FlightGlobal.com
Home
Premium
Archive
Video
Images
Forum
Atlas
Blogs
Jobs
Shop
RSS
Email Newsletters
You are in:
Home
Aviation History
1954
1954 - 1482.PDF
FLIGHT, 21 May 1954 649 DE HAVILLAND COMET 3 • The prototype Comet 3 ordered by the Ministry of Supply is fast approaching completion. Earlier this month it was wheeled out of its assembly hangar at Hatfield for initial running of die four Avon turbojets (new civil versions developing well over 9,000 lb thrust). B.O.A.C.'s first order for Comet 3s is intended to provide the airline with a nucleus of five aircraft for high-speed Atlantic services. Pan American have ordered three more and Air India International hope to take delivery of three in 1957. Options exist for further Series 3s. While retaining the basic systems and structural features of the Comet 2, die new version is 15ft longer in the fuselage, pro viding additional seating capacity for a total of 58 first-class passengers or 78 tourist. By means of nacelle-like external tanks, fuel capacity is raised from 6,900 to 8,050 Imperial gallons; the extra fuel capacity and improved engine economy raise the practical stage-length by about 25 per cent to 2,700 miles. The Comet 3's cruising speed (500 m.p.h.) and improved payload result in an exceptional work capacity; this is graphically illus trated by the de Havilland statement that "assuming an annual utilization of 3,000 hours, a fleet of five Series 3 Comets will be able to transport more than 97,000 passengers between Europe and the United States in a year, which is more than would be carried by the Queen Mary in the 46 single crossings which the liner normally makes in a 12 month period." Comet 3 (four Avon, total 40,000 lb s.t.).—Span, 115ft; length, 111ft 6in; take-off weight, 145,000 lb; wing loading, 72 Ib/sq ft; take-off distance, 7,000ft; passenger capacity, 58-78; typical performance, 500 m.p.h. for 2,700 miles at 40,000ft with 17,500 lb payload. DOUGLAS DC-6 • Development of the renowned DC-6 series of transports has been continuous for the past nine years and some 400 have been delivered to the airlines. First used on American domestic services in 1947, the original DC-6 was basically a much modified DC-4, with improved structure, more powerful engines, pressure cabin, improved interior design and a 7ft 8in increase in fuselage length. The addition of a further 5ft produced, in 1949, the DC :6A Liftmaster, an all-freight machine used by American Airlines and K.L.M. and due for early delivery to Sabena and P.A.A. This aircraft in its turn was developed for passenger work as the DC-6B, of which about 150 Handley Page Hermes IV (Airwork). DOUGLAS DC-7 * Latest, fastest and most capacious of long-range transports to enter service, the DC-7 represents a still further improvement of the long-established DC-6 series. It was first operated late in 1953 by American Airlines, who were originally responsible, two years earlier, for suggesting to Douglas the formula which produced the DC-7. The idea was to increase the performance of the DC-6B by substituting 3,250 h.p. Wright Turbo-Compound engines for the 2,500 h.p. Pratt and Whitney R-2800s. As a result, gross weight has been increased from 107,000 to 122,000 lb; the fuselage length is up by 3ft 4in and cruising speed has been boosted from 315 m.p.h. to a maximum of 360 m.p.h. at 25,000ft. Other improvements include a freon air-conditioning system, extensive use of titanium sheet in the engine nacelles and incorporation of a main undercarriage which can be extended as a speed brake at indicated air-speeds of up to 300 m.p.h. Seven airlines have ordered a total of 88 DC-7s, of which more than a third have been delivered at the time of writing. Douglas quote late 1955 as the delivery date for a DC-7 ordered today. The price of one aircraft with spares is more than $2m —about four times die cost of the DC-4. DC-7 (four R-3350 Turbo-Compound, total 13,000 h.p.).—Span, 117ft 6in; length, 108ft llin; take-off weight, 122,000 lb; wing loading, 84 lb/sq ft; take-off distance, 5,870ft; passenger capacity, 64-95; typical performance, 353 m.p.h. for 3,050 miles at 23,500ft widi 17,225 lb payload. Douglas DC-7 United Air Lines). Douglas DC-6B (National Airlines). have been delivered to 17 different operators. Yet another ver sion, which has not so far been taken up by the airline industry, is the DC-6C, a dual-role model combining the large cargo doors and strengthened floor of the -6A with seating capacity for up to 76 passengers. It can be quickly converted from the one version to the other and has a movable bulkhead to separate the cargo and passengers when both classes of payload are carried. The all-freight Liftmaster carries up to 15 tons of cargo, or about 12 tons on transatlantic routes, and the "B" high-density version accommodates 87 people. Specifications vary throughout the DC-6 series and the data below are for one of the most up-to-date versions, as supplied to P.A.A. DC-6B (four R-2800 CB17, total 10,000 h.p.).—Span, 117ft 6in; length, 105ft 7in; take-off weight, 107,000 lb; wing loading, 73.1 lb/sq ft; take-off distance, 5,998ft; passenger capacity, 56-82; typical perform ance 313 m ph. for 2,900 miles at 22,500ft with 14,000 lb payload.
Sign up to
Flight Digital Magazine
Flight Print Magazine
Airline Business Magazine
E-newsletters
RSS
Events
