FlightGlobal.com
Home
Premium
Archive
Video
Images
Forum
Atlas
Blogs
Jobs
Shop
RSS
Email Newsletters
You are in:
Home
Aviation History
1950
1950 - 2204.PDF
FUGHT, 21 December 1950 S95 of 3,330 Imperial gallons. One flight of over 1,100 miles has been made during the year. The first Vickers Viscount 700 had completed about 50 hours' flying by November. This model is longer and of broader span than the prototype Viscount, accommodates 40-53 passengers, and is designed to take advantage of the Rolls-Royce Dart RDa3 turboprops. A preliminary survey was made of the performance and handling qualities, and estimates were confirmed. After the first 50-hour inspec- tion, trials were to be resumed with a view to obtaining a Certificate of Airworthiness. A second prototype of the Bristol Theseus-powered Handley Page Hermes V flew in August. This machine has double-slotted flaps, giving a greatly improved take-off and landing performance, and the ability to operate at an in- creased all-up weight of 90,0001b. After the S.B.A.C. Dis- play the aircraft was engaged in demonstration flying to interested operators, and in an extensive programme of flying to determine C.L. max. and stalling speeds (both with the double-slotted flap and with the two sections of the flap locked, for comparison); for airscrew development, in- volving D.H. Standard, Rotol wide-blade and D.H. wide- blade airscrews; and thermal de-icing tests. Certificate of Airworthiness trials were also in progress. Of the Armstrong Whitworth Apollo (four Armstrong Siddeley Mamba turboprops) it is reported that some 200 hours of flight-testing and development work has given gratifying results. Three examples of the piston-engined (twin Bristol Centaurus) Airspeed Ambassador had amassed over 1,000 hours' flying time by October, and the type will enter B.E.A. service in 1951. An especially interesting Bristol Freighter development was the adaptation of this type to take three fertilizer hoppers having a total capacity of six tons. Versions of the Freighter introduced in 1950 have a dorsal fin. A notable advance in the feederliner class was the intro- duction of the de Havilland Heron, which has been de- scribed as a " double Dove" and is powered with four un- supercharged Gipsy Queen engines. Fourteen seats are normal, and the undercarriage is fixed. Since its first flight in May, the Heron has accumulated nearly 200 hours of flying. The performance measurement programme has been completed and the results, reduced to I.C.A.N. con- ditions, have been found to accord closely with estimates. On November 25th the Heron left for Africa for a pro- gramme of combined performance and engine-cooling test flights under tropical conditions at Khartoum and Nairobi Combined with the performance measurements (and, in- cidentally, making the utmost of each test flight during a suTimer of poor flying weather), a full programme of engine performance, consumption and cooling tests has been satis- factorily completed at Hatfield. Since the S.B.A.C. Dis- play the tailplane has been given dihedral to lift the elevator horn balances clear of the slipstream. The simple conception of the Heron has resulted in remarkably trouble-free servicing. The one unusual fea- ture—the single-lever throttle and r.p.m. control—is re- ported to have justified the considerable amount of test- Scottish Aviation Prestwick Pioneer five-seater (Alvis Leonides). •--- Aerial top-dressing by a Bristol Type 170 freighter. bed work which preceded its installation. De Ha\ and A.R.B. pilots are well satisfied with this simpler and more positive method of engine power control. In a sense, the Heron was a well-developed aircraft from the outset, and flight-testing has established its full conformity with A.R.B. and I.C.A.O. requirements, its exceptional take-off and three-engine performance, simplicity and economy. Plans are well advanced for route trials during 1951, and operators who have in the past been obliged to choose be- tween small aircraft operated from near-at-hand but small airfields, and larger aircraft operated from large but dis- tant airfields, are interested in the prospect of operating a medium-size feederliner from the smallest airports. As the makers put it, "The choice need no longer be between an overworked Rapide and a half-empty Dakota." Unique among light transport aircraft was the new 4-5- seat Scottish Aviation Prestwick Pioneer, with Alvis Leon- ides engine, which first flew in June. This machine has now completed all test flying for its C. of A., but is carrying out some additional flights to check its suitability for use in Australia in the high temperatures existing at times on the Ministry of Supply rocket range. To date it has com- pleted 60 flying hours. One airframe will be fitted with a Pratt and Whitney Wasp Junior, as there is considered to be a potential market for the aircraft so powered. By increasing the structure weight by about 351b, it is possible to raise the all-up.weight from 5,4001b to about 5,8001b. Light Aircraft.—There were few developments in respect of British light aircraft, but the new Auster Aiglet made a deep impression at the S.B.A.C. Display. This is a 3-4- seater, with Gipsy Major engine, and the majority of Aiglets so far produced have been sent to Australia and New Zea- land. Some Aiglets are being fitted with a 13J-gallon extra fuel tank, and one or two have a double rear seat incor- porating a blistered canopy to give increased headroom. The type has also been equipped for crop-dusting and crop- spraying, and approval has been given for modification to convert the aircraft from the normal to the semi-aercbatic category. The twin-engined Miles Aries (two Cirrus Major Ills) had reached the engine-run stage during October, but the first flight had not been reported as this account went to press. .:•. ••'•> ,..._;f;. ;/ Auster Aiglet three-seater (D.H. Gipsy Major), introduced during 1950.
Sign up to
Flight Digital Magazine
Flight Print Magazine
Airline Business Magazine
E-newsletters
RSS
Events
