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Aviation History
1947
1947 - 1728.PDF
FLIGHT OCTOBER mercially uneconomical types of aircraft. The period during which this has been and will be necessary could have been shortened if the various Government depart- ments could have made up their minds more quickly, and refrained from changing them afterwards. Decision WantedT HERE is one particular aircraft type in a different category the fate of which is at present uncertain, and the adoption of which would confer very great benefits. We refer to the Airspeed Ambassador. Orders for two prototypes were placed by the Ministry of Supply, but so far no decision seems to have been taken concerning quantity production. Obviously, the firm itself cannot be expected to finance this. Nobody will blame the Coiporation most directly concerned if, in all honesty and despite their consider- able enthusiasm for the aircraft as an aircraft, it is de- cided that this quite outstanding British civil transport cannot conveniently be fitted into any plan for the future. In these days, when the Corporations are being almost daily bludgeoned by the Press for the fact that they are out of pocket, not one of the three can be expected to back any particular aircraft merely for the sake of the country's general prestige and export trade. All we can do is to hope that the decision is a favourable one. For the Ambassador is undoubtedly an aircraft which, if put into production and allowed to develop, would not only increase our prestige but also our busi- ness abroad. The interest shown by oversea operators in this aircraft has been very considerable—but these operators can hardly be expected to trust their future to an aircraft which does not have full backing in its country of origin. Judging from the tone of the confidential test bulle- C O N T E NT S Outlook ....... A View of France ...... American Newsletter - - The Flying Boat - - - . . Here and There - - - - Aviation Equipment at Radiolympia Offensive Air Support Automatic Control - • - -' Instructing in India ..... Civil Aviation News - Correspondence --.•-.- Service Aviation Forthcoming Eve ts, page 426 401 403 407 403 410 412 414 4IS 419 - . 421 426 427 tins which are being issued by its makers to a small circle of operators and others, the Ambassador is an unusually good aircraft. No doubt there are a few minor snags to be overcome, but,its fundamental charac- teristics are apparently as sound as might have bsen expected from a designer with Mr. Hagg's background of successful experience. 'Indeed, a well-known and unbiased technician, after a trip in the prototype, is reputed to have delivered himself of the opinion that no other prototype in his long experience had shown so many good characteristics at such an early stage. It would seem that we have a winner in the Ambassa- dor ; surely we cannot permit it to disappear after the very great promise of development possibilities shown by the first prototype. If we do, there is quite a possi- bility that in a few years, when the Ambassador is dead, operators will discover that they badly want aircraft of this class. They will then probably have to go to America for Martin 2-O-2S or Consolidated 240s. :. V MOVING SCENES : The 177ft long fuselage and centre section of the Bristol 167 being moved from the hangar in which they built to the big new assembly hall ; this has an area of nearly eight acres. The diagram inset shows the small clearances available. The tailplane is less than 2ft 6in from the wall, and at a later stage the nose had a maximum clearance of only I ft 3in.
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