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Aviation History
1954
1954 - 2362.PDF
27 August 1954 279 P ;<--•• Armstrong Siddeley Viper Sp»n 19ft Length 23ft 3fin AUSTRALIA Thtee 145 h.p. DJH. Gipsy Major 10 Sp*n 57ft Length 36ft 2in Grow weight 6300 lb Cruising «peed . about 130 m.p.h. D.A.P. JINDIVIK In order to shorten development time of this pilotless aircraft, a piloted version was first built, powered by an Armstrong Siddeley Adder turbojet, and fitted with a conventional land undercarriage. This was the first Australian-designed jet aircraft to fly (in October 1950) and, with the name Pika, has since been built in limited numbers and has proved most valuable in assisting development of die Jindivik. Two types of Jindivik have been developed, the Adder-powered Mk 1 (12 built) illustrated above and die Viper-powered Mk 2, shown in the drawing. Engine air is taken in above the fuselage, behind the equipment bay in the nose. The take-off is effected from a special trolley, the landing being made on a retractable belly skid. Control is effected by a radio receiver, interpreter and auto-pilot, with a transponder to increase the range at which the aircraft can be tracked. British auto-stabilizing equipment is fitted; firms involved include McMichael and Elliott Brothers. Construction is all metal, and particular emphasis has been placed on ease and cheapness of manufacture and assembly and metal-to-metal glueing is employed. The wing has no sweep, but the thickness/chord ratio was no more than 10 per cent in the Jindivik Mk 1 and has been reduced to six per cent in the Jindivik Mk 2, the latter also having the much more powerful Armstrong Siddeley Viper turbojet. As a result the Mk 2 is almost transonic Production Jindiviks arc used at the L.R.W.E. Woomera, and developed Jindiviks are expected to remain in production for some years. DE HAVILLAND DROVER D.H. Australia's only post-war design is the D.H A J Drover, the prototype of which first flew in 1948. Limited production began the fdd&sving year and the first Drover to go into service began its working life as a freighter in New G&inea on the strength of Qantas Empire Airways. The Drover is almost unique in being a post-war three-engined aircraft. The power slinits are D.H. Gipsy Major 10s and, although they were originally intended to drive v.p. airscrews, these proved unsatisfactory and Drovers now have Fairey-Reed fixed-pitch metal airscrews. To regain the good take-off and climb, double-slotted flaps are being fitted. Cruising speed will probably be little impaired when modification is completed. The wing and much of the fuselage structure are, basically, almost identical with those of the.Dove; the undercarriage, however, is of the tailwheel variety and is fixed. This has permitted hydraulic and pneumatic services to be eliminated, and only the most elementary electrical system is required. * The cabin is fitted to accommodate up to eight passengers, although most Drover operations concern the carriage of freight or ambulance patients. It is, in faa, in the Flying Doctor Service operated by Trans-Australia Airlines that the Drover is finding itself particularly valuable. Two stretcher patients can normally be carried, with medical attendants and equipment, including a sink. Compared with previous Flying Doctor aircraft, the Drover is proving very popular on account of its ability to climb to some 12,000ft if necessary, so ayoiding turbulence and enabling the patient to sleep.
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