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Aviation History
1956
1956 - 0429.PDF
PLIGHT, 13 April 1956 429 gradually Albacores of 828 Sqn., which arrived about August1941, were taken over, this squadron being disbanded. By June 1943 only about three or four aircraft of each type were left. As our squadron moved about this time, my memories of 830end; probably it was disbanded. Moving back to Hal-Far four months later, only one Swordfish was left, and this was flownby the R.A.F. for A.S.R. duties. Abingdon, Berks. y - ~. : K. Cox. "Simplication" DisclaimedI N your notice on the death of Bill Stout, I notice you attributeto him the phrase "Simplicate and add more lightness." If you will refer to his book So I Went Away you will find, atpage 135, that he disclaims the invention of the expression. London, W.I. F. H. SMITH, "-••"-'• _".'•• Librarian, Royal Aeronautical Society. Veteran DC-3sW ITH reference to Dennis M. Powell's letter in your March23rd issue: I would like to point out that Pakistan Inter- national Airlines took over only two Convair 240s from OrientAirways, and not three as Mr. Powell states. AP-AEG, the third one, crashed on March 16th, 1953, in Kalasahar. B.A.O.R. 19. P. W. VOLLBORTH. Rank Heresy?I WAS surprised to see in your report on Service pay increases(Flight, March 2nd) the use of the term "other ranks" applied to personnel of the Royal Air Force below officer status. Queen's Regulations for the R.A.F. define personnel of and below the rankof Warrant Officer as airmen (airwomen in the case of the W.R.A.F.).I believe that at a time when the Service is making serious efforts to boost regular recruiting the term "airmen" may be bettercalculated to appeal to self-respect and give an increased sense of "belonging" than does the British Army expression "other ranks"•—a term which must always convey a feeling of inferiority. Oslo, Norway. R. F. KENDALL,. .•!. .:::-• Flight Sergeant, R.A.F. "Collectors' Items" T FOUND the pictorial pages entitled "Collectors' Items"•*• (March 23rd) extremely interesting, particularly the Sunbeam biplane and Handley Page R.100. Mr. J. M. Bruce may beinterested to know that I have a print of Grain Griffin N100, with a normal-type fin and rudder in place of the horn-balancedexample. Birmingham 14. ..::.. MAURICE AUSTIN. Long-service Chief Inspectors TIflTH reference to the news item "Veteran Chief Inspector"T " in Flight of March 23rd: I do not wish in any way to detract from the long service of Mr. Johns as chief inspector at Vickers-Armstrongs (Aircraft), Ltd., Supermarine Works, but just to draw your attention that this long service of his does not consti-tute a record in the industry, as is suggested might be the case. I just pip Mr. Johns by one year, having seryed as chief inspectorwith the Westland Aircraft Company, Yeovil, for 27 years. Yeovil. R. B. BRIGHAM. THE MANUFACTURE OF BULLET-PROOF GLASS ""THE manufacture of bullet-proof glass for aircraft has long been •*• a speciality of the Triplex Safety Glass Company, Ltd., one of whose factories is at King's Norton, Birmingham. There a group of test pilots was recently shown the manufacture of the bullet-proof glazed units being supplied for the majority of aircraft now in R.A.F. and F.A.A. service. Although the processes of toughening and assembly of windows have not greatly altered in the past few years, the purpose of the strengthening has to some degree changed. No longer is resistance to gunfire the primary objective. Resistance to skin- friction heating, and to internal loads from pressurization, and to bird impact are more important for present and future aircraft. Strength is achieved by bonding together layers of toughened glass and interlayers of vinyl plastic; any thickness of interlayer can be used. Assembly is carried out in dust-proof, temperature- controlled rooms in order to avoid blemishes. Once the "sand- wich" of glass and vinyl is assembled it is first passed through heaters and rollers for preliminary adhesion and then placed in an autoclave which subjects it to a temperature of about 120 deg C and an air pressure of 100 lb/sq ft. Bullet-proof screens of various dimensions are assembled in jigs and the edges ground to the correct profile. They are then bonded as described above. Curved panels are produced by heating glass to its softening point of about 600 deg C and laying it in a female mould, to which it then accommodates itself by sinking under its own weight. This moulding is done before the vinyl interlayer is applied, as the latter will not withstand a temperature of more than 80 to 100 deg C. The final panel must be optically tested and proved to within close limits for transparency and freedom from distortion, especi- ally if gun- or bomb-sights have to be laid through it. A special clear glass was developed to this end some years ago. Panels are also tested in extreme cold and heat. Though jets of hot air are commonly used for demisting, fine meshes of electrically heated wires between the glass layers are also frequently employed. In certain light conditions, however, the wires glitter, and at high altitude they tend to attract the focus of the pilot's eyes and prevent him from seeing outside the aircraft. An alternative now being applied is a fine film of gold electrically heated which will still maintain the transparency of the Panel at an acceptable level. The direct cost of the gold is merely a matter of pence per square foot. In the application process the glass is placed in a vacuum chamber containing two large cathode plates. One is covered with a layer of gold, so that when a high D.C. voltage is fed into it, a gas discharge is struck and particles fall on to the glass at concentrations which can be regulated. Thereafter the gold is made to adhere to the glass by a similar discharge from the other cathode, which is fitted with a bismuth plate and discharges bismuth oxide. The glass gives 80 per cent light transmission. Heating the gold to 25 deg C requires 1,000 W/sq ft, or about as much as the aircraft system can usually supply. Resistance is 5 ohms. Temperature is generally regulated by a heat-sensitive resistancewhich, set in the interlayer, blocks current when the desired tem- perature is reached. For very-high-speed flight, where skin friction becomes a prob-lem—as in the Fairey Delta 2—an extra outer layer of toughened glass is added and separated from the normal laminated panel byan air-space which gives good temperature insulation. Where the outer layer reaches high temperatures, the inner layer will staybelow the critical level for the vinyl for about 20 to 30 minutes. The outer layer can withstand some 300 deg C. This is sufficientfor test work, but not for such a project as a supersonic long-range aircraft. The Triplex Company can claim unrivalled experience in thetechniques and skills required to produce this type of transparent panel for aircraft. MORE CONTRIBUTORS TO THE RECORD AT the conclusion of the article "Getting the Record," in Flight• of March 23rd, we gave a list of some of the firms whose pro- ducts were used in the Fairey F.D.2 which gained the world speedrecord at 1,132 m.p.h. A further list—provided, as was the other, by the manufacturers of the aircraft—has since become availableand is given below: — Acorn Springs, Ltd.; Anderton Springs, Ltd.; B. Attewell and Sons,Ltd; Automotive Engineering Co., Ltd.; Bakelite, Ltd.; Birmetals, Ltd.; Thos. Bolton and Sons, Ltd., Thomas Boom and Co., Ltd., James Boothand Co.; Bowden, Ltd.; British Aluminium Co., Ltd., British Industrial Plastics; British Paints, Ltd.; Bryce Weir, Ltd.; Bulgin and Co., Ltd.;Cellon, Ltd.; Coopers Mechanical Joints, Ltd.; Cork Manufacturing Co., Ltd.; Dubilier Condenser Co. (1925), Ltd.: Dzus Fasteners(Europe), Ltd.; English Electric Co., Ltd.; English Steel Corporation, Ltd. Everett and Co., Ltd.; Expanded Rubber Co., Ltd.Thomas Firth and John Brown, Ltd.; Firth Vickers Stainless Steels, Ltd.; Fischer Bearings Co., Ltd.; Flexall Springs, Ltd.; Folland Aircraft,Ltd.; Fothergill and Harvey, Ltd.; General Electric Co., Ltd.; Glass Fabrics, Ltd.; J. J. Habershon, Ltd.; Hellerman Electric, Ltd.; HighPressure Components, Ltd.; H. M. Hobson, Ltd.; I.V. Pressure Controllers, Ltd.; Imperial Chemical Industries, Ltd.; Irving Air Chuteof Gt. Britain, Ltd.; Johnson Matthey and Co., Ltd.; E. and E. Kaye, Ltd.; Kautex, Ltd.; Langley Alloys, Ltd.; Linread, Ltd.; Lion SpringCo., Ltd.; Lodge Plugs, Ltd.; Joseph Lucas (Gas Turbine Equip- ment), Ltd.M.A.M. Rubber Co., Ltd.; Mechanism, Ltd.; Midland Silicones, Ltd.; Mollart Engineering Co., Ltd.; Mullard Valve Co., Ltd.; MurexWelding Processes, Ltd.; N.S.F., Ltd.; D. Napier and Son, Ltd.; Northern Rubber Co., Ltd.; J. Penney and Sons; Plasticable, Ltd.;R. B. Pullin and Co., Ltd.; Renown Springs, Ltd.; Renold Chains, Ltd.; Rotameter Manufacturing Co., Ltd.; Sangamo Weston, Ltd.;Shell-Mex and B.P., Ltd.; Simmonds Aerocessories, Ltd., Sperry Gyro- scope Co., Ltd.; Standard Insulator Co., Ltd.; J. Stone and Co. (Dept-ford), Ltd.; T.I. Aluminium, Ltd.; Tecalemit, Ltd.; Herbert Terry and Sons, Ltd.; Ronald Trist and Co., Ltd.; Tungum Co., Ltd.; ValayIndustries, Ltd.; Varley Dry Accumulators; Wallop Industries, Ltd.; A. Wells and Co., Ltd.
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