representatives of the Navy and Royal Air Force. W/C. Berry and others inthe control tower have worked wonders. The whole display, which, of course, has been organized jointly by the Air Leagueof the British Empire and the Blackpool Corporation does every one credit, and it is fitting that it should be staged onthe scene of the first flying meeting held—in 1909— under Aero Club regulations.
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