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Aviation History
1953
1953 - 1697.PDF
FLIGHT, 25 December 1953 851 CIVIL AVIATION KITTY HAWK TO COMET /~\NE of Flight's staff set off from our offices »~* in Central London at about 10 a.m. on die morning of December 17th. By 4.30 p.m. that afternoon he was back at his desk after making a flight of about 1,300 miles from Lon don Airport. Such a journey is no longer spectacular in itself, but to us it seemed a fair example of the degree of progress made since the first powered, controlled and sustained flight precisely 50 years earlier. The occasion, timed to coincide with the Wright anniversary, was the formal inaugura tion of B.O.A.C.'s upper-air trials over the North Atlantic. These flights, which will be continued in 1954 with a Comet 2, are intended to facilitate intimate study of wind, temperature and cloud conditions at heights of around 40,000ft; to assess the degree of icing which can be expected; and to evolve navigation and control procedures. There will also be take-offs and landings on ice-covered runways at such airports as Gander and Keflavik. The first flight of the series was made by a Comet I—G-ALYS, commanded by Captain T. B. Stoney; his crew consisted of 1st Off. K. Emmott, Nav. Off. G. G. King, Rad. Off. D. H. Kelly, Eng. Off. S. L. Bolton, Steward D. Newfield and Stewardesses D. Furness and M. Osborn. Among the passengers were the manager of the Comet fleet, Capt. M. J. R. Alderson, and two meteorologists—Mr. E. Chambers, met. superintendent of B.O.A.C, and Mr. R. H. Eldridge, an M.T.C.A. forecaster at London Airport. Unfortunately from the meteorological viewpoint, the flight, which lasted 3| hr, was made in uninteresting weather conditions, and no significant winds were encountered, although the Comet reached a height of 40,000ft. After climbing steeply through the thick industrial haze which blanketed London and a broken layer of stratocumulus, the Comet cruised westward in relatively clear and smooth air. Frequent fixes and ten-minute temperature recordings were made during the journey to and from a point within V.H.F. range of weathership "J" at 5242N 2000W—500 miles off the west coast of Eire. Slight "cobblestone" bumps were encountered on both the outward and return legs at cruising height —possibly during the transition from troposphere to stratosphere. Although otherwise uneventful, the trip was an impressive reminder of the Comet's unmatched performance, reassuring smoothness and extreme comfort. NO CONFIRMATION: Possibly taken from an early brochure prepared by the manufacturer for operators, these drawings and figures accom panied a recent American Aviation story on the Boeing 707 transport. A cable to Boeing for first-hand information brought us the firm reply that "We've released nothing official on the 707; consequently are not confirming nor denying material..." SURVEYOR: This Percival Survey Prince of Hunting Aerosurveys was itself photographed at work over East Africa. Note the magnetometer installation in the tail. SCHIPHOL'S NEW APPROACH LIGHTS H AVING flown last week from Schipol in poor visibility, the Editor speaks highly of the airport's new approach lighting system (illustrated overleaf). Although fully meeting I.C.A.O. requirements, the system was specially developed for Schiphol by a team of representatives from the Government, the Municipal Electric Works of Amsterdam, K.L.M., the Philips Works and the airport management. Total cost was in the region of £19,000, 60 per cent contributed by the Government and 40 per cent by the municipality. The design has been described as combining features of the British Calvert and American A.L.P.A. systems. The Schiphol approach lights extend for 3,000ft along the extended centre-line of runway 23, ending 55ft short of the threshold. The six cross-bars are set at 500ft intervals along the centre-line; a total of 410 Philips floodlights, each of 100,000 c.p. maximum intensity, are used. The cross-bar 1,000ft short of the threshold has red lights ana the remainder are clear. At the aiming-point, 750ft from the threshold and coinciding with the I.L.S. reference point, there are white-painted rectangles illumi nated by green lights. An important feature of the system is the infinite variation of intensity which can be made to suit visibility conditions. To assist the controller to gauge the intensity required, repeater lights are set 1,500ft from Schiphol's tower; in addition, R/T-equipped observers make periodic reports on the runway visual range. Pilots can have the intensity of the lights adjusted on request, and a Dutch correspondent says that they will eventually be able to control intensity by radio from the cockpit. Mr. Dallaert, airport manager, estimates that the new lights will reduce by 20 per cent the number of movements cancelled annually (about 500) because of poor visibility. AIR WORK'S TOWN TERMINAL A NEW town terminal for air passengers to and from London **• was opened on December 16th. It is the Brompton Air Station of Airwork, Ltd., and is located opposite the Oratory at 249 Brompton Road, London, S.W. The step to provide the company's own terminal was taken because of the heavy traffic load on the city's three main air-travel centres (those of B.E.A. at Waterloo, B.O.A.C. at Victoria and K.L.M. in Sloane Street). The new two-floor terminal is actually the nearest of the four to London Airport, Northolt and Blackbushe and is decorated in modern style. The usual passenger-handling facilities are pro vided and a refreshment bar is included. TRANSATLANTIC HERMES? /"\THER news of Airwork's activities has come from American ^-' sources, which say that the British company proposes to inaugurate twice-weekly freight services between London and New York with Hermes aircraft. These would be replaced later by DC-6As. According to American Aviation Daily, Airwork's application to the C.A.B. (British government approval has already been given) mentioned an estimated loss of £42,000 using the Hermes, compared with an annual profit of £230,000 with the DC-6A. An order for the American freighters depends upon award of the C.A.B. permit. Although not officially confirmed in London, the report is believed to be substantially correct.
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