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Aviation History
1950
1950 - 1820.PDF
FLIGHT, 28 September 1950 3*3 CIVIL AVIATION NEWS PANAM-ORAMA : A Stratocruiser of the P.A.W.A. fleet, on a non-scheduled flight, gives its passengers an unusually close glimpse of the Thames flowing through the heart of London. K.L.M.'s CONVAIRLINERS BY incorporating certain modifications, notably thestrengthening of the main and rear wing spars and the nosewheel assembly, K.L.M. is seeking to increase the all-upweight of its 12 Convairliners from 40,5001b to 41,7901b in readiness for increased European traffic next summer. Begin-ning at once, the work is being undertaken by the company's own technical division and will reach its peak in February.It is hoped to complete the conversion programme by next May. K. L. M.'s Convairliners should be the first in Europe to flyat the new weight, and will be an important addition to the revenue-earning capacity of the company's medium- and short-haul routes. The heavier aircraft will be used chiefly on services to London, Glasgow, Manchester and Dublin. I.A.T.A. MEDICAL COMMITTEE '"PHE Director-General of I.A.T.A. has announced that wheni- the Association holds its annual assembly next month in San Francisco, it will appoint a permanent Medical Committee.I.A.T.A.'s member airlines have accordingly been requested to nominate their best qualified medical advisers to act as astanding committee to deal with medical problems of commer- cial flying. The group is scheduled to hold its first meeting in Europe orthe Middle East next January. Among the topics which will be discussed are those relating to the measurement of aircrewfatigue, flight-time limitations for crews, standards for the carriage of sick passengers, the disinsecticization of aircraft,and measures to guard against decompression in the event of pressurized-cabin failures. AIR-TRAFFIC SIMULATOR AN interesting item of test equipment, which might bedescribed as an air-traffic simulator, has been developed by the Sydney (New South Wales) Radio Physics Laboratory.It is intended primarily to test multi-track radio range instal- lations and is now in use at the Civil Aviation Division's•> training school in Melbourne. By its use, area and airfield controllers can learn to directand handle a number of aircraft converging on airfields and then feed them into the airfield circuit. Additional procedureswhich may be practised include stacking, passing clearances to other aircraft and meeting sudden emergencies. The equipment consists of a periscope, coupled to a smallprojector to throw a white dot of light upon a screen on which is already projected a plan of an airfield and its surroundingcountryside. Below the periscope is a smaller-scale drawing of the same area, with a smaller point of light reflected on it.This dot represents the aircraft, whirh the operator "pilots" as directed on R/T by the "tower controller." The drivingmotor can be synchronized to the exact speed of an aircraft, which is flown along the recognized lines of approach, its trackbeing depicted by the moving dot on the larger screen. STRATOCRUISER LAWSUIT \ N unusual lawsuit is being brought by Northwest Airlinesagainst the Boeing Airplane Company. It claims damages amounting to nearly ^9,000,000 for an alleged breach of con-tract relating to the purchase of ten Stratocruisers. The main claim is for loss of the use of the aircraft because of delay indelivery, but smaller claims are also being made concerning what are said to have been unduly high charges for spare partsand high maintenance costs. The original order, negotiated in March, 1946, amounted tosome £6,780,000. Although delivery should have commenced in January, 1947, and should have been completed by Augustof that year, none of the aircraft was actually delivered until June, 1949. The airline was therefore obliged to continue usingDC-4S on a route on which a competitor was operating DC-6s. The Boeing Company has issued a statement to the effect thatthe delays were due to causes beyond its control and were allowed for in the contract. It is claimed that the aircraft con-formed in all respects to the guaranteed specifications contained in the contracts and that prices paid for spare parts werereasonable. PRIVATE PILOT PRIVILEGES TNCLUDED in the I.C.A.O. Air Navigation Commission's -*- 85th report to the Council were recommendations for six additional amendments to Annex 1; they have subsequently been adopted by the Council and will, therefore, come into ; force on a date yet to be determined. The most important amendment (No. 126) deals .with the privileges of a private pilot's licence. Under the present wording of the regulations a private pilot is permitted to carry out certain types of flying, provided that he receives no remuneration. This, however, permits an operator to receive payment for passengers flown by a private pilot and there is no contravention of the privilege requirements, pro- vided that the pilot himself is not paid for his flying. The passenger, therefore, is not safeguarded, since he may be pay- ing for the privilege of being flown by a pilot who has inadequate qualifications and experience. The effect of Amendment No. 126 is to extend the scope of the non-remuneration provision. When it takes effect a private pilot will not only be prevented from receiving pay- ment himself, but will also not be permitted to fly aircraft which art- operated for remuneration. The opinion was expressed, during the Council's discussion, that this provision should apply only to the operation of the aircraft and not to the pilot himself. Again, this would have permitted a private pilot to receive payment for such work as test piloting, ferrying and flying as " chauffeur" pilot. The Council therefore decided that the provision should con- tinue to apply to the pilot himself and that it should also be extended to the operation of the aircraft. A further amendment dealt with the circumstances under
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