FlightGlobal.com
Home
Premium
Archive
Video
Images
Forum
Atlas
Blogs
Jobs
Shop
RSS
Email Newsletters
You are in:
Home
Aviation History
1952
1952 - 0602.PDF
276 FLIGHT, 7 March 1952 CORRESPONDENCE . . . to be replaced during the war, when they again became necessary, on the fin. Yet, as I say, modern French high-speed aircraft still stick to their rudder markings, with no apparent ill-effect, even though the majority of countries have slavishly copied Britain in transferring these markings to the fin. Peckleton, Leicester. DONALD A. S. MCKAY. [We believe that the original aerodynamic considerations arose largely in the case of fabric-covered rudders. Metal surfaces, and efficient modern finishes, cause no such problem; presumably, however, the R.A.F. does not consider necessary a return to the old marking.—ED.] Losing the Peace M OST of your readers are aware that we lost the peace even before we won the war, if only from recent reviews (on the radio and in the national Press) of Mr. Chester Wilmot's Struggle for Europe. The Russian gain was not, however, only of territory, mineral and industrial resources and subject (or "liberated") peoples. Had the Western Allies captured Berlin, Prague and Vienna, perhaps the greatest prize would have been denied the Russians—the ideas, men and equipment that have enabled them to make the great technical advances mentioned in General Vandenberg's statement ("Vandenberg Speaks His Mind," page 152, Flight, February 8th, 1952); again greater than the knowledge of the atomic bomb ("For good or ill, air mastery is today the supreme expression of military power"—Mr. W. S. Churchill). These advances would not have been made had not the Russians made the best and most intelligent use of all they found. "It is easy to be wise after the event," but at the time (of the German collapse) I felt that the Western Powers did not make full use of their opportunities, and that the German design teams should have been allowed, indeed encouraged, to carry on their work unhindered. Strong security and liaison staffs could have been sent to watch them and to report their progress to Farn- borough and Boscombe, where prototypes could have been sent for test flying; instead of which the design teams were split, and divorced from their equipment. We captured the best German designers. Kurt Tank, starting afresh in Argentina, where research and production facilities cannot be all he could wish, has produced the excellent Pulqui II. Willi Messerschmitt seems largely to have vegetated (though I believe he made some houses and furniture) and must now gather the threads again in Spain. Dr. Lippisch is somewhere in the U.S. What might these men have done in the past seven years with proper finance and facilities ? Our aircraft industries received a great shock in 1945, and a great benefit, but as a lump sum; had we invested the men as well as their machines we should be still receiving a steady flow of ideas and information. Cambridge. PEDANTICA. Armouring the Crew R ECENT Press reports of the testing by troops in Korea of a new nylon fabric and sponge rubber bullet-proof jacket indi cate that the modern practice of providing no personal armour at all for men in battle, save for the tin hat, may soon be a thing of the past; it has been as absurd as the mediaeval practice of so encasing men in armour that they eventually became an almost helpless target for more lightly armoured opponents and so caused a reaction to the opposite extreme. It is to be hoped that the appropriate authorities whose task it is to conserve the life and limb of our fighting men, so that their limited numbers and equipment can be used to best advantage, will not forget the advantages of applying this principle in the air as well as on the ground. In the last war it was fashionable to deride the foresight of the Americans for protecting their bomber aircrews by flak suits, and for the heavy armouring of the Flying Fortress aircraft in which they made their hazardous bombing missions in daylight over the shell-torn skies of Europe; but, if they tended to err on the side of over-doing such protection, so, too, did we err in the complete neglect of any protection for the aircrews who manned our much-more-lightly-armed night bombers, into whose defenceless bellies the enemy's night fighters poured their fire almost with impunity. Today we appear to be relying on speed alone for the protection of our bomber aircrews, just as in the last war we relied on dark ness alone, to our cost; yet speed is only relative, and with fast fighters and self-seeking missiles keeping pace with, if not exceed ing, high-speed bomber development, the problem of defence is much the same; at altitude, too, high speed makes little difference to high-ranging modern anti-aircraft guns firing with all the precision afforded by present-day, radar-controlled predictors. It would be a mistake, in my opinion, therefore, to be led to conclude that the relative immunity enjoyed by our Mosquito bombers and P.R. aircraft flying high and by night in the last wax would apply in exactly the same way in any modern air war today, and from this conclusion decide that no protection, either in the form of armament or armour, would be necessary. There is another field in which, too, we might profit by the example set by the Americans, and that is in the protection given pilots against the skull injury likely during a crash or forced landing. American pilots are provided with flying helmets which incorporate rigid crash-helmet protection, and how necessary this is to Service pilots can be easily appreciated by anyone who cares to study the high proportion of flying accidents in which death is caused by a fractured skull or other head injuries. East Twickenham, Middlesex. DENIS HORNSEY. Old-Timers' Corner SORRY, but I cannot let Mr. C. G. Grey (Correspondence, February 22nd) say that Harry Busteed obtained his ticket at Sopwith's School of Flying. No sir ! Harry Busteed got it at the British and Colonial Aeroplane Company's School at Larkhill— and I was there, Mr. Grey ! Major Juilkrot was chief instructor and Mr. Collins Pizey "second." I remember very well that we saw other pupils waiting to do their "figure eights" and we, the staff, couldn't get Mr. Busteed down. He kept flying around; the evening was calm and now getting dark. Mr. Eric Harrison was also a partner and friend of his; he obtained his ticket later. Busteed's ticket date was June 13th, 1911 (No. 94); Harrison's was September 12th, 1911 (No. 131)—per Royal Aero Club book. I also remember seeing Mr. C. C. Turner, late Daily Telegraph air correspondent, get his ticket a bit earlier than Mr. Busteed, in April, 1911. By the way, another name mentioned in Mr. Grey's letter should have been printed Bentley Dacre, and not Daere. Several of those who worked on the Burney Boat mentioned are well and hearty and still work on other projects for the same company. Brentry, Bristol. HAROLD SOLOMON. IN BRIEF IN a letter from Mr. C. Powell of the Decca Company, published last week, a printer's error caused the word "deployment" to appear as "development." The sentence should have read: "What is really surprising, however, is Mr. Gregson's assertion that the main factor delaying the introduction of V.O.R./D.M.E. is the international controversy now raging—implying, presumably, that from the technical and operational standpoints the combina tion of V.O.R. and D.M.E. is ready for deployment." THE Chief Librarian, City of Johannesburg Public Library, Market Square, Johannesburg, is anxious to obtain a number of issues of Flight, now out of print, which are missing from his files. He wonders if any readers could assist by giving or selling copies : postage would be refunded, but he asks that any price should be quoted in advance. Dates wanted are : 1940—January 25th, March 14th, March 28th, April 4th, April 18th, May 2nd, May 9th, May 16th, June 27th; 1944—January 13th, January 27th, Febru ary 3rd, February 10th, February 17th, March 23rd, April 27th; 1945—October 18th, October 25th, December 6th, December 20th, December 27th; 1946—January 3rd, January 10th. FORTHCOMING EVENTS Mar. 8. British Gliding Association: Annual General Meeting. Mar. 11. R.Ae.S. Graduates' and Students' Lecture: "An Introduction to Supersonics," by C. H. E. Warren, M.A., A.F.R.AB.S. Mar. 12. R.Ae.S.: Fifth Louis Bleriot Lecture: "The Future of the Flying- boat," by H. Knowler, A.M.I.C.E., F.R.Ae.S. (in Paris). Mar. 13. R.Ae.C: Film Show. Mar. 19. Aircraft Recognition Society: "Future Developments in Civil Aviation," by Peter G. Masefield, M.A., F.R.Ae.S. Mar. 21. Helicopter Association: "Recent Helicopter Research Investi gations," by W. Stewart, B.Sc. Mar. 25. R.Ae.S. Graduates' and Students' Section: Annual General Meeting and Talk on "Aerodynamic Oscillations of Suspension Bridges," by C. Scrutton, B.Sc., A.F.R.Ae.S. Mar. 26. R.Ae.C.: Annual General Meeting. Mar. 27. R.Ae.S. Section Lecture: "Civil Jet Aircraft Performance," by D. R. Newman, A.F.R.Ae.S. Apr. 4. College of Aeronautics: Senior Common Room Society's Annual Dinner. Apr. 6. London Aeroplane Club: Dawn Patrol and A.G.M. Apr. 15. R.Ae.C.: Film Show. Apr. 22. R.Ae.S. Graduates' and Students' Section: "Servo-mechanisms," by F. H. Borlace, B.Sc.(Eng.), Grad. R.Ae.S. Apr. 24. R.Ae.S.: "Fuel Systems for Turbine-driven Aircraft," by J. E. Walker, A.F.R.Ae.S. (at Luton). May 3. Vintage Aeroplane Club: Rally, White Waltham. May 3-10. F.A.I.: Committee Meetings, Madrid. May 10. Exeter Aero Club: Display May 10-11. I'Association des Amis de I'Aumdneries de I'Air: Cathedrals Rally. May 17. Wolverhamption Aero Club: Display. May 22. Aero-Club du Dauphine: Air Meeting, Grenoble. May 22. Aero-Club de France: Coupe Stemm (helicopters).
Sign up to
Flight Digital Magazine
Flight Print Magazine
Airline Business Magazine
E-newsletters
RSS
Events
