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Aviation History
1950
1950 - 2155.PDF
566 FLIGHT, 14 December 1950 E.P.T.S. FAREWELLS Graduation of No. 9 Course at Farnborough ^Top Jlotours for R.C.A.F. (Left) f/L. G. A. Heck, R.C.A.F., receives the McKenna Trophy from A.V-M. J. N. Boothman, Controller of Supplies (Air). Next to them are G C. A. E. Clouston, the Commandant (with "the Headmaster's titfer "), A.V-M. T. C. Traill, Director-General of Personnel II. (Right) The runner-up, F/L W. J. P. Straker, R.A.F., receives his prize from A.V-M. Boothman, while Rear-Admiral E. M. C. Abel-Smith, f/L Heck (bock to camera) and S/L Martin, President, look on. ALTHOUGH in essence a serious and even sad occasionfor both the staff and students of the Empire Test Pilots'^ School, this year's annual dinner and presentation of the McKenna Trophy, held last Thursday at the School's Farn-borough headquarters, lacked nothing of their usual happy informality The course is now dispersed and, in addition, several mem-bers of the staff who have completed their tours of duty have been posted. For the British contingent, however, it does notmean a complete parting of the ways, for one or two are to remain at Farnborough while the majority are posted to Bos-combe Down. Members of the American and Canadian Air Forces and Navies were among those who graduated. No. 9 course has achieved a high standard, and top honoursgo to Canada, F/L. G. A. Heck, R.C.A.F., having gained first place in the final passing-out results with 85 per cent. Hardbehind him—within 1 per cent, in fact—was F/L. W. J. P. Straker, R.A.F., and only i per cent below him were F/L. J. R.Saunders, R.A.F., and Lt. F. C. Turner, U.S.N., who tied for third place with 84 per centA number of senior Naval and Air Force officers were among the guests, including A.V-M. T. C. Traill, C.B., O.B.E., D.F.C.,Director-General of Personnel II, but there were no formal speeches after the dinner, at which S/L. "Dickie" Martin,D.F.C. (staff instructor and surely the epitome of test-pilot keenness) presided. The Commandant, G/C. A. E. Clouston, D.S.O., D.F.C.,A.F.C., welcomed the guests and offered congratulations and good wishes to the Course. He also had a humorous word tosay to departing staff members as he presented each with a gift from colleagues and students and thanked them for theirexcellent work. The five were Cdr. Wilson, Mr. Jones, S/L. Martin, S/L. Saxilby and F/L. Bedford. The Com-mandant had a special word of thanks, also, for Mr. W. G. A. Perring, Director of the Royal Aircraft Establishment, whosedepartment had, among its many other services, made it possible to beat all previous records for flying hours on the course. A.V-M. J. N. Boothman, C.B., D.F.C., A.F.C., Controller ofSupplies (Air), presented the McKenna Trophy and a small replica to F/L. Heck, and a mug to F/L. Straker. After this,recipients of awards and several members of the staff were called to their feet, and some very competent and amusingimpromptu speeches were heard. Official recognition of the status (or lack of it) of the E.T.P.S.and its courses has been a sore point with many people for several years, but at last there seems to be some realization ofits importance to the R.A.F. and, therefore, to the careers of the Service pilots concerned. An anecdote in this connection,from F/L. Bedford, was well received: it seems that his one- time CO. warned him, seriously, when he applied to go onthe E.TJP.S. course that it was "prejudicing his changes of becoming Chief of the Air Staff " Cdr. Wilson, who has greatly influenced the School andcourses during his tour of duty and will be much missed at Famborough, said that there was a strong case to be put forsupplying the School with examples of more advanced aircraft. Students needed to have experience with swept-wing types, forthere was a great difference between aircraft now in service and those about to come. They would be " fancy new types" ascompared with relatively obsolete straight-wing machines now in use. A list, in alphabetical order, of those who graduated on No. 9course is as follows: — F/O. D. E. Biden, D.F.C, R.C.A.F.; F/L. J. E. Burton, R.A.F.;F/L. J. Castagnola, D.S.O., D.F.C., R.A.F.; Lt. Cdr. R. A, Qarice, U.S.N.; F/L. D. W. Colquhoua, R.A.F.; Major W. W. Elliott,U.S.A.F.; W/C. H. N. Garbett, R.A.F.; F/L. W. F. GeUatly, F/L. W. J. P. Straker, R.A.F. (2); Lt. F. C. Turner, U.S N F/L. L. M. Whittington, R.A.F. ' SPEEDING-UP GAS-TURBINE BLADE PRODUCTION "PRODUCTION problems with axial-flow turbines wereX recently the theme of an important article in Flight (Novem- ber 16th) and, in addition, they were the main topic of a recentdiscussion before the R.Ae.S. (pages 545-547 of this issue). An electronic contour-follower developed by the General Elec-tric Company for Pratt and Whitney Aircraft Division of the United Aircraft Corporation is therefore of particular interest.The device is linked to a standard jig-borer to enable—with the aid of an electronic scanner—cross-sectional drawings of theblade contour, traced on metal sheets, to be reproduced in the blank of the master blade. Accuracy at this stage is to a toleranceof one-thousandth of an inch. After a relatively simple hand- finishing operation to remove the metal between the cross-sectional cuts, the master blade is duplicated on a multi-spindle profiling machine producing four blades at a time. The company claims that the cost of producing a master com-pressor-blade for a gas turbine is reduced by this process from 4,000 to 100 U.S. dollars, and the time taken may be as little asthree days by comparison with the four months previously required.
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