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Aviation History
1948
1948 - 0937.PDF
JUNE 24TH, 1948 P.108 THE AIR FLIGHT y 679' Notes on a Brief Flight in Boulton Paul's Mercury- engined Balliol Prototype By Wing Cdr. Maurice A. Smith, D.F.C. MANY visitors to Radlett last year willrecall the outstanding demonstration ofthe Boulton Paul P. 108 trainer—a •r - credit to the manufacturers and to their chief test pilot, Mr. Lindsay Neale. Last week 1 • was able to put the aircraft through its paces " at Wolverhampton, in the company of Mr. "* Peter Tisshaw, who has been with the com • pany about 12 months and is at present doing . :'. a lion's share of all the testing. Mr. Lindsay Neale hopes to be declared fit for flying agaii; some time next month. Having flown the P.108, I now look forward even more to hand ling the Mamba-powered Balliol, which should have all the P.io8's sweetness of control, to- gether with added power,.. reduced noise and • ~ engine vibration, and improved forward view. No particular interest attaches to the instru- ments and control layout of this one-off proto- type, but the cockpit itself, which will be reproduced in the Balliols, is spacious and '- comfortable. At present a stick with spade grip ' is fitted on the port side and spectacle wheel ; on the starboard. The controls are interchangeable, and this arrangement, incidentally, has set quite a problem ; in regard to weight of controls intended for use with one or two hands respectively. A very fair compromise seems '. to have been achieved. ;• The Mercury engine has been made to pick up on a slightly modified Mamba mounting, and is so positioned as to give a similar load distribution. As a result it is ' well forward of the natural position for such a radial unit, and the pilot's view is somewhat restricted on the .^.ground by comparison with the Balliol. • Ground handling of the aircraft is quite fascinating. The very wide track makes for stability, and a.» steerable • tail wheel gives exceptional directional control. For a quick turn-about, a touch on the powerful pneumatically con- trolled brakes, with rudder applied, causes the stopslimit- ".. ing angular movement of the tailwheel to be over-ridden, k Harvard fashion, and the aircraft will, if necessary, whip The contro/s on the P.I08 are very pleasing and manoeuvrable. the aircraft is highly round on the spot. On centralizing the rudder again the tailwheel limit stops re-engage. Although the P. 108 appears to have a lot of weight forward, brakes can be applied fiercely on the landing run or when taxying fast, without the tail lifting, and a full-throttle run-up can be made safely against the brakes without fear of the tail rising. I admit that Mr. Tisshaw's demonstration of the terrific braking power on tarmac both impressed and alarmed me. Control on out-of-wind landings is very good. While on the ground I also tried out the power-operated sliding canopy which seems most efficient and is very rapid in action. Boulton-Paul's turret experience came in use- ful when the canopy and its power mechanism were designed.' Before take-off a conscientious check was made, which in details associated with the old Mercury such as hand- operated gills, mixture controls, boost over-rides, etc., took me back several years. Rudder trim was set three to port, elevators and ailerons at neutral. The pneumatically- operated flaps have a three- position quadrant, the gate being for take-off, but the lever can also remain in any intermediate position, thus permitting the pilot to select any desired angle. On the 800 or so h.p. of the Mercury 25, the take-off of the P. 108 is very satisfactory. The change of attitude as the tail lifts is less than one • Take-off from the Roulton-Paul field at Wolverhampton.
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