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Aviation History
1957
1957 - 0166.PDF
FAREWELL 168 , ; FLIGHT, 8 February 1957 The Wing marches past A-Able for the last time. machine flying (a remarkable achievement even in those days) and No. 230 Squadron was the first unit to be equipped. The Sunderland had a wonderful war record with Coastal Command, mostly on anti-submarine and reconnaissance patrols far out into the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. On these long-range vigils the aircraft were airborne for up to 14 hours but there were occasional instances when, by jettisoning bombs and depth- charges, endurance was increased to over 18 hours, and in one case to 22. With its front, rear and dorsal turrets the Sunderland was wellable to look after itself, and the Germans (who sometimes called it "the Porcupine") had a healthy respect for it. Lankester Parker, who was present at last week's disbandmentceremony, had an interesting recollection of the effect of fitting the heavy, power-operated turret in the tail. When it was firstinstalled in the prototype it was found necessary to give com- pensating sweep-back to the wings. This meant that the wing-tipfloats pointed outward by the amount of the sweep-back; and they still do. Another noteworthy feature of the Sunderland—in com-parison with most other long-service aircraft, in which power usually has greatly increased with development—is that whereas itstarted in service with Bristol Pegasus engines, each of about 1,050 h.p., and an all-up weight of 44,600 lb, it now has Pratt and to the FLYING-BOAT AT Pembroke Dock on Thursday of last week the Royal Air£% Force in Great Britain said farewell to its last Sunderlands. •*- •*- From now onwards only the unit operating with Far EastAir Force will have flying-boati and no replacements are in either the design stage or contemplated. This sad occasion marked not only the demise of the militaryflying-boat in Britain but also the disbandment of two fine squadrons, Nos. 201 and 230. What will happen to the PembrokeDock base is not known; building extensions are still in progress but (as a Service cynic remarked) that could easily be the lefthand of Works not knowing what the right hand of Operations doeth. If present arrangements stand, three reconditioned Sunder-lands will be flown out to the Far East and the remainder of the squadron aircraft to Wig Bay in Scotland, for overhaul andstorage. The prototype Sunderland was developed from the ShortEmpire boat and was first flown by John Lankester Parker (then chief test pilot and now a director of Short and Harland) in 1937.The type was in service with the R.A.F. within a year of the first —in the home-based R.A.F.: Nos. 201 and 230 Squadrons Disbanded at Pembroke Dock ILLUSTRATED MAINLY WITH "FLIGHT" PHOTOGRAPHS Whitney engines giving little more than 100 extra h.p. each; yet theall-up weight is now 65,000 lb. The Sunderland was produced in four versions, Marks 1, 2,3 and 5, and when the last of them came off the production line in October 1945, 721 had been built.Apart from those remaining in service in the Far East they are still on active duty with the Royal New Zealand Air Force and asquadron of Mk 5s are at present being re-conditioned for the French Naval Air Service. For the farewell to the two Pembroke Dock squadrons aceremonial disbandment parade was held, at which the reviewing officer was the A.O.C-in-C. Coastal Command, Air MarshalSir Bryan V. Reynolds. Among the many Service guests present A-Able, clean, smart but forlorn, alone in its hangar at Pembroke Dock awaiting a crew to fly it to the Far East. It has been the craft of f/L. C. A. Nicoll and was at the Tower of London for Battle of Britain week.
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