FlightGlobal.com
Home
Premium
Archive
Video
Images
Forum
Atlas
Blogs
Jobs
Shop
RSS
Email Newsletters
You are in:
Home
Aviation History
1949
1949 - 0099.PDF
JANUARY 2OTH, 1949 FLIGHT Derby Remembers rooms, the W.A.A.F. and all the others who had shared in the task. Nor did he forget the inter-service co-operation which had contributed so much. A special tribute was due to the workers of Rolls-Royce, many of whom had worked 80 hours a week or more in order to give the R.A.F. the Merlin engines it needed. Production was stepped up from 2,000 in 1939 to 7,000 in 1940. For that, much was owed to Mr. Hives, who was a frequent caller at the Ministry of Aircraft Production and Air Ministry, and who was in the full confidence of the Air Council. His drive and imagination were symbolic of the whole British aircraft industry. Our forebears, Sir Archibald continued, were wise in learning the lessons of Trafalgar. They built up a strong Navy which remained unchallenged for a hundred years. We of our generation must see to it that we learnt the lessons of the Battle of Britain. Our Air Force, in con- junction with America's, must be powerful enough to form a buttress which will convince the most cynical of hard- boiled dictators of the folly of waging war. --.- : A Victory still to be Won After lunch the window was unveiled by Lord Tedder, who said that perhaps he had some little qualification for that honour in that at the period he had something to do with the technicians who produced the material used by the pilots. One of the real secrets of the victory had been due to the wonderful team spirit, and the mutual faith and understanding, which extended all the way from drawing board and factory to the pilot's cockpit. In that fact lay our hope and our lesson for the future. In the Battle of Britain these chaps had done their best. He wondered if we were doing all that was in us for the faith, belief and ideals for which they fought. The Battle of Britain was a victory, but not the ultimate vic- tory. Nor were those of El Alamein, Normandy, nor even Germany. That victory still had to be won. We prayed that it might be won without recourse to arms, but be that as it may, we should only achieve it by displaying the spirit which animated these men in 1940. " May we Lord Tedder inspects the Rolls-Royce guard of honour, formed by members of the A.T.C. prove equally worthy of our task," Lord Tedder concluded, " and may we achieve the impossible as they achieved it." The window was dedicated by The Rt. Rev. the Lord Bishop of Derby, who was assisted by The Rt. Rev. the Provost of Derby, and by the Vicar of St. Bartholomew's, Nightingale Road, Derby. The solemn ceremony concluded with the singing of the hymn "O God, our Help in Ages Past," with the Benediction, and with the singing of the National Anthem. After the ceremony many of the guests accepted the invitation to inspect some of the work going on in the Nightingale Road works, the foundries, and the Sinfin establishment. At tea many old friends talked shop or revived memories, and then the special train took them back to London. The day had been a memorable one, and the organization was perfect. SKYKNIGHT , THE new Douglas XF3D night-and-all-weather jet fighter,named as above, was designed primarily as a deck- landing machine for the U.S. Navy, but reports suggest thatits performance on test has proved so satisfactory that the U.S. Air Force is showing interest. A claim that the Skyknightis the most versatile jet aircraft yet to fly seems well sub- stantiated. Its long range and high speed render it suitablenot only for fighting, but for attack (with bombs, guns or R.P.s), for reconnaissance, and even for patrol. In the lastconnection the possibility of flying economically on only one of the two Westinghouse axial-flow turbojets should provevaluable. Among the novelties of the design is a chute, or slide,which opens on the underside of the fuselage and permits the crew of two (seated side-by-side, Mosquito fashion) tomake their exit in safety at high speed. At lower speed, a normal bale-out would be preferred. Another point of interest is the special system of cockpitlighting, claimed to prevent glare and ensure constant lighting of all gauges and dials. Letters and numbers areetched in transparent lucite on instrument panels and '' con- soles " and are illuminated from behind with a red light.Failure of a bulb will not mean the loss of an instrument as the remaining lights will continue to illuminate all panels. The cockpit is pressurized, and has air-cooling and heatingsystems. Hydraulically operated aerodynamic braking sur- faces are fitted to the fuselage, just forward of the tail, per-mitting rapid deceleration for deck landings, enhancing combat manoeuvrability, and limiting diving speed.The Skyknight is a remarkably compact machine with a mid-set, square-tipped wing. Its power units are mountedlow on the sides of the fuselage beneath the wing, in which position they should be readily accessible for maintenance.Though slower than the larger and more powerful Northrop XF-89 night fighter, to be supplied in quantity to the U.S.A.F.,the Skyknight •seeni'* assured of a successful career. B II FORTHCOMING EVENTS Jan. 22nd.—Helicopter Association of Gt. Britain : " Helicopter Opera- tions—Some Problems and Prospects," N. E. Rowe, C.B.E. Jan. 22nd.—Air Scout Movement : Exhibition at Holloway Baptist Church. Jan 26th.—R.Ae.S. (Preston) : " Instrumentation in Flight Testing." Miss B. M. Rimmer, A.F.R.Ae.S Jan. 26th.—R.Ae.S. (Birmingham) Branch, Presidential Address, Dr. S. C. Redshaw, F.R.Ae.S. Jan. 27th.—RoyaJ Aeronautical Society : " Radar as an Aid to the Study of the Atmosphere," Dr. F. E. Jones, M.B.E., B.Sc, A.M.I.E.E. Jan. 27th.—R.Ae.S. (Manchester) "Flight Testing of Civil Aircraft," P. A. Hufton, M.Sc. Jan. 28th.—R.Ae.S. (Weybridge) : Annual Dance. Jan. 28th.—London Aeroplane Club : Banquet and Ball. Jan. 29th.—Society of Licensed Aircraft Engineers South Eastern Area Lecture. " Rolls-Royce Power Units," W. P. Calvert, A.F.R.Ae.S. Manson House, 26, Portland Place, London, W.I, at 3 p.m. Feb. 1st.—R.Ae.S. (Belfast): "The Propeller Turbine Engine," F' M. Owner, M.Sc., F.R.Ae.S., M.S.A.E. Feb. 2nd.—Royal United Services Institution : " Meteorology in War," Sir Nelson King-Johnson. Feb. 2nd.—R.Ae.S. (Luton), Discussion Evening. Feb. 3rd'.—R.Ae.S. (Graduates' and Students' Section) " Notes on Fighter Development 1936-1948," Jeffrey K. Quill, O.B.E., A.F.C. Feb. 3rd—R.Ae.S. (Isle of Wight) " The Probable Role and Influence of Aircraft in Future Warfare," Air Marshal Sir Robert Saundby, K.B.E., C.B., M.C., D.F.C., A.F.C. Feb. 5th.—Air Scout Movement : Exhibition at Holloway Baptist Church. Feb. 7th.—R.Ae.S. (Derby) "Pictures in the Air," C. E. Brown, F.I.B.P.. A.R.P.S. Feb 9th.—R.Ae.S. (Leicester) "Airscrews," E. Danvers. Feb. 9th.—R.Ae.S. (Southampton) " Radio Aids," F. R. Wills. Feb. 9th.—Royal United Services Institution : "Land/Air Warfare," Air Vice-Marshel W. L. Dawson, C.B., C.B.E. Feb. 9th.—R.Ae.S. (Weybridge) : " Civil Air Transport," P. G. Masefield, M.A., F.R.Ae.S. Feb. IOth.—Royal Aeronautical Society : The Second Louis Bleriot Lecture: " French Practical Aerodynamic Methods," Monsieur Brocard and Monsieur Hussenot. Feb. I Ith.—R.Ae.S. (Portsmouth) Short Papers by members of the Branch. Feb. I Ith.—Guild of Air Pilots and Navigators, and Air League of the British Empire : Ball in aid of the Guild's Benevolent Fund and the Air League's Young Pilots' Fund. Feb. 12th.—Rugby Football Twickenham, Royal Navy versus Royal Air Force.
Sign up to
Flight Digital Magazine
Flight Print Magazine
Airline Business Magazine
E-newsletters
RSS
Events
