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Aviation History
1958
1958-1- - 0392.PDF
396 FLIGHT, 5 September 1958 The Scimitars of No. 803 Naval Air Squadron flash in, with vapour shimmy, for their near-sonic pass. Below, the Sea Hawks of 800 Squad- ron let down with the rearmost three making smoke. THE NINETEENTH S.B.A.C. DISPLAY... Bristol Britannia 312 (G-AOVI). All but one of B.O.A.C.'s 18long-range Britannia 312s have now been delivered. The example displayed is the ninth aircraft, which has actually been in servicewith the Corporation for several months, and is fitted with a mixture of hollow steel-bladed, square-tipped de Havilland pro-pellers and Dural-bladed, round-tipped units. The last named are installed inboard and will be the future standard pattern. The earlier medium-range version of the Britannia, the 102, isnow—according to figures exhibited on the Bristol stand—attain- ing an average fleet utilization of 3,750 hr. The R.A.F.'s firstBritannia squadron (20 253s) should be equipped during the course of next year, first deliveries being due next April. Bristol Sycamore (CC-063). Over 160 Sycamores have nowbeen manufactured, including over 30 for Germany, and one of the most recently completed of these German machines, basic-ally a Mk 14 Sycamore, is in the static park. Camouflaged and carrying the markings of the German Air Force, it is fitted withtwo stretchers and an external winch. de Havilland Comet 3B (G-ANLO). The wing of the originalComet 3 prototype, first flown in July 1954, has now been con- verted to the standard of the Comet 4B, of which six have beenordered by B.E.A. The wing span has been shortened by 7ft and the fuel nacelle tanks removed to permit early evaluation ofthe higher-speed performance and handling of the Comet 4B. Appropriately the aircraft is painted in B.E.A. colours (thoughthe scheme is not likely to be the final one). On the nose appears the B.E.A. motif denoting that this is a "Comet Class" airliner, R.M.A. William Brooks. Storm-warning radar and reverse thrust (outboard engines) were fitted to the aircraft during the course of its wing modifications. de Havilland Comet 4 (G-APDA). The aircraft displayed maynot be available for static exhibition every day of the Show, since it is being used for B.O.A.C. crew conversion-training. Shortlyafter the Show ends G-APDA is expected to make overseas proving flights in the hands of de Havilland crews as pan of theairworthiness trials which require 100 hr of such flying to be carried out. One flight will be made to Hong Kong and anotherto Vancouver. The first aircraft to be delivered to B.O.A.C. will be the thirdproduction aircraft G-APDB (the second Comet 4 off the produc- tion line is in the water test tank at Hatfield). This delivery isexpected to coincide with the award of a C. of A. later this month. New details apparent on the production Comet 4 are the wing-tip fuel vent pipes, the top-fuselage flashing identification light, the Rolls-Royce name plaques on the outboard jet-pipes, and theB.O.A.C. styling of wing nacelle tanks (which is to be applied also to the engine nacelles of the Corporation's 707s and VC.lOs). The interior styling of B.O.A.C's Comet 4, designed by GabySchreiber, is probably one of the most stylish yet applied to a British airliner. de Havilland Dove 6 (G-AMZN). The Dove is the only oneof all the aircraft displayed this year to have been at every S.B.A.C. Display since the war. This de Havilland demon-strator is fitted as a six-seat business aircraft, and appears in the attractive pale blue and white scheme seen last year. de HaviUand Heron 2D (G-APEV). This demonstration air-craft has an eight-seat executive layout, the suffix "D" signifying its "special executive" status. About 130 Herons have now beendelivered for airline and executive use. Paint scheme of this aircraft is green, gold and white, de Havilland Sea Vixen FAW.l (XJ 475). The Sea Vixenis this year displayed with a full range of stores. The outer pylons can carry either 150-gal plastic tanks, 1,000-lb streamlined bombsor a Blackburn Palouste starter pack. The four innermost pylons can carry Fircstreaks, Microcell 37-tube 2in rocket packs orclusters of six 3in R.P.s. The nose radome is designed to fold for carrier stowage under hydraulic power controlled from ahandle set in the port side of the nose. Martin-Baker Mk 4 ejection seats and Rebecca D.M.E. are installed. The tailplanetrailing edge is arched 5 deg and is drilled and slotted to allow it to accommodate itself to the local airstream. de Havilland Vampire Trainer (WZ 587). A standard T.llof Flying Training Command, WZ 587 has flown 1,581 hr with that command yet could pass as a new aircraft. Under its wingsare specimen loads of 25, 500 and 1,000-lb bombs, 60-lb rockets and 100-gal tanks. D.H.C. Agricultural Chipmunk Mk 23 (G-APOS). Finishedin pale blue, this agricultural version of the Chipmunk has been built by de Havilland in consultation with Fison-Airwork. Aninsecticide tank is carried under a new top decking, and the rear cockpit now carries a tall and very angular canopy with bulgedside-windows. New cockpit instruments include hopper contents and spray pressure indication. An external gear-type pump, duplex-chain-driven from theshaft of a six-bladed fan, is mounted underneath the fuselage and pumps the liquid to a continuous nozzle tube extending fromtip to tip. The tube is supported from the stiff ribs at the root, inboard end of the aileron and wing tip, and is mounted to leaveclearance for operation of the flaps. de Havilland Canada Beaver Series 2 (G-ANAR). Firstexhibited at the 1955 S.B.A.C. Display, the Beaver Series 2— having not been shown last year—reappears in its original form.It is powered by an Alvis Leonides 502/4 engine of 540 h.p. driving a de Havilland three bladed propeller. Retention of thecamouflage paint scheme—notwithstanding the civil registration —suggests the possibility of reviving Army interest in the aircraft. English Electric Canberra B(I). 8 (XM 245). One of a largenumber of Mk 8 intruders for the R.A.F., XM 245 is statically displayed with its 4 X 20mm gun pack on an Alvis low-loader;other stores include a great assortment of small bombs, 1,000-lb bombs on the wing pylons, six thousand-pounders on Avro triplecarriers and packs for sixteen 4.5in flares. English Electric Canberra T.ll (WJ 610). Developed byBoulton Paul from the B.2 for training A.I. radar operators, this Canberra carries a large, Javelin-sized radar nose and accom-modates a crew of four. A wind-break surface ahead of the access door assists parachute exit and the aerials fitted show that theT.ll carries Gee, radar altimeter, I.L.S. and Rebecca. Wing- tip tanks are not fitted, and WJ 610 has only three seats. English Electric Canberra U.10 (WJ 624). Converted from aB.2 bomber by Short and Harland, the U.10 is also known as the
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