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Aviation History
1959
1959 - 0103.PDF
FLIGHT, 2 January 1959 49 CORRESPONDENCE The Editor of "Flight" is not necessarily in agreement with the views expressed by correspondents in these columns. The names and addresses of the writers, not for publication in detail, must in all cases accompany letters. Value of the Ultra-lightA S a club member whose flying experience is limited, dueentirely to the high cost of private flying, may I add my plea for the ultra-light aeroplane?A machine such as the Druine Turbulent or the Luton Minor can be flown for about one-third of the hourly cost of the moreaccepted types of club aircraft and, having been privileged to fly both these types of aircraft, I would like to dispel any belief thatthese little machines are purely the poor man's nearest step to flying. For too long they have been the object of amusement andoften derision. I admit that I myself have been guilty of dubbing them "puddle-jumpers" but have since realized that they are morethan worthy of a place in our private aviation. As your leading article [December 5] hinted, I believe that thefuture of private flying is dependent on these small aeroplanes which are cheap to fly and to hangar. The "new era" must caterfor the aviation enthusiast who is rapidly finding himself priced out of flying.In an age when space travel is within our grasp, let us not be oblivious to the needs of the private flyer; the greater majority ofthe "missile" manufacturers certainly are. What a far-sighted gesture it would be if at the S.B.A.C. Shownext year we had a fly-past of Druine Turbulents, Luton Minors, Currie Wots and Garland-Bianchi Linnets—all at Mach 0.1. Hertford. RICHARD AMESBURY. Squadron Operational Record ?N EXT February 656 Squadron, Army Air Corps, will log thecompletion of 150,000 hours of operational flying. This, we believe, will almost certainly constitute a world record for anycomparable squadron over a similar period of time and it is possible that it is an all-time high for any Service squadron. I should be interested to know, through your columns, if anyreaders are able to confirm or refute this claim. For the record, the hours are reckoned from July 1948, when656 Squadron started flying in support of the emergency operations in Malaya. All the flying has been done in Austers Mks 5, 6, 7and 9. Seremban, Malaya. P. D. O'DRISCOLL (Major). Speed and^the Airline Passenger /~\NE of the most interesting aspects of an airline pilot's job is the^ opportunity one gets to talk to passengers. Not unnaturally, the favourite topic is air travel, past, present and future; and timeand time again I have heard the same views expressed. It seems that the more experienced the traveller the more likely he (or she)is to hold the opinion that air travel is no longer a pleasure. On almost every flight, one passenger at least will say, "Of course, thefinest way to fly was in the old flying-boats." They speak nostalgically of the Mediterranean coastline, sunset on the Nile,herds of wild-life in Africa, etc., as though these sights no longer exist. And, indeed, for the passenger in 1958 they do not! Airtravel has become a colossal bore; the chief virtue of the jet liners is that one will only be bored for two-thirds of the previous time.But who wants to be bored at all? It is my belief that the airlines of the world have somewheretaken the wrong turning. Very, very few passengers want speed above all else. The high-powered business executive to whomminutes saved in travelling are vitally important, is, I am sure, a mythical figure. The reason that the fastest aircraft is usually the most popularis simply explained. If one is to be sealed up in a metal rube with nothing to be seen from the small windows provided, then the lesstime this has to be endured the better. But air travel could be the most wonderfully interesting of all forms of transport, once thisadolescent craze for speed at all costs has been outgrown. For every passenger in a real hurry, there are fifty who would like to seewhere they are going, to study the ever-changing view of the country over which they are flying; the forests, roads, rivers, thetraffic-thronged streets of cities, all seen from the finest vantage- point imaginable, an aircraft at 3,000ft. Who wouldn't rememberfor a lifetime a flight from, say, Johannesburg to London at that height? Ah, some will be saying, what about bad weather? All right,over Europe, for instance, such flying would often be impossible; one would then climb to a safe altitude and fly on airways as atpresent. I envisage these scenic flights as being routed over the low ground so one would not have to climb above, say, 10,000ft.But what about the economics of the operation? I think it could prove profitable. First of all, no airliner at present in use would besuitable. What is required is a roomy fuselage with large windows along each side, and at the front. A high wing is essential, ofcourse. A very slight amount of pressurization would be desirable, sufficient to maintain the cabin at 5,000ft when the aircraft is at10,000ft. This would also be sufficient to enable a reasonably rapid rate of climb and descent to be achieved without passengerdiscomfort. The pilots would have to be above the cabin in order not to obstruct the view for the passengers. This "scenic service"would normally fly from, say, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day, so a cold lunch whilst airborne would be adequate—reducing galley sizeand number of cabin attendants to two. No bar need be carried. The aircraft would need fuel for about 12 hours' flying at about200 kt at 5,000ft—with four piston-engines, say 25,000 lb of fuel. (It begins to look as though a piston-engined variant of the A.W.Argosy might fill the bill.) With such an aircraft, possibly the front five or six rows of seats could be arranged to slope downwardsslightly, as in a cinema, to improve the view for those not in the front row. In the rear fuselage, the aisle seats could be a few incheshigher than the window seats to improve sideways viewing, pos- sibly with a large window at the rear, surrounding a small lounge. Such an aircraft, especially if based on an existing design, wouldbe comparatively cheap to build and would have a long life—for what would cause it to become obsolete? Provided that it is keptsimple, it should be cheap to operate. Annual utilization might be low compared with the figures beingachieved now and with the even higher figures aimed at in future; but high utilization is vitally important only when dealing withaircraft of high first cost and short working life. The type of aircraft envisaged here would have 15 to 20 years in which to payfor itself, so 2,000 hours per annum would be quite reasonable. Crew utilization could be good. Since the aircraft would fly foronly about eight hours a day, one crew could take it all the way, eliminating the expensive sup-crew system at present used.The cost of passengers' hotel accommodation, meals on the ground, etc., could be paid for separately from the fare, enablingthe fare to be kept low. Passengers might prefer to arrange their own accommodation at many places, and why not?Of course, high-speed trunk-route services would still have their place for those who needed them. Also, trans-ocean routes shouldbe flown high and fast, since there is nothing to see anyway (indeed, the best way to fly the Atlantic is while sleeping). To conclude, I believe that not only would this interesting,leisurely type of service be popular with many of the present air travellers, but a whole new market would be tapped. The vastnumbers of people who enjoy travel for its own sake, who now fill the Continental coach tours and cruise liners, would all be poten-tial customers. The possibilities are immense. Winter air-cruises of the Mediterranean, for example; or, on a smaller scale, day tripsaround the Western Isles and over the Highlands of Scotland in summer, and so on. Give the passengers what they want at theright price and success is assured. Anyway, before we in the air transport business commit anymore millions to satisfy a largely imaginary demand for speed, let us ask ourselves where we are going—and why. London, N.4. J. R. HOWARD. Commemorating the R.34 "ETERE is a simple solution to the apparently contentious problem-1-A of commemorating the R.34's double Atlantic crossing. The memorial should take the form of a scale model of the airship, tobe suspended from a ceiling in one of the terminal buildings at London Airport. Nearby, on a wall, there should be a plaquecommemorating the airship's achievement. I believe that a plaque has recently been unveiled at RooseveltField, New York, to record the R.34's arrival there. The model at L.A.P., looking as if in flight, would serve to show present andfuture generations how beautiful and graceful were the British airships of the inter-war years. London, N.W.3. PAUL HUMPHREYS. Satellite Launching T BELIEVE it is true to say that, during the recent discussion-*- on the possibility of launching a British artificial Earth-satellite, no one has publicly mentioned the possibility of launching sucha vehicle from a V-bomber or balloon. The results obtained from Rockoon and Rockair(e) firings inthe U.S.A. suggest that such a method would enable a worthwhile satellite to be placed in orbit. It appears to me that a BlackKnight could be fitted with a second stage and carried beneath a Vulcan; this would enable a launching to be carried out at50,000-55,OOOft as part of a toss-bombing manoeuvre after a pre- liminary dive from maximum altitude. Since the launch wouldtake place above a large part of the atmosphere the payload could
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