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Aviation History
1953
1953 - 0715.PDF
29 May 1953 709 FROM ALL QUARTERS Oslo to Tokyo—Over the Top /"\N Saturday last, May 23rd, a DC-6B of Scandinavian Airlines ^ System was due to begin a flight from Oslo (Gardermoen) to Tokyo by way of Greenland (Thule), Alaska (Anchorage) and the Aleutians (Shemya). This, the first such flight to use the Nonhern Great Circle route, follows the two experimental flights from Los Angeles to Scandinavia made by S.A.S. last autumn. The aircraft was chartered by the Norwegian Defence Depart ment, and was to carry some 40 relief personnel to the Norwegian field hospital in Korea. The direct Northern Great Circle route from Europe to Tokyo crosses Siberia and, because of the Russian prohibition of flight over this territory, the S.A.S. journey had to be made by way of Alaska and the Aleutians. The four stages of the flight are, respectively, of 1,821, 1,778, 1,296 and 1,788 n.m. length and total flying time is 33 hours. During the leg from Thule to Anchorage, and owing to the impossibility of using magnetic compasses, the aircraft was to be controlled by the Bendix Polarpath gyro system. Aids to navi gation are few, and consequently the sun has to be relied on for the checking of gyros and also for position-lines. At one point of the flight, the aircraft's position would be 220 n.m. north of the magnetic Pole, and at the same time, 780 n.m. south of the geographical Pole. The aircraft was scheduled to leave Tokyo on May 27th, returning to Scandinavia by way of Okinawa, Bangkok, Rangoon, Karachi, Cairo, Rome, Geneva, and Frankfurt. It is due to arrive in Stockholm at 1835 hours today, May 29th. Traffic on British Airlines "DETWEEN 1950 and 1951, passenger traffic on United Kingdom -" airlines increased by 34 per cent, and freight and mail traffic by 27 per cent. Last year the number of passengers was 15 per cent more than in 1951, freight traffic declined slightly and mail rose by only 7I per cent. Introducing British airline statistics for 1952, the M.C.A. gives the following reasons for the slower rate of air-traffic expansion : ". . . the restrictions on services due to the U.S. fuel strike, political disturbances, particularly in the Middle East, the reduced allowance of currency for foreign travel, and import restrictions in Australia and South Africa, coupled with some slowing down in the rate of expansion of internal trade." The division of traffic between the State Corporations and independent carriers operating scheduled services under "asso ciate agreements" is shown clearly by the following figures for the calendar year 1952. Number in parentheses refer to the per centage change over the 1951 figures, except in the case of load- factors, where the actual results for 1951 are quoted. Weights are given in short tons. Miles flown ... Pass, flown ... Freight flown Mail flown ... C.t.m. O'all load-f'tor Av. seat-miles Pass, load-f'tor B.O.A.C. 31,600,000 (6.6) 267,000(11.7) 6,000 (-1.9) 3,000 (9.1) 199,285.000 (8.6) 64.7 (65.2) 1,320,200,000 (10.7) 64.2 (62.7) B.E.A. 23,537,000 (10) 1,338,000(19.3) 16,000 (19.2) 6,000 (4.6) 66,075,000 (18.1) 62.6 (63.9) 552,404,000 (19.7) 64.6 (66.3) Associates 2,497.000 (74) 95,000 (74.3) 15,000* (-16.3) 19 (40.6) 5,141,000 (61.2) 63.7 (59.4) 37,235,000 (112.9) 67.6 (62) * Includes vehicles and passengers carried on car-ferry services. The New D.G.T.D. (Air) AS we recorded in Flight of April 24th, Mr. S. Scott Hall is **- leaving the post of Director-General of Technical Develop ment (Air), Ministry of Supply, in order to take up the appoint ment of Head of Technical Services, British Joint Services Mission, Washington. It is now announced that his successor is to be Mr. G. W. H. Gardner, C.B.E., B.Sc, M.I.Mech.E., F.R.Ae.S., who will assume his duties on July 5th. Since 1945 Mr. Gardner has been principally associated with guided-missile development, first as head of the Controlled Weapons Department, R.A.E., then as Director, Guided Weapons (R. and D.), Ministry of Supply (1947-51) and finally as Principal Director, Guided Weapons. He had received his early engineering training with Harland and Wolff, Belfast, in 1919-25, and thereafter held a number of research posts at Farnborough and in the Air Ministry and M.A.P. Mr. G. W. H. Gardner. B.E.A.'s New Terminal ON Tuesday, May 19th, B.E.A. began using their spacious and attractive new London terminal building at Waterloo, which now replaces Kensington Air Station as the gathering point for passengers of the Corporation and several other airlines : Aer Lingus, Air France, Iberia, Sabena, S.A.S. and Swissair. In addition, two British independent operators (Hunting Air Transport, Ltd. and B.K.S. Aerocharter, Ltd.) are making use of the new terminal facilities. The change-over from Kensington was effected very smoothly and the first airport coach left Waterloo on schedule at 7.16 a.m. on May 19th. The official opening by Mr. A. T. Lennox-Boyd, Minister of Civil Aviation, took place two days later. Among those present were Lord Douglas, chair man of B.E.A., and the newly-elected Mayor of Lambeth. Connected by escalator with Waterloo underground station and adjoining the main-line railway station, the new terminal is also within reasonable distance of Charing Cross and Victoria stations. B.E.A. believe that its central location will more than offset the extra time (20 minutes) taken by coaches on their journeys to Northolt and London Airports. In addition to being more accessible to the majority of pas sengers, the new terminal is capable of handling far greater numbers of travellers than its predecessor. The peak hourly rate of dispatch was previously 20 flights and 650 passengers, whereas Waterloo should be capable of handling 60 flights (2,000 passengers) in an hour. Larger numbers of passengers are now tending to make their own way to the airport, and it is estimated that the Waterloo Air Terminal's ability to dispatch 6,000 passengers a day should prove adequate for at least five to seven years. The parking problems which arose at Kensington are unlikely to occur at Waterloo, since the adjoining space can JOURNEY'S END—OR BEGINNING: The departure-bay and the refreshment-room and bar at the new B.E.A. London terminal —referred to above— near Waterloo Station. Contemporary interior decoration gives a particularly fresh and airy appearance to the interior. il^,.. i L#8M' ? %
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