FlightGlobal.com
Home
Premium
Archive
Video
Images
Forum
Atlas
Blogs
Jobs
Shop
RSS
Email Newsletters
You are in:
Home
Aviation History
1949
1949 - 0546.PDF
35O FLIGHT MARCH 24TH, 1949 THE TURKISH AIR LEAGUE Training and Constructional ActivUies : Tailless Glider Among Original Designs DURING recent years the Turkish Air Force hasreceived cons.derable assistance from the U.S.A. andGreat Britain and now constitutes one* of-the most powerful air forces in the Balkans. The rapid advance of Communism among her neighbours has not as yet afiected Turkey to any .noticeable degree -and the '' westernizing policy of the «rlHsh Government makes Turkey one of the chief factors in the balance of power in this area. Little known features of Turkish aviation are, the activi- ties of the Turk Hava Kurumu, or Turkish Air League, and its aircraft factory near Ankara. The movement, which was founded in 1925, is a semi-official organization designed to promote and foster the growth of '' air-mindedness in Turkey. Its considerable income is derived principally from lotteries (the League runs the only authorized lottery in Turkey) and a tax on all salaries and wages; sections and sub-sections exist in all major Turkish towns and villages. There is close collaboration with the Air Force, and the high standard of Turkish aircrews and ground personnel is due in no small part to the League's activities. An offshoot of the Air League, the Tiirkkusu (Turkish Bird) Association was formed in 1935 for the purpose of building up a reserve of pilots and ground crews for the Air Force, and operates a number of schools for initial training on gliders and advanced training on powered air- craft. The founding of a domestic aircraft industry has been a constant aim of the Air League since its inception, and it played an important part in the opening of the first Turkish aircraft factory at Kaisarieh .in 1927, which was a branch of the German Junkers concern. Owing to a dis- agreement between the Turkish Government and Junkers, the factory was shut down in 1928 but later reopened under Government supervision and, until 1940, built various types of foreign military aircraft under licence. It is now used for the maintenance and repair of Air Force equipment. In 1941 the Air League established its own factory near For aerodynamic research: the tailless T.H.K. 13 glider. The T.H.K. 3 with a Nuri Demirag trainer in the background. Ankara, the T.H.K. Ucak Fabrikasi', the activities of which now include the maintenance of aircraft for the Turkish State Airlines, the Air Force and the Air League, aero engine overhaul, flight research, and the manufacture of aircraft of its own design and other types under licence. Covering an area of some 150,000 square feet, T.H.K. employs a total of 1,200 persons under the directorship of Ing. Dip. Selahattin Beler. At present two aircraft are in series production, the Miles Magister for both the Air League schools- and the Air Force, and small numbers of the T.H.K.5A twin-engined six-seat light transport. Various prototypes are under construction and the factory produces four original types of gliders and sailplanes. Dakotas are being converted into 21-seat airliners for the State Airlines and overhaul and repair work is conducted on such types as the Dominie and Oxford, and the D.H. Gipsy Major, Armstrong Siddeley Cheetah and Pratt & Whitney Twin-Wasp engines. A Magister for Spraying Magisters have been built under licence from the late Miles Aircraft, Limited, for some years past, and in 1946, as a result of a request from the Turkish Ministry of Hygiene, T.H.K. produced a special variant of the Magis- ter for spraying D.D.T. to assist in combating malaria. This has the front seat faired over and is fitted with an atomiser and pulverisers, and a tank containing insecti- cide, which is pumped through a long pipe under the fuselage. The first original product was the T.H.K.2 single-seat aerobatic train«r (Gipsy Major), of wooden construction, which has a retractable undercarriage turning backwards through 90 deg. There are two versions of the League's first twin-engined T.H.K.S AND T.H.K.2 DATA T.H.K.2 T.H.K.S Dimensions Span 26ft 3in Length 23ft Height ... ... ... 7ft lin Weights Weight empty l,O781b Weight loaded l,4S2lb Performance Max. speed ... ... 164 m.p.h. Cruising speed ... ... ... ... ... ... 136 m.p.h. Landing speed . . 59 m.p.h. Initial rate of climb ... ... 1,710 ft/mi n Range 435 miles Service ceiling 19,685ft 48ft 32ft 9in 9ft Sin 2,9431b 4,2551b 137 m.p.h. 124 m.p.h. 74.5 m.p.*. 404 miles 13,123ft B 18
Sign up to
Flight Digital Magazine
Flight Print Magazine
Airline Business Magazine
E-newsletters
RSS
Events
