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Aviation History
1956
1956 - 1626.PDF
784 FLIGHT, 16 November 1956 THE Tu-104 FLIGHT DECK Impressions of a British Airline Crew AT Rangoon one hot afternoon last month the unusual sight ofan Aerofiot Tu-104 (L-5415) parked next to a British^ airliner could have been seen; and had the casual observer lingered a while, he would have seen the even more sur-prising sight of an English crew emerging from the Russian aircraft. Whilst they had been standing in a group beside theiraircraft a message had arrived from the Russian crew inviting them to inspect the Tu-104. Needless to say the invitation wasunhesitatingly accepted. The following description of the flight deck has been compiled from the impressions of the four officers. The Russian crew-members (unfortunately neither of the twopilots was present) were very friendly and obviously- proud of their aircraft. The time available for questions was limited and,owing to the difficulties of translation, some false impressions may possibly have been acquired. Also, since none of the Englishofficers have any knowledge of the Russian language, instrument lettering and so forth meant little to them, although much couldbe deduced by visual inspection. General Arrangement. The operational crew of the Tu-104consists of four: pilot, co-pilot, navigator and radio officer. It was gathered that an engineer is also carried, but there isapparently no station for him, and certainly no panel. The pilots sit side by side, of course, but there is access between them tothe nose of the aircraft, which houses the navigator's station, as in many last-war bombers. The radio position is behind theco-pilot, facing aft. A ladder gives access to the crew compart- ment from beneath. One has an impression of mainly metal andwood fittings; plastics are very little in evidence. Performance. It was gathered that the all-up weight is of theorder of 156,000 lb, and the tankage about 7,750 Imperial gallons. Cruising speed was quoted as 433 kt (800 km/hr), and arange of 1,950 n.m. (3,600 kms) was also mentioned. Pressurization was given as 6.6 lb/sq in (.45 atmospheres) at35,OOOft, giving a cabin altitude of 10,000ft. One very interesting point about the pressurization is that there is an airtight door aftof the flight deck, giving an airtight bulkhead between flight deck and passenger cabin. Engines, Controls, Instrumentation. The turbojets are of theaxial-flow type each developing a thrust of 19,800 lb (9,000 kg). Duplicate throttle controls are provided for the pilots, to the leftand to the right of the captain and co-pilot respectively. The fuel system was said to be automatic, but there appeared to be a controlpanel for it with a number of switches. De-icing is thermal. Engine-starting current appeared to be remarkably low—onlyabout 135 amp [if this was indeed so it suggests two-spool engines.—Ed.]. WHEN, as related below, the Iu-104 made its recent proving flight toRangoon an English aircrew was invited to inspect her. In these notes one of its members records the pooled impressions of the group; heremarks that, in view of language difficulties and the comparative brevity of the inspection, "errors and omissions excepted" should be emphasized. The flying controls—unboosted—are conventional, with adirect link between control and control surface, and there is a normal type of gust-lock. It was mentioned that the rudder wasrather heavy (presumably at low speeds). Trimmers and brakes are of normal pattern. The autopilot control panel resembles that of the Minneapolis-Honeywell equipment; and a miniature joystick, mounted adjacent 10 the captain's right hand, appears to govern altitude anddirection. There is no basic blind-flying panel, instrumentation appear-ing somewhat haphazard to Western eyes. Most of the instru- ments are conventional, but are naturally calibrated metrically.The directional gyro is large and is calibrated to one degree. I.L.S. is fitted. Pilot's forward visibility appeared to be good, despite theheavily raked windshield. The down position of the nosewheel can be observed through a window. Communications Equipment. There seemed to be only onemain transmitter, similar to a Bendix model of vintage 1943 or thereabouts, and one main H.F./M.F. receiver, stronglyresembling the American "liaison" type. A second receiver of the same type, situated in the galley, is connected to the public-address system; it could probably be removed and utilized in case of a failure of the main receiver. The V.H.F. appeared to consist of two very old sets, with onlyfour press-button frequency selectors, rather like the R.A.F. TR.1196. The Russian radio officer, when shown a Britishradio rack, asked if we ever had to change crystals, so it seems a reasonable deduction that it is necessary to do so on the Tu-104.None of the radio equipment aboard is miniaturized. The external finish is good and the markings clear. Navigational Equipment. The navigator sits at a small chart-table facing port with a comprehensive array of instruments in front of him. The large transparent nose gives him about the bestview of anyone on the aircraft. At the navigator's position are two A.D.F.s (almost identical with the Bendix type used on theConstellation) mounted side by side; they can also be operated from the pilots' position, but not from the radio officer's. Twodials are mounted on the pilots' instrument panel—a good feature —but at the navigator's position is one dial with two pointers. Continued at foot of col. 2, opposite page) 1 Rudder trim Z Windscreen de-icing pump 3 H.F. or A.D.F. controller 4 Duplicated four-channel V.H.F. 5 Adjustable arm-rests 6 Autopilot control hand-grip 7 Autopilot disengage 8 Press-to-jpeak 9 Elevator trim switch 10 One of six deviation cards for compass and A.D.F. 11 Sun viior 12 Roller blind 13 Rubber-bladed fans 14 Desiccant capsule for sandwich screen panels. 15 At least six wander lamps 16 Gyro-magnetic compass master 17 Fuel panel lights IS Head-guards around switches and lights 1° Demisting air outlets 20 Altimeter II I.L.S. 22 Direction indicator 23 Gyrosyn repeater 24 Artificial horizons 25 Vertical speed indicator 24 Undercarriage indicator lights 27 Engine instrument panel 28 Elapsed-time clock 29 Curtain 30 Navigator's adjustable seat 31 Navigator's table 32 Transparent nose panels 33 Instrument light (on control column). This "Flight" drawing of the Tu-104 cockpit illustrates a number of the details observed by the author of the notes •• above. A few of them are conjectural.
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