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Aviation History
1960
1960 - 0362.PDF
362 FLIGHT, 18 March It:,•SO "Flight" photograph VANGUARD ASSESSMENT... It is always a little confusing to watch •experts dealing with amachine about which you yourself know nothing; Bill and Des had three Tynes going before I was able to spot the trick. Thestarting drill seems very simple, and will be familiar to pilots used to the R-R. Dart. On the starting panel above the first officer'shead the master switch is put to START, the individual engine START/RELIGHT switch is held in the START position for abouttwo seconds and HP cock selected OPEN (a warning light showsigniter operation). The starting operation takes place on the HP section of the engine and a special starting "throttle" is providedjust in front of the corresponding engine throttle to control the reduced fuel-flow required at starting; when the right r.p.m. arebuilt up the starting "throttle" is operated and the engine picks up to ground-idling r.p.m., and from then on is controlled by theusual power lever. The method of operating fuel trim seems very good and simple.The HP cock lever is moved beyond the cock OPEN position sothat full forward is 100 per cent trim; the quadrant is serrated and marked and the HP lever clicks at each mark. I did not myselfhandle the levers but it was said that the first officer has to be very careful when setting-up the trim, particularly for take-off. Theuse of the HP levers for this purpose strikes me as a logical develop- ment of the method used on the Dart. For the first take-off the weight was approximately 120,5001b,giving us a Vz of 116kt. For this take-off I was in the third pilot's seat, from which position I could quite clearly see what was goingon. The communication controls are within fairly easy reach, though the HP levers require a- long arm. There is a good all-round view so that the third pilot can keep a reasonable look-out The centre cabin of the Vanguard in BE A decor. Not instantly in this wide fuselage is that the seats are six-abreast at times when the captain and first officer are busy inside. Take offand climb were easy and unhurried and lift-off came with plenty of Wisley's runway still available. The climb away at seme2j000ft/min was stable and comfortable with 12,000 r.p.m. ,md 600°C t.g.t. giving about 190kt. We were very soon at flight level50, at which the test runs were to be made. From the first officer's seat I was able to appreciate the excellentview afforded the pilots. The remarkably deep windows rive excellent up and down vision even though an arm's length awayfrom the seats; of course, with panels of these dimensions the supports are of robust construction, but I did not find themobstructing the view except at the d.v. panel. This panel on Echo Bravo has a bar across it which for me completely obscured thehorizon; however, after the first half-dozen aircraft this is to be modified. All panels are heated by gold film activated by the alter-nators on Nos 1 and 4 engines and the temperature is thermo- statically controlled—a considerable reduction for ground use isautomatically brought in by oleo switches. Alcohol spray is pro- vided as a stand-by and all three windscreens have captain-controlled wipers. During the steady runs we were making Bill Aston was ableto amplify my meagre knowledge of the various systems. The anti-icing will be familiar to Viscount pilots with the exceptionthat—though wing anti-icing is by air passed through a heat- exchanger, tapping exhaust gases on Nos 1 and 4 engines—thetail unit anti-icing is electrical, taking its power from either la or 4a alternators. Engine anti-icing is by electrically heated padsaround the intakes and propeller blade roots, with a hot air tapping from the compressor for the entry guide vanes. The electrics are described here only in very broad outline; allgeneration is by frequency-wild alternators (one to each engine) output from which is fed through transformer rectifier units tosupply d.c. current to the bus-bars. Each alternator provides its own engine with power for anti-icing. Alternating current is sup-plied by two main inverters with a stand-by which can take over from either, and an emergency inverter which will supply essentialinstruments. I was not able to assess the lighting at night nor did we fly directly into bright sunlight to assess how clear theinstruments are under such conditions; but I did use the sun visor for a while, and found it easy and effective. When the fuel tests were completed I was able to take over.There is a large variety of adjustments which can be made to the seat to suit practically any pilot shape. In addition the rudderpedals slide back and forth in unison (it is not possible to move one pedal without moving the other) by pulling a release on theextreme edge of the instrument panel, and the control wheel can be raised or lowered through approximately 3in. by turning asmall knob on the control column. The optimum seat position is obtained when the pilot can just see down the glare-shield. I had been warned that Echo Bravo has non-standard aileronsand rudder, the former being some 20 per cent heavier than the production models and the latter giving odd trimmer positions.I was very pleasantly surprised with the ailerons, however, and found them remarkably light for so large a machine. Very littleeffort was required to roll from 30° bank one way to 30° the other "The instrument panels," writes the author, "hare an open look and this makes tor easy reading of the right instrument at the right time." Left, the main panel and pedestal and right, the roof panels. The ground-servicing panel is uppermost in the photograph "Flight" photographs
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