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Aviation History
1949
1949 - 1426.PDF
i go F L1C HI AUGUST I8IH, 1949 The First Air Display oi Science, and I was much impressed Jay the-confidence of this scientist and engineer that man's conquest of the lower zones of the air, and after^ that of the stratosphere, would in the onward match of science be followed by inter- planetary voyages. Well, though 40 years represent a short enough time in any scientific research, some remarkable things have, in fact, already been happening. Already we have obtained an " echo'' by radar from the moon. Already a two-step rocket has climbed 250 miles high. And in a year or so's time (experts who ought to know tell me) a pilotless rocket should have reached the moon's surface. In the meantime, I reckon myself lucky to have been, able to sit under that pylori'in France, away back in 1909, and watch the early pages of the world's aeronautical history being turned by the pioneers. ;.^t, • •-:^:w..< tt .1 ,-__. .vJ' •.. .••„'_» •„.- .-'-•.. .• ••,:•. The Rheims speed contest was won by Glen Curtiss, flying this .-• _ . • biptont, at a speed of 47 m.p.h. .»>; ^ri* •„ Nautical Aeronautics ''Perchance: A History of British Naval Aviation." By B. /.' H'urren. Nicholson and Watson. Price 10s. 6d. AS a Fleet Air Arm officer and an executive of the Fairey. Aviation Company, Cdr. Hurren has amassed a fund of nayalrair lore unique in scope and rich in'humour. ..On this he- has drawn for various of the books already standing to his credit, and it has now served him well in his chronicling of the history of British Naval Aviation from 1909 to 1945. His style is easy, and his arrangement of facts—which took him seven years to collect—is orderly. Only in technicalities does he appear to have admitted anomalies: his own Company's Fulmar, for instance, he credits with a top speed of "nearer 190 m.p.h." than the 257 m.p.h. quoted as the official speed; on the other hand, he over generously ascribes to the Sea Mosquito a speed of more than 400 m.p.h. and a reconnaissance range of 3,500 miles at 315 m.p.h. Such discrepancies can, however, easily be remedied in future editions, to which, by virtue of its reference value and " readability," the work fully deserves to run. • The spirit which pervaded the Fleet Air Arm in wartime and with which Naval Aviation to-day is still, we know, imbued, is well exemplified by Cdr. Hurren's reference to the period of intensive training put in hand early in the war. Among the host of- new regulations and controls, one was an immediate "clamp" on private flying. "At this time," he recalls, " there-were some 70 light aeroplane clubs in Britain and a few score of private owners of aircraft. In the clubs were experienced flying instructors—mostly ex-K.A.F. officers, but some civilians—who were not exactly received with open arms by the R.A.F. In."-fact, many of their offers of servicewere cold-shouldered. •-•:••• ..•'.. "Informal meetings thereupon took place-in t.he Royal AeroClub, and in quick time the Secretary, Lieutenant Commander Harold Perrin, approached the Admiralty with an offer of abody of experienced pilots. -The offer was snapped up eagerly and almost overnight the R-.N.V.R. (A) Branch was estab-lished with a nucleus of ex-club instructors and private aero- plane owners and flyers.........: -. " . " The Admiralty was not over-strict in its demands. Oneof the newly appointed officers who was later to render excep- tional service, had had precisely 3 hours 5 minutes flying onlight aircraft—a total entered by custom in his log book as '3.05 hours.' On completing the application form, this officereffected a Nelson touch by omitting the point—with the result that this ' experienced ' officer of 305 hours' flying time wasimmediately despatched to Lee-on-Solent for a refreslier course!" ._•-.- As Lord Nelson himself put it, " We are few, but We are the right sort." .- : ™~._,..'.-.•- "• Publications Received ' " r Directory of British Rubber Manufacturers and Products,(export-trade directory in English, French and Spanish, for free distribution to .buyers abroad). Federation of BritishRubber Manufacturers' Associations, 43, Bedford Square', London, W.C.I. Aircraft, by Douglas Palmer and A. C. Penney (elementarytext-book for young readers). Price 3s, Edward Arnold and Co., 41, Maddox Street, London, W.i. ,._-•.. .-_' - -_ • V - v1. ... . FOR POLISH SPORT T IGHT aircraft now serving in Poland are mainly surplus -«-* Piper Cubs and Soviet P0-2 biplanes, though some of the newer Zak 1. Zak 2, Zak 4 and Zucha single-engine mono- planes are now on register. The Polish Air Lines, Polskie Linje Lotnicz, own a large fleet of ex-Soviet LI-2S, plus some Douglas C-47S, French-built Languedocs and Cessna Bobcats, while Air Forc.e equipment includes Yak-9 fighters, Pe-2 and 11-2 bombers. Soviet UT2 and Polish Junak trainers. (The Junak is*"a cabin monoplane with an Mil engine.) / An artist's impression of the Polish CSS-11 mono- plant. The latest design by Poland's Centralize Studiuw Samololow is a two-seat low-wing monoplane—the CSS-11—available in two versions, one a touret, the other aerobatic. Both are powered by a single Walter Minor 6-III engine of 160 h.p. Dimensions are: span 34.7ft, length 24.6ft, height 7ft. Lod ings and performance are as given in the next column; - . ". ••--•..'.•",- Tourer Aerobatic Weight loaded 2,178 lb 1,870 lbCruising speed 106 m.p.h 111 m.p.h. ' Maximum speed 140 m.p.h. 147.7 m.p.h.Landing speed 53.2 m.p.h. 50.(1 m.p.U. Ceiling 21,000ft 24,000ftRange at 60 per cent power '. 676 miles 617 miles Length of run from start to 65ft .. 425 yd 370 yd STANDARDIZATION ^A T the 48th Annual General Meeting of the British Standards Institution on July 27th, the President (the- Rt. Hon. Lord McGowan, K.B.E.) referred to the greatly increased interest during the past year both by industry and the Government in the extension of voluntary standardization on a national basis. The investigations by the Committee for standardization of engineering products set up by the Ministry of Supply under the chairmanship of Sir Ernest Lemon have substantiated the view, long held by British industry, that the principles under which the B S.I. works are effective and can be extended. The Anglo-American Productivity Council has recently stressed the importance of standardization and Lord McGowan submitted that there is probably no more effective means of increasing productivity. Another significant development during the past year had been the co-operation of the great nationalized industries with the B.S.T. and the increase in the collaboration amongst large industrial users with a view to assisting makers to reduce the number of types and sizes. Mr. Roger Duncalfe, the Chairman of the Institution, said that the Government and industry have jointly agreed that industrial standardization should be effected through the B'SI- as the national standards body. --....• ' B 16
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