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Aviation History
1952
1952 - 0395.PDF
15 February 1952 175 FROM ALL QUARTERS The three Bristol executives whose new appointments are referred to below. Left to right: Sir Stanley White, Mr. George 5. M. White and Mr. W. R. Verdon Smith. Senior Re-appointments at Bristol IMPORTANT changes on the board of the Bristol Aeroplane Co., Ltd., were announced last week. Sir G. Stanley White, Bt., who has been the managing director of the company (and of its predecessor in title, the British and Colonial Aeroplane Co., Ltd.) for the past 41 years, has relinquished that position and becomes deputy chairman. . Mr. W. R. Verdon Smith and Mr. George S. M. White, hitherto assistant managing directors, have been appointed managing directors. Sir Stanley White is the son of Sir George White, founder and first chairman of the original company. On its formation in February 1910, Sir Stanley was appointed managing director, and under his direction such famous Bristol aircraft as the Box- kite, Fighter, Bulldog, Blenheim, Beaufighter and Brabazon have been produced. He has guided the organization from its inception in a single small hangar, where a handful of men were employed, to its present status of a major aircraft, engine and car-manufactur ing firm, with subsidiary and associated companies in the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia. His son, who is 38 years of age, was educated at Harrow and Cambridge, and worked in the shops of the engine division when he first joined the company in September, 1935. He later transferred to the production side of the aircraft division, becoming a director in December 1942, and, in April 1943, divisional managing director. He is well known as chief of the company's car division, for the formation of which he was chiefly responsible. In his younger days he was internationally famed as a speed-boat pilot; he built his first boat when he was 17, and at one time held 13 British records and six world records. A 60-m.p.h. crash in Poole Harbour ended his career as a speed-boat pilot in 1938. Mr. W. R. Verdon Smith became joint assistant managing director in 1947. Educated at Repton and Oxford, he joined the Bristol Co. in 1938, working in the commercial departments. He became commercial manager and in 1942 was appointed to the board, with responsibility for head-office administration. In 1946 he was appointed president of the S.B.A.C.—the young est president or chairman ever elected by that body—and in 1947 was re-elected for a further year of office. He has played a leading part in Bristol public life and in July 1947 he was appointed to the Government Economic Planning Board. In addition to his position on the board of the parent Bristol Co., Mr. Verdon Smith is president of the Bristol Aeroplane Co. of Canada, Ltd., and director of the Bristol Aeroplane Co. (Australia), Pty. Ltd., formation of which was announced recently. Auxiliary Freighters? SOME eighteen months ago the Air Ministry approved the formation of Auxiliary Transport Squadrons, the first of which —No. 622— was forthwith organized by Airwork, Ltd. Similar units are expected to be established shortly by Huntings, Lanca shire Aircraft Corporation and Scottish Aviation. That Silver City Airways' fleet of eight Bristol Freighters has not yet been mentioned in this connection is remarked by a correspondent. If (he writes) we concede that past considerations of economy and a pronounced prejudice in favour of rear loading have kept the excellent and versatile Freighter from the squadrons of the R.A.F. for the past six years, we cannot, in view of the numerous orders from the other Commonwealth Air Forces, con ceive that there is any good reason for the R.A.F.'s present lack of initiative in failing to stake a claim for this type by inviting the formation of a Freighter Auxiliary unit. Silver City are known to favour the idea, and when they get their six long-nosed, more powerful "Super Freighters," their fleet of 14 will unquestionably be of great potential military value compared with the Yorks, Valettas and Dakotas which will comprise the principal equipment of other Auxiliary Squadrons. Any squadron of Freighters would be more than just supplements to the regular Transport Command —they would be a completely unique section of the R.A.F. The Freighter has two main military uses: it is eminently suitable for carrying vehicles over short distances and for moving bulky (but not necessarily heavy) equipment. When it comes to moving men, or less bulky equipment, then Yorks, Dakotas and Valettas are more economical and comparatively efficient. If, in emergency, it became necessary to get a lot of vehicles across a narrow stretch of water in a hurry, Silver City's Freighters would be capable of playing a valuable part. They hope to have about 18 Freighters in service by the end of next year. Assuming 14 were always serviceable, they could move 400 vehicles across 50 miles of water during the daylight hours. Apart from its load-carrying capabilities, the Freighter has the other advantages of being able to operate from grass strips and of flying very well at full load on one engine. From an operational point of view, other points in favour of the Freighter are its lack of complexity, the reliability and long over haul life of its engines, and the fact that, in contrast to fighters and bombers, it will last for years without becoming obsolete. Like so many good aircraft of the "interim period," the Freighter did not quickly find official favour in its own country and even today it is a private company which perpetuates the success of this aircraft in these islands. If Transport Command has indeed, "missed the bus," the Auxiliary Squadron scheme does offer it this chance to catch up. Maj. George Davis Missing THE U.S.A.F. sustained a grave loss in Korea last Sunday, when Maj. George Davis was reported missing, believed killed. His aircraft was shot down over enemy territory after destroying two Migs, and he was not seen to bale out. These two last victories brought his total score to 11 fighters and three bombers. Newark Again FOR the third time in three months there has been a serious accident at Newark Airport, New Jersey. Within a few minutes of taking-off, a DC-6 belonging to National Airlines crashed into a block of flats in nearby Elizabethville in the early hours of Monday last, causing 34 deaths. The airport has now been closed to all traffic by the Port of New York Authority. An Australian Pioneer Passes FROM Mr. Hudson Fysh, Australian airline pioneer and head of Qantas, comes an appreciation of P. J. McGinness, D.F.C., D.C.M., whose death was recently reported from Perth, W. A. Here we publish Mr. Fysh's note in somewhat abbreviated form. Born at Framlingham, Victoria, in 1896 (he writes), Paul McGinness—known to his intimates as "Ginty"—served with distinction as a cavalryman in Gallipoli in the First World War, then transferred to No. 1 Squadron of the Australian Flying Corps in Palestine, to come quickly to the fore as a Bristol Fighter pilot of courage and determination. Six or seven victories were credited to him and he received a D.F.C. Back in Australia, in 1919, McGinness and Fysh, under orders from the Federal Government, chose, surveyed and laid down the Longreach-Darwin section of the first air route across Australia, used by Ross and Keith Smith, Parer and Macintosh, and other pilots. Then followed, in 1920, the formation of the original Qantas by McGinness, Fysh and McMaster. Much pioneer flying in Queensland was undertaken by McGinness, his efforts being rewarded by the opening on November 2nd, 1922, of the Charle- ville-Cloncurry regular service, the second in Australia and the first in Eastern Australia. In company with Arthur Baird as engineer, McGinness flew the Charleville-Longreach section of the new service. Always an essentially adventurous spirit, and, in common with so many other pioneers who are not given to the humdrum and everyday aspects of life, McGinness drifted off to other adventures and occupations and was lost to aviation during later years.
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