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Aviation History
1952
1952 - 1381.PDF
16 May 1952 601 Vickers-Armstrongs' Dart-powered Viscount already promises to eclipse the reputation for service established since 1947 by its predecessor, the Viking (above). (Right) the first jet transport of the New World, Avro Canada's Derwent-powered Jetliner. 28,490 lb; gross weight, 42,000 lb; typical performance: 795 miles with 9,000 lb payload at 160 m.p.h. De Havilland Heron. Developed from the famous Dove, the Heron is a four-engined light/medium transport intended primarily for feederline services. Engines are 250-h.p. ungeared, unsuper- charged Gipsy Queen 30s driving D.H. constant-speed airscrews. The prototype and first production Herons had fixed landing-gear, simplicity being the design-theme throughout, but an alternative version with retractable wheels will appear this year. Cabin accommodation is for 14-17 passengers. Span, 71ft 6in; length, 48ft 6in; wing area, 487 sq ft; weight empty, 7,960 lb; gross weight, 12,500 lb; cruising speed at 8,000ft, 160 m.p.h.; still-air range with 2,750-lb payload, 700 miles. Handley Page (Reading) Marathon. Ordered for short/medium- range feederline work by B.E.A., West African Airways Corpora tion and Union of Burma Airways, the Marathon was originally designed by Miles Aircraft, Ltd., and first flew in 1946. The power-units are four 275-h.p. Gipsy Queen 70-2S driving constant- speed, fully feathering airscrews. The aircraft can maintain height on any two engines. Passenger accommodation varies from 18 to 22. Span, 65ft; length, 52ft iin; wing area, 498 sq ft; weight empty, 11,946 lb; gross weight, 18,000 lb; max. w.m. cruising speed, 200.5 m.p.h.; typical performance: 810 miles with 4,258-lb payload at 157 m.p.h. Short Sandringham. This long-range flying-boat is a civil version of the Sunderland, differing only in minor structural respects and interior fittings and in profile of nose and tail. A typical example of the seven versions built is the Sandringham 4, as supplied to T.E.A., which is powered by four 1,200 h.p. P. and W. Twin Wasps and has accommodation for 30 day passengers (the Mk 6 for Norwegian Air Lines carries 37). Span, 112ft 9jin; length, 86ft 3m; wing area, 1,687 sq ft; weight empty, 41,370 lb; gross weight, 60,000 lb; typical performance: still-air range of 2,430 miles with 32 passengers at 175 m.p.h. Vickers-Armstrongs Viscount. Most promising British airliner in the medium-range category, the Viscount has been Two French medium transports, the ageing Languedoc 161 (below) and the SO.30 P, of post-war design, powered by two P. and W. Series C4-18 Double Wasps. ordered by B.E.A., Air France, Aer Lingus, and Trans-Australia Airlines. First deliveries—to B.E.A.—are scheduled for October next. Production models differ from the Type 630 prototype, which flew first in July, 1948, in having a longer fuselage and extended wings—developments made possible by an increase (to 1,400 h.p. plus 365 lb thrust) in the power available from the Dart 504 turboprop. The Viscount can take off with any one of the four Darts out of action and has been demonstrated in "light" condition with three feathered. Accommodation for 40-48 passengers is provided in the cabin of the Viscount, where pressure equivalent to 8,000ft is maintained at 30,000ft. Large, double-elliptical windows serve as escape hatches, and the incorporation of bag-type tanks (total capacity 1,720 gall.) is a further safety measure. The prototype Viscount, which was the first turboprop-powered airliner to fly, also gained the distinction, in the summer of 1950, of being the first gas- turbine aircraft in the world to carry fare-paying passengers on a scheduled service—the B.E.A. London-Paris route. Span, 94ft; length, 74ft 6in; wing area, o63sqft; weight empty, 32,100 lb; gross weight, 40,000 lb; typical performance: (Type 701), 1,000 miles with payload of 8,200 lb at 300 m.p.h. Vickers-Armstrongs Viking. Production of the Viking ceased in 1949, by which time 161 had been built. The first prototype, developed from the Wellington and employing its geodetic wings and tailplane. appeared in 1945; nearly all sub sequent production aircraft, however, have metal-covered, re-designed wings and tail. The major civil version (and the standard aircraft on nearly all B.E.A. overseas routes until recent months) is the Mk iB; this has 1,690 h.p. Bristol Hercules 634s and a longer fuselage with capacity for three extra passengers. Standard interior layouts are for 24 or 27 passengers. Span, 98ft 3in; length, 65ft 2in; wing area, 882 sq ft; empty weight, 23,000 lb; gross weight, 34,000 lb; typical performance: still-air range of 1,130 miles at 210 m.p.h. Avro Canada Jetliner. Second pure-jet airliner to take the air —the date of its initial flight was August ioth, 1949—the C.102 Jetliner represents a bold private-venture attempt to render obsolete all existing inter-city airliners. That the aircraft was m some respects premature in no way detracts from the technical excellence of its design and construction, and only Avro Canada's
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