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Aviation History
1953
1953 - 0796.PDF
790 FLIGHT, 19 June 1953 BELGRADE JOURNEY . . . making practice drops (some with two chutes open per man) on to the aerodrome from Ju 52/3ms above. As we taxied out to the runway, we passed a picketed line of Jugoslav Air Force machines—none particularly modern; they included Ju 52s, Dakotas, Stearman 75s, Reliants, PO-2S and Yak 3s. At 9.29 the runway controller's flag changed from blue to white, and the Viking accelerated forward and climbed to cross the Sava and to bank round over the outskirts of the city. Suc cessive glimpses of a street market, bomb-damaged houses, domed churches, newly-built factories and the wide surrounding plain were our last views of Belgrade and Serbia before the grey haze isolated us once more from the ground. The return flight was uneventful, but sufficed to prove that, even with the not-so-young Viking, the fastest and most com fortable way for tourist-class travellers to be transported across Europe is by air. Touchdown time at Blackbushe was 1505 hr, the direct return journey having taken 5 hours 36 minutes. Impressions gained during a brief stay in a strange country are all-too-easily misleading, and following this short visit to the capital, it is not our intention to attempt to describe here the existing political and general conditions in Jugoslavia. What does seem clear, however, is that there must inevitably be an increase in the interchange of people and goods between Jugoslavia and other countries—and especially by air—if the country's present policy continues. In particular, increasing numbers of tourists should be attracted once more to the Dalmatian coast. In the improved conditions and communications envisaged, the operations of Eagle Aviation, the chosen British company for the Britain-Jugoslavia air service, can do much good. With con tinued co-operation from the Jugoslav authorities, it is to be hoped that die expected traffic increase on the route will be soon achieved: K.T.O. THE SKYLARK at LASHAM New Slingsby Sailplane Undergoes its Handling Tests MENTIONED briefly in a recent issue of Flight was the appearance of the prototype Slingsby Skylark at Lasham over the Whitsun weekend. Since then we have been able to pay a visit to Lasham, to see the Skylark in the air and on the ground, and to speak with the pilots of the No. 1 B.G.A. Test Group who, with A.R.B. approval, are carrying out the flying tests on the new machine. As Flight's Gemini approached the busy—yet beautifully silent —Lasham circuit, a light-coloured sailplane was performing with agility a series of rolls downwind of the airfield. This, in fact, proved to be the Skylark itself, with David Ince at the controls, and its smooth landing on the grass was followed by the some what noisier touchdown of the Gemini on the north-south Lasham runway. Talking with David Ince and Frank Irving, we heard a promising account of the new sailplane's capabilities—in parti cular, of its remarkable rate of roll. In the tests at Lasham, pilots Ince, Irving, Lome Welch, Hugh Kendall and Ann Douglas were investigating the handling qualities, rather than the per formance characteristics, of the aircraft. Their report on the tests, which will probably be complete by the time this appears in print, will be submitted by the Slingsby company to the A.R.B. in their application for a Certificate of Airworthiness. The angular fines of the Skylark's fuselage belie its high performance. Production models will have an oval-section fuse lage and wider-span ailerons, and the nose-cap and upper part of the cockpit will be of moulded Fibreglass and Marco resin —a lightweight plastic material of considerable strength. At present the nose is plywood-covered. Aft of the cockpit and main bulkheads the fuselage consists of a fabric-covered diagonally braced wooden framework as far as the tailplane attachment frames. Tailplane and fin are plywood-covered, as is almost the entire area of the high-aspect-ratio wings. This resin-bonded waterproof wing-skin is attached to ribs of very accurate profile, and the overall wing surface is extremely smooth, assisting in preserving a laminar airflow over a high percentage of the chord. The wing, of 45ft span, consists of a centre portion and two SLINGSBY TYPE 37 (SKYLARK) Dimension! Span Length Tare weight ... Max. all-up weight ... Wing area Aspect ratio Aileron area Tailplane and elevator area Fin and rudder area Performance Data Best gliding ratio 1 in 27.3 at 46.3 m.p.h. Min. sinking speed ... 2.34ft/sec at 41.6 m.p.h. Flying speed at 6ft/sec area 74.5 m.p.h. Min. speed 37.4 m.p.h 45ft 20ft 11±in 400 lb 620 lb 113 sq ft 17.9:1 12.4 sq ft 17 sq ft 11 sq ft outboard sections, and in the centre portion are fitted scissor-type dive brakes which appear extremely effective. Assembly and dismantling are simple; the central mainplane is attached to the fuselage by two pins inserted horizontally from the front of the cockpit, and picking up the attachment fittings on the main bulkheads. Each centre section is attached to the central portion by two vertical pins. As part of the overall attempt to reduce manufacturing, and therefore selling, cost, Slingsbys have not fitted a landing wheel, though a jettisonable dolly can be supplied. The main skid is sprung with rubber shock-assorbers and is completely faired in, while the tail-skid design follows normal practice. The removable canopy is fitted with a one-piece Perspex hood, providing first-rate visibility from the comfortable cockpit. The arrangement of flying controls is conventional, and the quick-release knob is located under the port side of the instrument panel. This operates the Ottfur safety-type towing release, situated about the centre of gravity, and which, as is generally known, automatically drops the cable should its angle to the air craft become excessive during launching. The dive-brake lever is on the port side, ahead of the seat (a Latest product from Slingsby Sailplanes, designers of the outstanding Sky, is the Skylark, a high-performance medium-span saiplane, here seen coming in to land after one of the early flight tests.
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