FlightGlobal.com
Home
Premium
Archive
Video
Images
Forum
Atlas
Blogs
Jobs
Shop
RSS
Email Newsletters
You are in:
Home
Aviation History
1951
1951 - 1266.PDF
A 6 July 1951 THE LE BOURGET FETE . . . / by the commentator. The pilot, we believe, was Mr/Trubshaw. Hailed as the R.A.F.'s patrouille de haute ecole, four Gloster Meteor 8 intercepted of No. 74 Squadron now took the stage. The names of the pilots appear on page 26. Let it be said here that the Meteors' performance was—as it could hardly have failed to be, with such pilots and machines—a very beautiful piece of flying indeed; t»jt it was a performance for the connoisseur rather than for the <n€fr»on the pave and, in all frankness, it was outshone by the U.S.A.F. Skyblazers, of whom more later. It is not easy to put this fact on paper, and the present is^iot time to argue the whys and wherefores; but as comparisons at a great international display are inevitable and Service prestige is at stake, we must admit no prejudice. The tower got in touch with the Comet when it was 30 seconds away. Arriving, it orbitted low—the essence of grace and beauty— and gave the multitude a close-up of what the S.O. Champagne may resemble when it is completed some years hence. And now for the Skyblazers, or as the man-at-the-mike styled them, "le Skeeblarzers," in their four tip-tanked Republic F-84E Thunderjets. Their act is now internationally known, but never before, we surmise, has it been carried through in such dashing style. Not only were the formation aerobatics of the highest order, but the low runs, with the axial Allisons smoking impressively, if not efficiently, aroused great waves of spontaneous applause. We ourselves, atop the airport building, were treated to the closest close-up of a flat-out F-84E we could wish for. They are swashbucklers, these 'blazers, but they are artists through and through: their vertical-climb formation-break- away and final daisy-cutting crossovers in the centre of the airfield were positive proof of this. By some mischance one Thunderjet zoomed up directly in the path of an approaching formation of 48 Vampires. It seems (we did not witness the actual incident) that the formation turned, the inner wing man stalled out and—whether under orders or through necessity—the whole group broke up. Immediately the northern sky was filled with milling Vampires. It was all most uncomfort- able. The Vampires concerned were the leading element of a fly-past by French and British Vampires and U.S.A.F. Thunderjets —144 machines in all—which was to have formed the climax of the programme; and certainly it was a brave sight. But when the" massed fighters had passed over, a lone Skyblazer streaked by at runway level and rolled thunderously and continuously into the far distance. The U.S.A.F. had finally signed off. Dazed by sun and spectacle, we groped our way downstairs, heartily in agreement with Captain Bartlett's pronouncement that we had witnessed a very remarkable show. H.F.K. DR. BALLANTYNE TAKES OVER THE impending retirement of Captain J. Laurence Pritchardafter 31 years service as secretary of the Royal Aeronautical Society was announced in April, 1950. His successor, Dr. A. Ballantyne, assumed the secretary's duties last Monday, July 2nd. Captain Pritchard's colleagues on the staff of the R.Ae.S., some of whom have worked with him for many years, have presented him with an inscribed gold watch as a parting gift. Captain Pritchard has agreed to continue with the organization of the Anglo-American Conference between the Institute of the Aeronautical Sciences and the R.Ae.S. which is to take place in Brighton between September 4th and 7th. Thus his many friends may still be able to find him at the Society's headquarters in Hamilton Place for a month or two longer. Capt. J. Laurence Pritchard (left), the retiring secretary of the Royal Aeronautical Society; and Dr. A. Ballantyne, who took over last Monday. B.E.A.'s P.R.O. RetiresA FTER fourteen years in civil aviation, Mr. John C. Henry, • head of B.E.A.'s public relations department since the Cor- poration was formed in 1946, retires at his own request at the end of this month in order to devote himself to his personal business interests. John Henry joined Imperial Airways in March 1937 as an operations officer and in November 1947 became technical assistant to Major R. H. Mayo, with whom he worked on the Short-Mayo composite aircraft. On January 15th, 1940, he joined the^R.A.F. as a pilot officer in the Intelligence Branch and attained the rank of squadron leader only six months later. His war service included three years as an Intel- ligence liaison officer with the United States Forces. He was permitted to leave the R.A.F. in August 1944 in order to under- take responsible duties in B.O.A.C., and he transferred to B.E.A. on its formation,in 1946. Mr. Peter Masefield, the chief executive of B.E.A. pays this tribute to John Henry: "Throughout the five years of B.E.A.'s existence he has made for himself a wide circle of friends in all branches of aviation and his colleagues will miss greatly not only his presence but also his counsel. We shall always regard him with both affection and respect and we shall always retain a warm appreciation of all he has done for B.E.A." Mr. W. ("Bill") Simpson, O.B.E., D.F.C., has been appointed acting public relations officer in Mr. Henry's place. For the past three years he had been B.E.A.'s Press superintendent. He began Mr. John Henry his flying career in the R.A.F. in 1935, and flew Battles in the desperate struggle before Dunkirk. He was shot down, sustaining serious injuries, and spent two years in French hospitals before being repatriated from Vichy territory. He was made an O.B.E. in recognition of his work on the National Advisory Council for the Employment of the Disabled. Bristol in Canada THE Bristol Aeroplane Co., Ltd., states that it has carried a stagefurther its policy of direct participation in the Canadian aviation industry as a supplement to normal export sales. Formed last year to promote Bristol interests in the Dominion, the Bristol Aeroplane Co. of Canada, Ltd., has acquired the aero-engine repair business at Montreal, hitherto carried on by Canadian-Wright, a subsidiary of the Mailman Corporation, Ltd., of U.S.A. The business, taken over on July 1st, will be carried on by a new company, Bristol Aeroplane Engines (Eastern), Ltd. There are thus now two Bristol engine-repair bases in Canada—British Aeroplane Engines, Ltd., of Vancouver, and the new company in Montreal. The Board of the new company is as follows: W. R. Verdon Smith, president; R. J. Reynolds, deputy president; H. V. Wright, managing direc- tor; J. Armand Limoges, vice-president and secretary-treasurer. Mr. Verdon Smith is an executive director of the Bristol Aeroplane Co., Ltd., of England, and president of the Bristol Aeroplane Co. of Canada. Mr. Reynolds is the resident executive director of the Bristol Aeroplane Co. of Canada, Ltd., while Mr. H. V. Wright and Mr. Armand Limoges have been the principal executive officers of Canadian-Wright for many years. Vickers, Ltd., Chairman F J a recent reference in these pages to the Annual GeneralMeeting of Vickers, Ltd., the name of the company's chair- man should, of course, have been given as Lt. Gen. Sir Ronald Weeks, K.C.B., C.B.E., D.S.O., M.C., T.D.
Sign up to
Flight Digital Magazine
Flight Print Magazine
Airline Business Magazine
E-newsletters
RSS
Events
