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Aviation History
1960
1960 - 0630.PDF
630 FLIGHT, 6 May AUSTER D.4 in the Air . . . nearly off the dial of the clearly calibrated a.si at 22 m.p.h.Engine response to fast throttle movement is near-immediate and it doesn't take long for the D.4 to settle to its cruising speedof 92 m.p.h. i.a.s. at 2,350 r.p.m. Although it is quieter than others of the tribe, I was a little disappointed at the way noise levelincreased between 2,100 and 2,350 r.p.m. I think the exhaust begins to crack at these revs and I was subsequently interestedto hear that a longer pipe is under consideration. Up to this point I had been flying Aimer's new two-seaterwithout making much conscious attempt to assess control har- monization. This I think speaks for itself; it is1 inconspicuousby its presence, and if the production ailerons are a shade lighter than those fitted now the D.4 should be very pleasant indeed.The short-span 32ft wings should crispen up the performance and handling even more and in fact stressed harness and seats wouldthen make the D.4 aerobatic. The speed range is admittedly not great (VNO is 111 and VNE140 nxpii.) but throughout it the controls remained effective, response was good in each axis and hand and foot forces werecommendably light. On the ground I had noticed that elevator and aileron forces were higher than those in a JIN which I hadflown during our photographic sortie; but there was no appreciable backlash or breakout force and the effect may have been die resultof grease drag in new bearings. At its cruising speed, I found the D.4 stable in pitch, neutrallystable in roll and stable when yawed to the right, just unstable when yawed to the left. Damping was moderate in pitch anda 5 m.p Ji. speed increase required four pitch cycles before trimmed speed was regained. Repeating the exercise at a trimmed speedof 60 m.p.h. it was noticeable that these phugoid oscillations were Note in this view the new cuffs on the struts. Registration letters h not yet been allocated to this two-seater prototype of much shorter term and more pronounced; damping was alsoless marked but the aircraft was demonstrably stable and weald regain trimmed speed. There are moderate changes of trim with power, which couldbe coped with by about one-third of the range of the roof-mourned winder. This control worked well on the D.4 and exhibited littlefree play, but I confess that backlash in other examples on older aeroplanes makes me suspicious of roof handles as a trimmingsystem. A pleasant surprise was the very moderate nose-up change of trim when flap was lowered. These are still workedby the pull out and heave flap lever long favoured by Auster (is it too late to suggest that a pawl and trigger would make the controlsimpler to operate?) and once the pull-out lock has been disengaged the force to lower is reasonably light. Limit speed is 70 m.p.h. Overshooting with full flap is completely straightforward andthe push force required before re-trimming must be under ten pounds. There is obviously a lot of drag, but I found that atransient rate of climb of around 400ft/min could be easily obtained. A slight tendency to sink when the flaps are raisedcan be minimized by lifting them slowly against the aerodynamic pressure—and it's rather fun to feel what is going on outside. On the approach the D.4 settles happily to a trimmed speedof about 50 and touches down as lightly as thistledown. There is plenty of elevator control for a three pointer both at this speedand 5 m.p.h. slower, even on a slightly adverse slope. The D.4 is not a revolutionary step forward, but for my moneythe D series should be the best Austers yet. Ruggedness and accessibility have always been good features, and now comfort,quietness and finish have been much improved. The clean and sweet-running American engines are an obvious choice for aero-planes of this class and lend themselves well to optional appendages such as heaters, v.p. propellers and silencers. There is still someway to go in finding British equipment to bring this British aeroplane up to the prix fixe standard of its US contemporaries,but in one respect the D.4 is comparable or better in every way: it shows promise that in its definitive form handling maybe very good indeed. AUSTER D.4/108 (LYCOMING O-235) Dimensions: Span, 32ft or 36ft; length, 23ft 4.5in; height, 8ft lin.Weights: Gross, 1,9001b; empty, 1,2831b. Performance (pilot, passenger, full fuel, 301b baggage, 36ft span wings.Measured figures reduced to ISA conditions): Max level speed, 111 m.p.h.; cruise at 2,450 r.p.m., 98 m.p.h.; cruise at 2,350 r.p.m., 92 m.p.h.; absoluteceiling, 16,000ft; take-off ground run (5kt wind), 450ft, take-off to clear 50ft, 1,250ft; initial rate-of-climb, 620ft/min; range (16 Imp gal), 250 st m;range (32 Imp gal). 500 st m. Price: £3,020. WILLIAMSON'S NEW CAMERA A NEW Williamson camera has been taken into service bythe Roya! Air Force, chiefly for use by Coastal Command. This is the F117, which is equally suitable for air-to-air andair-to-ground photography. It can be either hand- or motor- operated and be hand-held or placed in a fixed installation. Oneof its main, and most interesting, features is that of rapid sequence. Despite a format of 4£in square, exposures can be made at a rateof two per second. Originally a private venture, the F117, in addition to beingaccepted by the RAF, is now being demonstrated to the Royal Canadian Air Force, and the West German Air Force is suffi-ciently impressed to have ordered two trial examples. This latter order, coming as it does from the home of camera manufacturers,is an undoubted feather in the Williamson cap. The various sub-types, available or in the process of develop-ment, are: F117A—hand-held and hand-operated; F117B—hand- held, hand-triggered and with motor rewind from remote supply;F117G—fixed installation, remotely triggered and with motor rewind; F117D—as C type but with provision for image-improve-ment compensation (for use with high-speed aircraft); F117E— as B type but with built-in batteries taking the place of remotecurrent supply. Apart from its Service uses the 117, particularly types A, B and C, should be of interest to the many smaller air photographyoperators the world over. For low, hand-held obliques of such objects as buildings and ships it is an excellent instrument. Itslow weight of 14Jlb, complete with loaded magazine, makes it very suitable for installing in light aircraft for vertical photo-graphy. Each magazine, loaded with 50ft of 5in film, weighs only 31b and gives 120 exposures. Change of magazine can bemade easily in the air. Shutter speeds available are 1/60, 1/125, 1/250 and 1/400second, instantly selected by the turn of an outside indicator. The iris diaphragm setting of the Ross f/4.5, 6in lens is also quicklyadjusted by means of a simple external control. Provision is made for fitting light filters. The 117 is claimed to be able to operate satisfactorily over atemperature range of — 20°C to +50°C and to a specified accuracy between — 5°C to +35°C. For vertical installation the effectivedimensions of the new camera are: height 11A in, width 12£in, depth 8iin. In use it was found to come very comfortably to the hands, andthe trigger to be convenient for operation and of a size and pressure appropriate for use in an aircraft. Even when using the cameraat its minimum cycling time of 0.5sec, no difficulty was experienced in holding it quite steady on the target. Left, the Fl 17 camera with its 50ft magazine in place; centre, magazine detached from camera body (the sight folds down when not in use); right, interior of the magazine, showing supply and take-up film spools
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