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Aviation History
1960
1960 - 0083.PDF
FLIGHT, 15 January 1960 83 Straight and vel AMAZING how the various flyingclubs have different ideas on whatL to do with members' time when they're not flying. Some have pretty impressive bar sales, some race Go- Karts, some go in for theatrical activi- ties, and so on. Now what do you suppose is the main preoccupation of the club with the following diary? Jan. 10, Hot-pot dance. Jan. 17, Ham-burger dance. Jan. 24, Cornish Pasty dance. Jan. 31, Hot-pot dance. Feb. 7,Buffet dance. Feb. 11, Wine and Cheese party. Feb. 14, St. Valentine dance withHot-potato and Brisket supper. Feb. 21, Chicken Barbecue dance. Feb. 28, Hot-pot dance. Mar. 1. Social evening with Hot-pot supper. Mar. 7, Buffet dance.Mar. 21, Beer and Bangers dance. Mar. 28, Pie and Pickles dance. Apl. 4, Edwardiandance with Salad Supper. That was how they began 1959, and the same singleness of purpose con- tinued throughout the year, reaching a climax in December with a Hot-pot supper dance on the 5th, children's tea party and adults' Hamburger supper on the 19th, and a Turkey and Pork supper on the 31st. No prize for guessing, after all those mentions of hot-pot, that the gastronomicists belong to Lancashire Aero Club. Bicarbonate of soda, anyone? • The Comet 4's Flight Manual has a section dealing with the two-engines- out overshoot case. The section reminds pilots to reduce power to keep the speed within limits (i.e., flap and undercarriage structural limits) during the climb-out. This—repeat—on two engines. Could there be a more remarkable illustration of the Comet 4's great reserve of power? How about this one, then—the story (perhaps apocryphal, but a good one all the same) of how the Comet's instrument panel got its power-loss indicators. A certain esteemed check pilot did a take-off in the course of the Comet's test programme, one of those typical steep- climbing take-offs for which the Comet has subsequently become so well known. "What about that for a three-engined take-off?" called a certain esteemed DH test pilot. Came the reply: "Three engines? I didn't know we were doing that on only three engines ... I think we'd better have power loss indicators in this aeroplane." I wonder that BOAC's publicity boys don't plug the power aspect of the Comet more than they do. It is, to my way of thinking, the Comet's greatest asset. How about prominently adver- tising, good and big, the figures 0.26, with the accompanying text: "This is the power ratio of the Comet 4, the jet airliner with a greater reserve of power than any other." It would seD tickets, and no rival— however weak the spot this touched— could argue with it. • I quote from the SBAC News Letter: "There is strong evidence to show that the demand for turbine air- liners will grow fast: The British air- craft industry not only has the aircraft to cater for practically any airline re- quirement, but unrivalled experience in design, construction, operation and after-sales service." Wouldn't it be nice if all this were true, and not just some of it? • I recounted last week the tribula- tions of a friend under the Kenya Immigration Regulations. I am now happy to give another side of the picture in these extracts, which have just come my way, from official minutes passing between members of H.M. Customs: — Customs, Dover, 25 July 1909Hon Sirs,—I have visited the spot where he [M. Bleriot] landed at 6.30 a.m., and gotinto conversation with an individual largely interested in the Wright aeroplanewho gave it as his opinion that although airships will never come into commercialuse, there are great possibilities in store for them, and I think that a time may comewhen this Department will have to treat their arrival seriously, and take steps toensure that no opportunity be given for Revenue interests to suffer through indis-criminate landings of airships in this country.—Respy, A. S. WILLIAMS, Collr. Surveyor, H.M. Customs, Dover, The Collector 27 July 1909Sir,—On the arrival of the Monoplane from Calais, the Prev man in charge inter- This is how the artist sees "Australia" in the avant-garde calendar sent out by the French airline TAI. I thought the marsupial had had its whole day spoilt for it by some cad from Woomera armed with a Malkara until I noticed that the missile was that koala on the right there—apparently contemplating launching out on a reciprocal viewed M. Bleriot. and issued to him aQuarantine Certificate, thereby treating it as a yacht, and the aviator as masterand owner.—Your obedient servant, P. M. JOHNSON. Customs, Dover, 27 July 1909 Hon Sirs,—Some three weeks ago, whenthe question was first mooted, I gave in- structions to the Surveyor that the cross-ing of the Channel by airship was not to be treated officially by our officers, as I con-sidered that an attempt to impose Customs regulations on anyone engaged in experi-ments with aerial navigation would only tend to bring this Department into ridiculewithout doing any practical good. I now find that an officer, doubtlesscarried away by the excitement of the moment, failed to carry out these instruc-tions. . . .—Respy, A. S. WILLIAMS, Collr. After half a century this col respy doffs its hat to A. S. Williams, Collr. • People get so excited about new structural techniques. Sculptured skins, honeycomb-stabilized panels, functional designs like that of the Northrop Free- dom Fighter, or polymorphic configura- tions a la Wallis all thrill them. But show them the same kind of in- genuity in a new light aircraft and they groan. It will break, it will be hell to maintain, it will not stand hard wear, it is too tricky or expensive to manufac- ture. Give them the last word in con- servative conventionality every time. Why? Can you show me a really new or unconventional light aircraft struc- ture or design which has made the com- mercial grade during the last ten years— or even since the Wright brothers? There are precious few, if any. • At the recent safety symposium P. G. Tweedie of the MoA referred to a pre-war German "crash-cause detec- tor" which comprised a brick with six holes drilled in it. Each hole was blocked by a fire-resistant membrane, and repre- sented some vital accident cause—e.g., "No. 1 engine on fire." The idea was that, before crashing, a crew member grabbed the brick and burst the appro- priate membrane with his finger. All that the investigators had to do was to find the brick. Of course, as Walter Tye of the ARB commented, there had to be a hole for "I have no idea what's wrong." Those Squares at Sperry • Extract from Airlines Electronic Engineering Committee report on "Meeting on the standard ARINC air transport indicator": — "The Marman Company had not beenable to build a single model of clamp to fit the multiple ARINC standard . . . andthe Sperry round-cornered square with curved sides." ROGER BACON -&•
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