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Aviation History
1949
1949 - 0330.PDF
•214 FLIGHT FEBRUARY 24TH, 1949 A Call on Canadair ..... pany, we shaved gorily in icy water and quickly re-embarked. Lightened of her transatlantic fuel load, Bedford soared steeply out over the wilderness to meet the St. Lawrence near Seven Islands. She clipped along to Montreal on max. continuous cruising power at some 270 m.p.h., but darkness had long since fallen when Captain Heron set us down at Dorval about ten hours behind schedule. The warmth of Canadair hospitality quickly obliterated the less pleasant im- pressions of our journey. Early next morning we were out at Cartierville, where the Canadair plants are located, to meet Mr. H. Oliver West (president of the company), T. J. Emmert (vice-president), R. A. Neale (vice-presi- dent, manufacturing), K. G. Smith (chief project engineer), and J. G. Barker (comptroller). This meeting served to acquaint us with, or remind us of, certain facts concerning the production of the B.O.A.C. Canadairs, and in view of their significance these will be set down in advance of personal impressions. It was startling, I must confess, to be reminded that the first letter of intent covering the construction of Canadair Fours was signed as recently as July 24th last year. Thereupon, Canadair opened negotiations for definitive contracts, and such specification changes as might be required. The "specs." were completed on September 30th and the contracts signed, providing for delivery of the first aircraft in the eighth month from September 30th—that is, by May 30th this year. The first five of twenty-six Canadairs (twenty-two for B.O.A.C.; four for Canadian Pacific Airlines) are now on the final assembly line, and major sub-assemblies are well ahead of time estimates. B.O.A.C. Number I—started only 97 normal working days before our visit—has its Merlins installed, and is expected to fly before the end of February, and there is good reason to believe that this machine will be delivered to England many weeks ahead of contract. The order should be completed several months in advance of requirements and it is hoped at Canadair that this per- formance will attract additional orders. These, obviously, must soon be placed if the production flow is not to be inter- rupted, and the company has sales representatives in many parts of the world. Talks have already taken place in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Italy. Such is the production position that as many as twenty additional "Fours" are confidently offered by Canadair for delivery this year. In the Shops So that we might see for ourselves how the line stands, Mr. West and Mr. Emmert conducted us to the factory. Here, sure enough, was No. 1, with its four Merlin 6265 in place and cowled, and de-icer and undercarriage tests under way. Handsome is, we minded, as handsome does, and the performance of the Canadair Four on the Empire route is yet to be proved; but there is no question that this is one of the best-looking of large transport aircraft. When we ourselves saw it, No. 1 was at Station 2, the first position on the line being occupied by an unpressurized North Star of the R.C.A.F—one of 20 supplied—in for overhaul. Close on the tail of No. 1, the second machine was seen to be far advanced, though without engines; No. 3 was like- wise engineless and awaited outer mainplanes; No. 4 was wanting its nose; and Nos. 5, 6 and 7 we're sufficiently advanced to be recognizable. Having ascended to the interior of No. 1, we saw furnish- ing and equipping to be well under way. It was explained, however, that the seats installed were not those for B.O.A.C., the Corporation having selected a special As "B.O.A.C. Number 5" takes form on the final assembly line, its nose section, on the end of its own line, is seen to be ready for it Vickers-Armstrongs type of seat, the first set of which was awaited. There are 24 seats in the forward cabin and 16 aft. No resting quarters are provided for the crew, as on the North Stars of Trans-Canada Air Lines, and there are cer- tain other respects in which the B.O.A.C. layout differs from those for T.C.A. and C.P.A. Men's and women's dressing rooms are forward, and in place of a ladies' powder room usually found at the extreme rear end of the second com- partment there is a cosy little lounge with seats arranged in an arc, following the curvature of the dished pressure bulkhead, and furnished with a detachable table. Of the seats, two only are stressed for take-off and landing, and these will be occupied at the beginning and end of a flight by the steward and stewardess. The rear lounge (which one predicts will be especially popular with those who seek solace on long journeys in a drink and a pack of cards) is upholstered in dark blue, as will be the chairs in the main cabins. The secondary colour is a blending creamy blue and the general scheme follows that adopted for B.O.A.C.'s Stratocruisers. Extensive use is made of Flexwood metal- wood-veneer bonded sheet for bulkheads and lounge panels. Some minor rearrangement of the pilots' cockpit was a B.O.A.C. requirement; engine instruments have been re- grouped; torquemeter and power meters are fitted, and the pedestal adapted for control of the braking airscrews, with which the Merlin 626-1 engines of the B.O.A.C. machines are fitted. When the throttles are closed beyond the neutral position, the pitch reverses for braking, and means are pro- vided to prevent selection of reverse pitch until weight is on either the nose wheel or qne of the main twin-wheel assemblies.. A folding seat is provided in the cockpit for a supernumerary crew member or observer. The first few of the B.O.A.C. aircraft will be delivered with the present exhaust system, i.e., Canadair Lincoln-type manifolds on the inboard bank of each engine and Rolls- Royce stubs on the outer banks. Somewhere along the production line the new Rolls-Royce cross-over system will be introduced Total enclosure within the cowling may confer some slight aerodynamic advantage. For take-off the cross-over pipes, which carry the exhaust of the inboard cylinder banks across the engines to exhaust on the out- board side, will be by-passed. Cruising, with the cross-over system in operation, the B.O.A.C. Canadairs should be appreciably quieter than present machines of the type, and the extra weight will be more than compensated by new aluminium radiators. The Merlin 626 as supplied for B.O.A.C. has 0.42: 1
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