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Aviation History
1954
1954 - 2470.PDF
FLIGHT, 3 September 1954 339 Power plant Span Length Max. speed .. Gross weight Alvis Leonides 501 4 49ft 9in 34ft 6in .162 m.p.h. 5,400 lb SCOTTISH AVIATION PIONEER 2 For the past year, the R.A.F. has been using Pioneers on ambulance/communication duties in Malaya, where their ability to operate from short airstrips has been of tremendous value. For a normal take-off or landing run, a 50 yd surface is sufficient, and the distance required to clear a 50ft obstacle is only 180 yd. The Pioneer achieves its remarkable performance with the aid of full-span slats and Fowler-type flaps, operated by a single control; trimming is effected with a variable-incidence tailplane, electrically actuated and operated by push switches en the control column. Construction is all-metal, and the Pioneer is designed to operate in any climate. The Mk 2 has a 550 h.p. Alvis Leonides engine, but other units, such as the Gipsy Queen 70 or Wasp Junior, can be installed without difficulty. In standard Leonides-powered form the Pioneer carries a payload of pilot plus four passengers and baggage over a distance of 400 miles at 120 m.p.h.. and has the remarkable speed-range of 36-162 m.p.h. Pioneers were delivered direct to the R^.F. in Malaya without undergoing the usual Service performance and handling trials—a remarkable tribute to the reliability and simplicity of this Scottish aircraft. Data and experi ence derived from the testing and operation of the Pioneer have been utilized in die design of the Twin Pioneer, described below. Power plant Span Length Max. speed ,. Gross weight Two Alvis Leonides 502/1 76ft 6in 45ft lin . . 180 m.p.h. 13,500 lb SCOTTISH AVIATION TWIN PIONEER The appropriate registration G-ANTP has been allocated to the Twin Pioneer prototype, which should be ready for its first flight within a few weeks. Much of its construction has been undertaken on production tooling, and although the decision to follow this procedure prevents the aircraft from appear ing at Farnborough, it should gready expedite production. A "measure of Government sup port" is being given to the Twin Pioneer, a 14/16-seater airliner embodying the outstanding features of its single-engined predecessor—simple, metal construction and exceptional small- field performance. Its ability to "unstick" in only 100 yd should enable the Twin Pioneer to bring the benefits of scheduled air transport to many isolated parts of the world, and its progress is being closely watched by many operators forced by geographical conditions to use smaller and less economic types of aircraft. For a machine of such capacity, the proposed cost of £35,000 appears extremely attractive. The Twin Pioneer will be capable of one-man operation, although it has built-in provision for a second crew member. Designed speed-range is 48-180 m.p.h., and the aircraft is intended to operate stages of up to 500-miles with a full passenger complement.
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