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Aviation History
1956
1956 - 0206.PDF
204 FROM ALL QUARTERS Guided Missile in Production IIMITED production of a guided missile called Fireflash isJ now beginning, according to a statement issued by the Ministry of Supply. The weapon has been developed by theFairey Aviation Company and is designed to be carried "as part of the armament of a piloted aircraft". Solid-fuel rocket motorsboost it to supersonic speed and the warhead is fired by a proximity fuse. First deliveries are to be made during the comingfinancial year. The Fireflash will thus become the first air-to-air guidedmissile to be delivered to the Service in numbers and will pro- vide first-hand experience in the use of this new kind of weapon.Its introduction will herald considerable changes in interception technique, since a fighter pilot will eventually be relieved ofthe necessity for manoeuvring his aircraft in order to bring his guns to bear. The missile can be launched from ranges greaterthan those of aircraft cannon and will be far more lethal. No information has been released on the type of guidancewith which Fireflash is equipped—whether it has "active" or "passive" capability—but the presence of a proximity fuse sug-gests an accuracy giving less than the certainty of a direct hit. This in its turn suggests a guidance system requiring skillin aiming by the pilot—i.e., the "beam riding" method. Fireflash is stated to be available for export. Later the Fairey company issued a denial of newspaper re-ports that the missile could not be carried by the Hunter; it was, in fact, being fitted and would shortly be available fortrials. The company added that there was "no fundamental reason why the Fireflash cannot be fitted to other fighter air-craft". : -,:;-.. . •• -, Oryx Type-tested IT was recently announced by D. Napier and Son, Ltd., thatthe Oryx turbo gas generator has passed the M.o.S. type test at a rating of 780 gas h.p. As far as is known, this is the firsthelicopter gas turbine to have been type-tested anywhere. The Oryx is a neat single-shaft unit in which surplus turbine-shaft power is used to drive an auxiliary compressor. The air delivered from the latter is mixed with the efflux from the restof the engine to produce a supply of hot, compressed gas suit- able for helicopter tip drive. Over 2,500 hr bench running have so far been completed andtwo Oryx are soon to fly in the Hunting Percival P.74. SPEAKING THE SAME LANGUAGE at Bristol are, I. to r., Mr. E. Wellwood Beall (senior vice-president, Boeing Airplane Company), Mr. K. J. Luplow (Boeing foreign sales), Mr. C. F. Uwins (chairman, Bristol Aircraft, Ltd.—partly obscured behind the main jack) and Dr. A. E. Russell (chief engineer, Bristol Aircraft, Ltd.). Mr. Wellwood Beall—here examining the Britannia undercarriage—discussed the Olympus turbojet as a possible engine for the Boeing 707 transport. PILOT AND NAVIGATOR of the English Electric Canberra B.8 which, as described on this page, flew from Farnborough to Cairo in 3 hr 59 min, were (left) Mr. Peter Hillwood and Mr. D. A. Watson. The Canberra had a new nose-window on the starboard side. Cairo in Four Hours LAST week a production English Electric Canberra B(I).8 was* officially timed by the Royal Aero Club on a non-stop flight from England to Egypt on its way to Aden for M.o.S. tropicaltrials. The record leg was from Farnborough, Hants, to Cairo International Airport; provisional time for the 2,200 statute mileswas 3 hr 59 min, representing an average speed of 553 m.p.h. The flight took place on Thursday, February 16th. Pilot andnavigator were respectively Mr. Peter Hillwood and Mr. D. A. Watson of the English Electric Company (who, with Mr. R. P.Beamont, were the crew on the Canberra's first double Atlantic crossing on August 26th, 1952). The aircraft (which was thatillustrated on pages 180-1 last week) was prepared by a company ground crew under Mr. Douglas Potter, who supervised the rapidturn-round of the Hackett-Moneypenny Canberra in New York last year. The R.A.E., whose airfield was employed, providedwhole-hearted co-operation. Well before dawn at 05.30 the met. briefing was held, andreasonably fair weather was promised; the forecast was firm and was found to hold in practice, as is described below. Groundtemperature at Farnborough was well below freezing and, as the aircraft had been left out over the previous night, it was defrostedby washing down with wood-alcohol. No snags were encountered and at dawn Peter Hillwood cameout and ran up both the Rolls-Royce Avons. The aircraft was then topped-up and started in earnest. After a run of about1,000yd the Canberra was put into a very tight turn and brought back over the starting line at the control tower within one minute.It was then estimated to be at 300ft at 450 kt and was soon lost to sight on a south-easterly heading. Visibility in the periodimmediately after dawn was estimated at 20 miles. Time-keeper and observer for the R.Ae.C. were Philip Mayne and MauriceImray, respectively. At the briefing the route was specified as: vicinity of East-bourne; Berck-sur-mer (130 st.m. in 15 min); Rheims (230 st. m. in 35 min); Basle (460 st.m. in 55 min); Verona (750 st. m. in1 hr 20 min); vicinity of Brindisi (1,160 st.m. in 2 hr 20 min); Crete (1,730 st.m. in 3 hr 25 min) and thence over Alexandria to (continued at foot of opposite page) "FLIGHT" As the continuance of the dispute in the printing trade necessitates amendments to printing schedules, this issue is reduced in size and copies may be late in reaching readers. To all who are inconvenienced in any way we offer our sincere regrets in circumstances beyond our control.
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