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Aviation History
1953
1953 - 1235.PDF
II September 1953 CORRESPONDENCE ^^^V«s^of^h^S^^Sible^0rIhe ^ e*P™«">y correspondents in these columns; j ine writers, not necessarily for publication, must in all cases accompany letters. 391 History on the Scrap-heap J HAVE just learned of a most disgraceful situation. I was under * the impression that the Air Ministry Historical SectiorTwas keeping one or two examples of all aircraft types in storage It appears, however, that the worthy scheme of 1946 was stillborn A tew months ago the last remaining Hampden, which had beTn kept crated, was so d for scrap. The last Wimpey, which feat St. Athan and is still airworthy and will be flown duVing Batt e of Britain Week, is likely to meet a similar fate before the end of the The excuse for not keeping these historic aircraft is lack of storage space. This seems to me to be ridiculous, since there must be acres of covered floor-space in the many airfields on a care-and maintenance basis. Since the aeroplanes are crated, they cannot take up a great deal of space and, with modern methods, they could be stored comparatively inexpensively. Admittedly, keeping them airworthy, which was the original scheme I believe, would be rather an expensive business, although this could be done as part of the training of apprentices in Technical Training Command I think it is absolutely tragic that the aeroplanes which won the war should disappear for ever. Can you not use all your power to counteract this official apathy before the last Mosquito is reduced to firewood? London, N.10. j fj. STEVENS. [We agree most heartily with this correspondent and have offered support to every individual or group which has sought since the war to preserve examples of outstanding aircraft; alas, so far there has been no positive result.—ED.] The S.E.5 QUITE the most satisfactory feature of the correspondence relating to the S.E.5 has been the substantial amount of additional information it has contained. The personal reminiscences of Mr. Gerald C. Maxwell, M.C., D.F.C., A.F.C. (August 14th) constitute an historical document in themselves, and for the lovers of detail I think it must be added that the S.E.5A in which Mr. Maxwell is shown seated was B.502. Not only did Mr. Bruce Robertson make a valuable contribu tion with his letter published in the issue of July 31st, but he has also privately sent me a considerable amount of additional in formation which, for the sake of completeness and greater accuracy, ought to be passed on to readers. Before quoting Mr. Robertson, however, I should like to point out that the serial numbers given by him in his published letter indicate a possible error relating to the serial number of McCud- den's special S.E.5A. This has previously been quoted in many places as A.4891, but the serial numbers A.4845-A.4868 and A.8898-A.8947 exclude this number. I am now of the opinion that this number must have been B.4891, of the batch B.4851-B.4900, and for this theory there is some support to be gained from the fact that B.4897 is known to have had the strengthened under carriage. Mr. Robertson tells me that the batches C.9486-C.9635 and D.201-D.300 were built by Vickers at Weybridge, and not by Austin, to whom I attributed them (on good authority). However, Mr. Robertson is clearly so well-informed in these matters that I think his correction should be accepted without reservation. Other information of historical value supplied by him is as follows: — B.600 was rigged with no dihedral on the mainplanes for experi ments in manceuvrability. These were carried out at Farnborough after the war, and the S.E.'s behaviour in flight was recorded by a cine-camera mounted in the observer's cockpit of a Bristol fighter. For comparison, similar photographic records were made of D.7022, which was rigged with the standard dihedral. In 1919, experiments were carried out with automatic landing apparatus, with S.E.s as the guinea-pigs. In that year, one was fitted with a device known as a Palethorpe skid. In the experiments with early variable-pitch airscrews, C.1091 was die test-bed, having an experimental airscrew fitted to its Viper engine. I share the regret, expressed by Lord Douglas of Kirtleside, that in the article no mention was made of No. 84 Squadron, but perhaps we may hope that Mr. Yoxall's able pen may one day remedy the omission. As I think I indicated twice, absolute completeness in a history of this kind would demand an enormous amount of space. It was with equal regret that I did not elaborate on the theme of Mannock. One final point that should be corrected is that the 80 h.p. Gnome rotary engine had only seven cylinders, not nine as stated on p. 85, July 17th. Birmingham, 32. J. M. BRUCE. Airliner Safety Equipment "THE article by Captain Lovelock, "Briefing the Passenger," in * your issue of July 31st, aired a subject which should long ago have been dealt with on a high official level. There was, however, an important omission, of which Capt. Lovelock was no doubt fully conscious—the question of dinghies. As he says, "Ships' lifeboats . . . have a comforting and reassuring look ; but what provision is made for the unfortunate air pas senger in this respect on so many aircraft which might end their flight in the sea? A lifejacket is an adjunct to a boat or raft, not a substitute; alone, it may merely defer an agonizing end except under the most favourable conditions. Those of us who have flown in the Services can appreciate the feeling among airline crews on this matter. Yet how much longer will the economics of airline operation remain powerful enough to defy the compulsory introduction of so elementary a safety precaution? Bradford-on-Avon. G. W. R. NlCHOLL. rTT J Lt.-Comdr, R.N. (retd.) [Under certain conditions (as laid down in this country by Air Navigation Regulations) the carriage of dinghies "of an approved type sufficient to accommodate all occupants of the aeroplane" is compulsory. Broadly speaking, the international standard laid down by I.C.A.O. requires dinghies only on over-water flights which take the aircraft more than 90-120 minutes' flying time from the shore.—ED.] Just a Part of the . . . F AM writing in order to congratulate Flight on a noteworthy x achievement. Wishing to obtain a copy of a photograph of a well-known pioneer of aviation which I had chanced to see in a copy of Flight of the year 1913,1 rang through on what I felt must be a forlorn hope, and was listened to most courteously. Within an hour or two I received a call to the effect that the negative had been traced and that a print was on its way to me. To be able, as it were almost in a moment, to move back from an age in which aeroplanes are flying faster than the speed of sound, to the gracious days of the Henry Farman biplane, reveals an organization which must be as flexible as it is comprehensive. London, W. 1. J. D. R. DA VIES, Commander, R.N. (retd.) "Maybug" Amendments TN our capacity as Auster distributors in Switzerland we always -*• take great interest in your publication Flight. Thus we came to read an article about "Entomological War in Switzerland" which appeared in your issue of August 14th. We must say, we were rather disappointed in this article due to the fact that geo graphical terms and also the name of the pilot were not accurate. Please let us point out the wrong ones: — Rhine Valley—It is quite obvious that the Rhine does not flow through the Canton Valais and that the Rhone Valley is meant. Sim—No place in Switzerland carries this name. Most prob ably mis should have read Sion, which is quite an important air port in our country and, when Zurich or Geneva lie in fog, is also used as a subsidiary air base by Swissair and B.E.A. Aix-les Bains—This is a tourist resort in France and not in Switzerland. You surely meant either Bex or Aigle, two small air bases in the Canton Valais. ["Bex" was intended—Ed.] As far as the commandant of the team's base at Sion is con cerned, his name is spelled Geiger, and not Geizer. Zurich. J. H. KELLER Ac Sept.11-13. Sept. Sept. Sept. Sept. 11 12 13 H Sept.14-17 Sept. Sept. Sept. Sept. Sept. 16 19 19 iD to. Sept.23-24 Sept. Sept. Oct. 24. 26. 8. FORTHCOMING EVENTS S.B.A.C. Farnborough Display and Exhibition: Public Days (Public premiere, Friday, 11th). Helicopter Association of Great Britain: Annual Dinner. "At Home,'* R.N. Air Station Egtinton. Saar Aero Club: International Balloon Rally. R.Ae.S. Wilbur Wright Memorial Lecture: "Structures," by Prof. N. J. Hoff, F.R.Ae.S., F.I.Ae.S. R.Ae.S. and I.Ae.S.: Anglo-American Aeronautical Conference. Battle of Britain Day. "At Home," R.N. Air Station Abbotsinch. R.A.F. At-Home Day. St. Albans Model Aero Club: All-Britain Rally, Radlett. Aero Club de Milan: Milan Grand Prix. Aerodrome Owners' Association: Annual Conference, New* castle-u pon-Ty ne. City of Coventry Freemen's Guild: Lecture "Development of Armstrong Siddeley Gas-turbine Engines/' by W. H. Lindsey, M.A., F.R.Ae.S. R.A.F.A. Stansted Branch: Air Display, Stansted Airfield. Start of England-Christchurch (N.Z.) Air Race. H
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