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Aviation History
1956
1956 - 0067.PDF
20 January 1956 67 HULLO THERE! At the recent Kenya Air Show at Kitale (to be fully reported in our next issue) was a Hunting Percival Pembroke, equipped for "sky-shouting" and seen here with F/L. R. H. Anders, S/L. K Bowhill, O.B.E., and F/L. H. Bowness, all of Eastleigh, Nairobi. at 4,250 units compared with 3,071 in 1954. Dollar volume ofutility aircraft sales was estimated at close to $75m compared with 1954 sales of $43,400,000. Although proportionally there was agreater increase in dollar volume than in units produced, this did not reflect a great increase in unit prices. Basically, it resultedfrom the fact that larger and heavier aircraft, notably twin-engined types, had been in great demand, with sales of those types morethan doubling the 1954 figure. Although there was a slight decrease in the number of com-mercial transports delivered—from 291 in 1954 to an estimated 280 units for the past year—sales of American-made transportscontinued to lead all other nations. Employment was at a fairly stable level throughout the year,averaging about 750,000 per month. Hourly earnings increased from $2.08 in 1954 to $2.19 by September 1955, and the trendwas for continued increases. The total annual wages in 1955 should exceed $401,000m. If employees of larger sub-contractorsand suppliers were included, the total aircraft production work force would probably be well over the million mark. A comparison of the top five employers showed that the aircraftindustry was the second largest employer. The automobile indus- try, with employment averaging 910,000, was in first place; steelmills, rolling mills, and blast furnaces, with 628,000 on the pay- rolls, occupied third position; communications equipment manu-facturers were fourth with 502,000; and manufacturers of cotton and rayon fabrics fifth with 467,000. The aircraft manufacturingindustry was the largest single employer of engineers and scientific talent, and one out of every eleven workers in the aircraft industrywas employed in engineering activities compared with the one to twenty-five ratio of World War 2. During 1956 dollar volume of sales was expected to exceed againthe $8,000m mark despite the anticipated continued decline in unit deliveries of military aircraft. An estimate of military productionwould be slightly less than 8,000 units. From the standpoint of total industry effort, however, the military aircraft productiondecline would be largely offset by increased deliveries of guided missiles.At the end of September 1955 the industry had unfilled orders on their books in the amount of $13,900m as compared with abacklog of $14,900m at the end of calendar year 1954. In part, the decline in the industry's backlog was explained by delay in theplacement of orders for new military aircraft during the past year. American Transports for R.A.A.F.? 'THE Australian Government may soon place an order in the•*• United States for at least a squadron of medium transport aircraft. They are needed to replace Dakotas, and they will not beConvair 440s, two of which type were recently acquired. They might well be Fairchild (Chase) C-123s. It is reported that theR.A.A.F. is anxious to standardize its transport squadrons on American aircraft, as it believes that supplies would more easilybe obtainable in time of war from America than from Britain. Pipers for New Zealand ACCORDING to a Wellington, N.Z., correspondent, the New** Zealand Government has approved the importing of 24 Piper aircraft at a cost of "at least £70,000." One of the machinesis a twin-engined Apache which will be employed by the Civil Aviation Administration for inspecting airport facilities through-out the Dominion. Of the remainder, 17 will be used in agricul- tural work. Before receiving a New Zealand C. of A., adds ourcorrespondent, they will be modified to enable them to jettison their load in 5 sec. St. Clement Danes Appeal pURTHER details of the plan to rebuild the church of St.*- Clement Danes, London, as a central church of the Royal Air Force have been given by the Air Ministry. An appeal for £125,000towards the project has been launched; other sources contributing to the cost are war-damage payments and the Pennington-Bickfordbequest. The church as known today was built by Christopher Wren in1680-82, the Gibbs steeple being added in 1719. In 1941 it was nit by incendiary bombs during a German air raid and was gutted,only the shell of the building remaining on the church's island site in the Strand. By agreement between the Diocese of Londonand the Air Council, the church is now to be restored, to Wren's design, for the use of the R.A.F. and its associated forces.The names of more than 125,000 British, Commonwealth, Allied men and women who died on active service with the R.A.F.,W.R.A.F., R.F.C., and R.N.A.S. will be commemorated in ten Books of Remembrance, which are to be placed under the tenaisle windows of the chancel and nave, and which will form a complete roll of honour The heraldic badges of R.A.F. Commandsand squadrons are to be incorporated in the floor of the nave. The famous "oranges and lemons" bells of St. Clement's were,with one exception, severely damaged in the fire of 1941, but it has been found possible to recast them. The 1588 Sanctus bell,the oldest, was the only one to escape damage, and it will be returned to the church in its original condition. Donations towards the restoration fund should be addressed toThe Hon. Treasurer, St. Clement Danes (R.A.F.) Appeal Fund, Lloyds Bank, Ltd., 222 Strand, London, W.C.2. Fastest Turboprop Transport ""THE first of two Lockheed YC-121F Super Constellations has-*• been delivered to the U.S.A.F. and has begun its crew-training programme. Powered by four 5,700 h.p. Pratt and Whitney T34s,the YC-121F can cruise at more than 420 m.p.h. and could carry, it is claimed, 32,000-lb loads non-stop from London to Dakar(2,800 miles) in 7 hr. Maximum loads are 106 passengers or 36,000 lb of cargo. Two sister aircraft, designated R7V-2, are nowbeing flight-tested prior to delivery to the U.S. Navy. Radio-Sonde at 103,000ft NOW being tested by the Meteorological Office, a new type ofradio-sonde balloon is reaching average heights some 30,000ft greater than those achieved by present standard balloons. Thehighest altitude so far recorded is 103,000ft (about 19J miles). The balloons carry instruments which provide observations of pressure,humidity, temperature and wind force in the upper atmosphere, and are equipped with radar reflectors to assist in tracking. Sincelast autumn four have been released daily—two from Leuchars, Fife, and two from Crawley, Sussex—and trials are still progress-ing. The average height reached by nearly 200 balloons has been 80,900ft and eight have ascended to more than 100,000ft. Moreimportant still, the balloons have shown a marked consistency and few of them have burst before reaching useful heights. Diameter is 7ft and weight 44 oz, whereas the older typemeasured 6ft in diameter and weighed 17J oz. Experiments with even larger balloons, weighing 70 oz, have indicated that merelyto increase the size without careful consideration is disproportion- ately expensive and results in a slower rate of ascent. B-57s in Japan THE commander of the U.S. 3rd Light Bombardment Wing,Col. Cecil P. Lessing, has stated that the Martin B-57s (English Electric Canberra licence) recently arrived in Tokyo would haveas their war-task the destruction of the enemy airfields now being built for Communist jet fighters and bombers. When conversionfrom B-26s is completed, added the colonel, the Tokyo force will have 45 of the new jet bombers. Col. Lessing is also on record assaying that in the Far East the Western air forces were out- numbered by two to one by Communist forces, though despitethis situation the striking power of the West was far greater because of superior training and better equipment. National Air Races, 1956 DATES of this year's National Air Races, announced by theRoyal Aero Club, are: first and second rounds, Whit Monday, May 21st, at Yeadon Aerodrome (in connection with Yeadon AeroClub); third round (including Kine's Cup Air Race), Saturday, July 21st, at Baginton Aerodrome, Coventry (in conjunction with
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