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Aviation History
1955
1955 - 1759.PDF
882 FLIGHT CIVIL AVIATION ... FRIENDSHIP TRIALS UNDER WAY A S recorded in last week's issue of Flight, the prototype Fokker**• F.27 Friendship, PH-NIV, made a successful maiden flight at Schiphol on November 24th in the hands of Hugo Burgerhout. ADutch correspondent reports that the second prototype is due to fly next year and that initial production of a batch of 50 aircraftwill start in 1957. Fairchild are said to be examining the possibility of building the Friendship under licence in America,and among die airlines reported to be interested (K.L.M., with an order for two, are the first customer) are Western, Continental,and Trans-Australia. During the first flight (see the photograph above), which lasted 34 minutes, the Friendship reached a speedof 130 m.p.h. (normal cruising 270 m.p.h.) and climbed to 3,000ft. "The noise of the 'plane," observed test pilot Hugo Burgerhoutafterwards, "is very nice." CHARLIE BACK, BUT ALFA STAYS ^ ANOTHER chapter in the long, long story of the I.C.A.O.• phonetic alphabet for aircraft communications begins with last month's announcement that the Council of I.C.A.O. haveadopted five new words. Studies in America, Britain and Canada are said to have shown that the same five words—Coca, Metro,Nectar, Union and Extra (representing X, not E)—were causing confusion. After much study, the following substitutes wereselected: Charlie, Mike, November, Uniform and X-ray. Unless a majority of I.C.A.O.'s 66 member-states objects, the new wordswill become part of the standard international phonetic alphabet from March 1st next year. As modified, the I.C.A.O. alphabet will read as follows: Alfa,Bravo, Charlie, Delta, Echo, Foxtrot, Golf, Hotel, India, Juliett, Kilo, Lima, Mike, November, Oscar, Papa, Quebec, Romeo,Sierra, Tango, Uniform, Victor, Whiskey, X-ray, Yankee, Zulu. The introduction of the I.C.A.O. alphabet, the organizationadmits, brought a "storm of criticism from many sources, and in particular from the pilot associations." Part of the pilots' criticismwas based on the argument that their associations had not been fully consulted by I.C.A.O. on the composition of the new alphabet.Their dislike of Alfa Bravo was further increased by cases of con- fusion arising from the use, in different regions, of both alphabets—even, on occasions, of a blend of the two. A majority of The first air-to-air picture to reach us of the Fokker Friendship, secured during its maiden flight on November 24th, while not the most flattering portrayal of the handsome Dutch merchantman, emphasizes the high-aspect ratio wing and large tail volume. The aircraft was aloft for the usual first-flight time of about half an hour. countries outside the British Commonwealth, however, have nowadopted Alfa Bravo, and the modifications reported above will probably result in the ultimate extinction of Able Baker. Under present British regulations, pilots are permitted to usethe latter alphabet whenever, in their opinion, dangerous con- fusion might arise from die use of Alfa Bravo. In practice, theoriginal alphabet is still used whenever possible by British pilots. SEABOARD APPOINTMENT FORMERLY with B.O.A.C. in New York, Mr. Alastair Thom-son has joined Seaboard and Western Airlines in the new post of commercial manager. Mr. Thomson, a native of Scotland,managed a river steamship company in Burma for ten years before joining Imperial Airways in 1935. He served with B.O.A.C. fromits inception in a series of overseas appointments, culminating in that of commercial manager (North America). "Sure it's a big mod.—this is a competitive business." CHEAPER NIGHT FARESR EDUCED night fares to several European destinations will be introduced next April, when the 1956 summer fares come into effect. On the London-Paris route, the return fare will be reduced from £12 to £10 and on die London-Brussels route the return fare will be reduced by £2 10s to £9 10s—the cheapest fare on this route since die war. Week-day night fares to destina- tions in Switzerland, the South of France, Majorca and Milan will be cut by up to £3 10s. All these reductions, however, will to some extent be offset by increases of about 10 per cent in first-class fares. MR. MASEFIELD ON THE V.T.O. C PEAKING at County Hall, London, on December 1st, as the^ president of the Institute of Transport, Mr. Peter Masefield predicted that commercial airliners would exceed the speed ofsound by 1970 and that by the turn of the century vertical take-off aircraft would reduce travel time from London to Edinburgh to15 minutes. Making a strong plea for the development of 150 m.p.h. mono-rail transport between cities and airports, Mr. Masefield suggested that the cost of building such a system between London Airportand Westminster—about Elm per mile—would pay for itself within a reasonable time, carrying about eight million passengersper year at a return fare of 5s 6d. Mr. Masefield—himself now a helicopter manufacturer—defined today's helicopter during his address: "It is like a pretty girl, small, exciting, noisy and pretty to look at, and very niceto be seen about with, but the more you take it out the more it costs you." HIGH-EFFICIENCY NAVIGATION LIGHTS r^EVELOPED by Capt. William Atkins of Northwest Air--'-' lines, a completely new type of aircraft navigation light ss under evaluation tests by the company. Known as the Atkinsanti-collision light, the new device has high-intensity strobo- scopic, capacity-discharge type lamps of such power that the A B.V/.I.A. Viscount, which as recounted on the opposite page has /rst inaugurated passenger services in the West Indies, touched down «t Maiquetia Airport, Venezuela, en route between Trinidad and Jamai i- This was Venezuela's first glimpse of the Viscount, which will n xt year be in service with L.A.V.
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