FlightGlobal.com
Home
Premium
Archive
Video
Images
Forum
Atlas
Blogs
Jobs
Shop
RSS
Email Newsletters
You are in:
Home
Aviation History
1960
1960 - 0701.PDF
f GHT, 20 May I960 ex b: the servo-motor shaft neck shear. The same electrical fault ed in G-ANCA. report on tests carried out by the autopilot manufacturers s that "The servo-motor mounting output shaft can be sheared ball indentations can be produced on the force-limiting link t, due to impact damage in either compression or extension i the servo-motor electrical clutch disengaged." Considering the accident as a whole, says the report, the xnce of evidence is not inconsistent with malfunctioning of the opilot, although there is no conclusive proof of this. \ IDE CUT AIRLINES 1 IOST controversial of the subjects discussed by IATA's Tech- lvi nical Conference in Lucerne (page 667, Flight last week) was the proposal for more widespread airline use of JP.4 wide-cut gasoline. Engine manufacturers and oil companies are shortly to be asked to approve a JP.4 specification and a statement of require- ments wide enough to embrace both aviation gasoline and kerosine. This might make it possible, the conference argued, for airlines to use special fuel on different routes, so increasing payload and operating range. That was one economic consideration; the other was that the total fuel bill was now about 15 per cent of all operating and maintenance costs and when jets were fully in service it might rise to 30 per cent. The committee studying jet fuels commented that fluctuations in price and local supply made it economically desirable for both fuels to be used at different times or even together; elsewhere and apparently contradicting this—they remarked that mixing of even small percentages of kerosine with gasoline was undesirable. The jet-fuel committee was led by Knutt Hagrup of SAS, 701 chairman of the Conference. Other particularly busy men were E L. Killip of BEA and H. E. Smith of BOAC. The latter chaired a committee which tackled Air Traffic Control and Associated Ser- vices, while Mr Killip led committees studying Doppler Radar Navigation Systems and Presentation of Flight Information. The Doppler study occupied a substantial part of the Conference. In operational use, the airlines reported, Doppler accuracies were of the order of 1 to 1J per cent along the track and 3i to 4 per cent across it. Careful correction of compass error (compass heading references used with Doppler are generally correct to within ±2°) should greatly improve its accuracy. The benefits of Doppler should be reduced horizontal separations and shorter flight times as a result of a better knowledge of winds. The Conference might be summed up in the chairman's words: "Instead of spending much of our time discussing [piston] engine troubles as in the past, we have been able to concentrate on questions ... in regard to aircraft and their systems." PROMOTION FOR MR GRANVELLE A POINT that is not yet clear about Keith Granville's appoint- •**• ment as chairman of BOAC Associated Companies Limited is whether a top-level executive link will be retained between these companies and the parent corporation. Sir George Cribbett, whom Mr Granville succeeds, was also deputy chairman of the parent corporation, providing the necessary continuity of policy. Keith Granville now relinquishes his appointment as deputy managing director of BOAC, though it is presumed that he will remain active as a director of the parent corporation. Mr Granville takes the chair of associated companies whose affairs have been left by Sir George Cribbett in a promising, though not yet profitable, state. BREVITIES Two Avro 748s appear in the current issue of the British Register ofCivil Aircraft. The first is G-APZV (constructor's number 1534) and the second is G-ARAY (1535). Commanders of the BOAC Britannia which flew the Queen Mother from London to Salisbury on May 10 were Capt J. T. A. Marsden and Capt B. E. P. Bone. TWA announce faster North Atlantic 707 schedules (see page 677).Two round trips a day will now be operated, scheduled 7hr 25min west- bound (15min faster) and 6hr 30min eastbound (lOmin faster). Latest pilots' association to claim increased pay for jet flying is theSouth African Airways Pilots' Association. It is claiming £4,500 a year for senior 707 captains; highest-paid skippers at present receive justover £3,000. CPAL have decided to purchase the Canadian Marconi Company'sDoppler equipment CMA-623, together with the associated computer. The equipment is for installation in CPAL DC-8s; deliveries will beginin August. London Airport's runway 10L/28R is back in service with improvedlighting, and with preparatory work completed for the visual glide-path indicators soon to be installed. Pilots' opinions of the new lightingshould be made either to London Airport ATC or to the AIS. Last Tuesday, May 17, marked the 40th anniversary of KLM'sLondon - Amsterdam service. It was celebrated by a special DC-8 flight on board which were Capt "Jerry" Shaw, who on May 17, 1920, pilotedthe first D.H.9 flight (he is now with D.H. Aircraft), and Sir Frank Whittle, who named the aircraft Sir Frank Whittle at LAP. The Cyprus authorities have refused permission to Falcon Airways tooperate cheap-fare services (£45 return compared with the standard BEA night tourist £85 return) for Servicemen and their families betweenNicosia and the UK Flight, April 15). The official explanation is that the flights "would not be in the public interest." Though at first .said by TWA to have suffered undercarriage collapse,the 707 which made a crash landing at New York International on the afternoon of May 9 was, the airline said later, on the point of retractingits gear prior to going round again. After the approach had been com- pleted the commander, Capt Harry Campbell, decided to "abort."Retraction of the landing gear was started but the aircraft touched down "Flight" photograph on the runway as the gear was retracting. The aircraft skidded to astandstill on Nos 2 and 3 engine pods, causing fire. This was quickly extinguished, and none of the 100 passengers or crew of nine wasinjured. The aircraft skidded for about 2,000ft and came to a stop only 300ft from the sea at the end of runway 22R. Though the pods werebadly damaged they were not torn off. Appointed honorary chairmen of the Institute of Air Transport (ITA)in Paris are Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands and Prof Theodore van Karman. The Belgian Government is planning to increase its interest in Sabenafrom the present 51 per cent to about SO per cent in line with the government parridpation in the other Air Union member-airlines, AirFrance, Alitalia and Lufthansa. Now being operated by DC-6Bs of SAS is Thai International's newservice between Bangkok, Hong Kong, Taipei and Tokyo. There are five weekly round trips between Bangkok and Hong Kong, and three weeklyservices between the British Colony and Tokyo—two via Taipei. June 3 is the date set by SAS for the inauguration of DC-8 trans-polarflights between Copenhagen and Los Angeles. On board will be Princess Margarethe of Denmark, Princess Astrid of Norway, PrincessMargarethe of Sweden and Prince Axel of Denmark. The Princesses will visit the Douglas plant in Long Beach to inspect DC-8 production. Last Tuesday, May 17, the extended main runway at PrestwickAirport was formerly inaugurated by a BOAC Boeing 707 on a proving flight to London from Toronto. The extension of the runway to 9,800ftis the first phase of Prestwick's £3m development programme. Work is already in hand on the new control tower and fire station. JAL announce a 5 per cent dividend to all its non-government share-holders for the year ending March 31, 1960. During the year a net profit of more than £230,000 was made, of which about £150,000 is earmarkedfor dividend. At the same time JAL have increased their capital from £9.4m to £ 10.9m; part of this will be used to finance JAL's initialpayments for three Convair 880s. BEA have put back by a year their plans to inaugurate scheduledhelicopter services in the summer of 1961. A spokesman says that no decision has yet been made as to which helicopter will be chosen fromamong the Sikorsky S61, Vertol 107, the Bristol 192C and "a new Wesdand helicopter." This is the first time that BEA's consideration ofa Westland helicopter has been referred to. In an unusual, if not unprecedented, action, the Italian authoritiesseized an Aerolineas Argentinas Comet 4 at Rome Airport on May 14. They acted under an order by a Milan court in a lawsuit brought by anItalian industrialist, Francesco Gronda, against the Argentine Govern- ment (owners of the airline) in respect of £ 11.5m allegedly owing for theconstruction of an aluminium factory in Argentina. The Comet 4 was released two days later. Last week in Philadelphia "Flight's" camera recorded this arrival from Pittsburgh of one of Allegheny's "no reservation" commuter services by turboprop Convair 540. Forty people disembarked, typifying the high load factors achieved. We hope to review this Napier Eland-powered operation, and Allegheny's progressive ticketing system, in a later issue
Sign up to
Flight Digital Magazine
Flight Print Magazine
Airline Business Magazine
E-newsletters
RSS
Events
