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Aviation History
1957
1957 - 0534.PDF
536 GREYHOUND TANKERS: Three Boeing KC-135s just off the line at Renton. This type will be the standard U.S.A.F. high-speed tanker. FROM ALL QUARTERS ... Bristol Turbojets by Wright 1AST week Bristol Aero-Engines and Curtiss-Wright announcedd the conclusion of an agreement under the terms of which certain Bristol gas-turbine aero engines will be built by the WrightAeronautical Division of the latter company. One of the engines is a commercial turbojet, of which Mr. Roy T.Hurley, chairman and president of Curtiss-Wright, said: "This is an engine which provides the necessary thrust for planned jet trans-port aircraft for all-weather operation out of present commercial airport facilities. The design gives lower noise-levels than currentjet transport engines. The engine offers superior performance to that of competing jet engines in the critical areas of fuel consump-tion, thrust and weight. At the same time turbine operating tem- peratures are substantially lower, offering a marked improvementin reliability, safety and maintenance costs. It is planned to demonstrate the potentialities of this engine in the U.S.A. in thenear future." Wright are already interested in the various advanced modelsof the Olympus, and the new agreement may well involve such units as the Orpheus and Orion. The new turbojet referred to byMr. Hurley may be the B.E.47, a 6,000 lb-thrust engine of which nothing official, but much unofficial, has been said. Alternatively,it could be the much larger Olympus 510-series. The R.A.F. Anniversary Concert /COMMEMORATING the foundation of the Royal Air Force in^-' April 1918, the R.A.F. Anniversary Concert was given on April 13 in the Royal Albert Hall. Only a year after the formationof the Royal Air Force itself the R.A.F. Benevolent Fund came into being, and it was in aid of this very deserving cause that theperformance was organized. The concert—which it is hoped will become an annual event—was being given for the second successive year. Last year's inaugural performance was honoured by the attendance of theQueen and the Duke of Edinburgh. Though no member of the Royal Family was present this year the occasion was a distin-guished one. Among the audience were the Secretary of State for Air, Mr. George Ward; the Chief of the Air Staff, Air ChiefMarshal Sir Dermot Boyle; and the Lord Mayor of London, Sir Cullum Welch. Also present was Viscount Knollys, council chair-man of the Benevolent Fund. Taking part in the programme were the Halle Orchestra (leader,Laurance Turner), under Sir John Barbirolli; the Central Band of the R.A.F., conducted by W/C. A. E. Sims; the AlexandraChoir; the Board of Trade Choir; and members of other Civil Service choirs. Constance Shacklock, the operatic mezzo-soprano,was the soloist; and the programme was introduced, and the various items announced, by film actor Kenneth More. Though competent enough in execution if undistinguished incontent, the first part of the programme evoked little more than routine applause until its two final items, when, under the batonof Charles Proctor, the choirs, orchestra and organist (Eric Chad- wick) filled the great auditorium with the Easter Hymn fromCavalleria Rusticana and then with the Hallelujah Chorus. Leading off with the ever-fresh Dam Busters, conducted by itscomposer, Eric Coates, the second half was of a more spectacular nature, to which the audience at once responded, clearly aided bythe colourful personality of Sir John BarbiroUi, who had now stepped on the rostrum. In an unannounced item by the R.A.F.Band, the Old Comrades march, it was Sir John who unexpectedly conducted. "He seldom has the opportunity of conducting a realmilitary band," said Kenneth More; and it certainly looked as though the small, dynamic figure was thoroughly enjoying theexperience. Later there was laughter when Sir John, having started to conduct the Royal Air Force March Past, handed hisbaton to W/C. Sims after a few bars, stepped down and took over a cello—on which instrument he was once an infant prodigy. An impressive rendering of Land of Hope and Glory, by band,orchestra, organist, soloist, choirs and—finally—audience, brought the performance to a close. U.S. Engines Inquiry A SPECIAL Armed Services investigating sub-committee ofthe U.S. House of Representatives is to conduct an investiga- tion into the aircraft engine industry which according to its chair-man, Edward Hebert, would save the Government "a tremendous sum of money." He said the sub-committee's investigation ofairframes during 1955 and 1956 had enabled the Government "to recover 328m dollars from the aircraft industry" and the study ofaircraft engine procurement "should be almost as productive." Mr. Hebert said that the sub-committee wanted answers to threemain questions: (1) Are the Navy and Air Force being charged an excessive amount of money; in other words, are the manufacturersreaping excessive profits? (2) Can greater economies be obtained in the purchase of engines? (3) Are the contracts for the procure-ment of these engines adequate and suitable to protect the best interests of the Government? He added that questionnaires had been sent to 15 major aircraftengine manufacturers and two companies—Buick Motors and Chevrolet—which until recently manufactured such engines. Theyhad been asked to return the questionnaires by May 13 so that public hearings could begin in June. This is, we believe, the first time that re-negotiation (as it istermed) has been applied to engines. An established American procedure in the case of airframes. it means in effect that theGovernment reviews a firm's costs after a particular type has been in production for, say, two or three years. If the figures are foundto be substantially lower than first estimates had suggested, then the constructor may be called upon to refund a considerableproportion of the difference. THIRD VARIANT of the Saab-32 Lansen for the Royal Swedish Air Force will be the "C" reconnaissance sub-type. Recognizable is a slightly modified nose, and internal provision is made for several different cameras and "complete electronic equipment for night navigation and radar reconnaissance." The type will succeed the present S.I8 and S.29, also manufactured by Saab.
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