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Aviation History
1960
1960 - 0989.PDF
55FLIGHT, 8 July1960" Scottish Aviation Twin Pioneer MILITARY AIRCRAFT OF THE WORLD . . . in the starboard wing root. On the ground the Artouste is used for starting the Conways, thus rendering the Victor B.2 independent of outside assistance on remote airfields. The latest version of the Victor B.2 to be seen has a small dorsal fin with a built-in intake. Span, 120/r; length, 114/r llm. Handley Page Dart Herald Although at present being promoted prin-cipally as a civil feederliner, the Dart Herald has obvious military applica- tions, not only in the transport role but as a radar calibration aircraftand flying classroom. Hawker Hunter (Single-seater) The latest basic mark of single-seatHunter fighter/attack aircraft is the F.6, supplied to India as the F.56 and to Switzerland—with braking parachute—as the F.58. Other airarms supplied include those of Belgium, Holland, the Lebanon and Jordan, in addition, of course, to the Royal Air Force. The F.6 wasfully described and illustrated in Flight of May 9, 1958. Particular interest attaches to the aircraft in the ground attack role, for which duty itcan carry four 1,0001b bombs, thirty-six 3in rocket projectiles or four Microcell rocket pods each containing 36 x 2in. The built-in armamentis four 30mm Aden guns and external tankage includes jettisonable units of either 100 or 23Ogal capacity in any symmetrical combination. Up tofour lOOgal napalm tanks can be taken. In the clean, intercepter con- figuration the Hunter F.6 weighs 17,6001b, carries 390 Imp gal of fuelinternally, can attain 621kt at sea level, climb to 46,000ft in 6.75min, and has a ceiling of 53,400ft. Carrying an additional 660 Imp gal offuel externally the Hunter weighs 23,7001b and can fly 1,610 n.m. With two 1,0001b bombs and two lOOgal drop tanks it has a radius of actionof 190 n.m. cruising at 1,000ft and 305 n.m. when cruising at 39,000ft. In both cases a 5min ground-level period is allowed for the attack. Theengine is a Rolls-Royce Avon 203. Among the most recent specialized developments of the F.6 are the FGA.9 attack aircraft for the RAF andthe FR.10 fighter/reconnaissance version, which carries a battery of cameras in a modified nose. Span, 33/t Sin; length, 45 ft l0\in. Hawker Hunter Two-seater Hunter Two-seaters have been suppliedto the RAF, the Royal Navy and the Danish, Dutch and Indian Air Forces. The most advanced is the T.66 for India, powered by theRolls-Royce Avon Mk 203 and having two 30mm guns whereas one is normally specified for the two-seat version. A tail parachute isfitted and on the T.66A (Hawker's own demonstrator) there are Dunlop brakes with Maxaret on the nosewheel, permitting particularly shortlanding runs. All Two-Seaters can carry underwing armament stores or tanks. Like the Hunter single-seater, the Two-Seater easily exceedsMach 1 in a shallow dive. The T.66 reaches 40,000ft in just over 6min, clears 50ft after a run of 3,150ft, and lands, again from 50ft, in 3,000ftwhen employing the braking parachute. Hawker P.H27 This vertical take-off strike aircraft, the first proto-type of which is due to fly this autumn, promises to be one of the most notable military aircraft to appear since the war. It is powered by a"special Bristol Siddeley engine," believed to be the BE.35 turbofan. Dr S. G. Hooker, Bristol Siddeley's technical director (aero), has discussedan engine of this character in the following terms : — "It can be mounted horizontally in the fuselage of a single-seater, aircraft ina conventional manner; the jets can always be directed rearwards, and the aircraft used for conventional take-off and landings; the engine can be started,tested and the machine taxied, with the jets directed horizontally rearwards, obviating problems of ground erosion and debris entering the engine duringthese phases; for short take-offs (say, 200yd) the aircraft can be accelerated with the jets directed rearwards, and then the nozzles can rapidly be deflecteddownward, to, say, 60°, when 87 per cent of the thrust of the engine wilt be given in lift, and half the thrust of the engine will still be available for hori-zontal acceleration. In such cases the aircraft will clearly sweep its debris behind it well away from its own intakes; even for vertical take-off the enginescan first be opened up to full power, and then the nozzles rapidly deflected vertically to give the minimum time for jet erosion and debris to be thrownaround; combining, as it does, both lift and thrust in one engine, the BE-S?, keeps the maintenance and logistic problems due to dispersal to a minimum."It may also be noted that an aeroplane powered by a BE.53 can operate in a conventional manner when a runway is available and also that the jets may bedeflected forward in flight in order to give reverse thrust for very high decelera- tion, steep descent and short (or vertical) landing. Hunting Jet Provost T.3 A visit to the RAF's No 2 Flying TrainingSchool to study the work of the first course of pupils to be taught to fly on Jet Provost T.3s was described in Flight of April 1. On that occasionthe manifold qualities of the aircraft were illustrated. Earlier marks of the Jet Provost have been in service for some years but are considerablyless refined than the T.3, with its Bristol Siddeley Viper ASV.8 of 1,7501b thrust, clear-view canopy, Martin-Baker Mk 4 lightweight ejectorseats and other improvements. Full dual controls are fitted and there is a single centrally mounted blind-flying panel. The hydraulically operatednosewheel undercarriage has a track of over 10ft 8in, and there are air brakes ahead of the flaps. A Rebecca Mk 8 set gives distance measuring Short Britannic (artist's impression) Miles Student and bearing facilities and the Jet Provost T.3 is the first RAF trainerto have UHF instead of VHF radio. The Air Ministry themselves report on the aircraft in these terms: — "The Jet Provost is an extremely docile aeroplane, yet it can give a livelyaerobatic performance, as evidenced by the Central Flying School's outstanding exhibitions at Farnborough and other air displays. Because of this it can beused right from the ab initio stage up to the point where the student is a com- petent and confident light-jet pilot, ready in every way to go on to the advancedtrainer. In this respect it is superior to the tail-down piston-engined Provost, the step from which to the Vampire Trainer was far greater than that fromthe Jet Provost, which has a power/weight ratio roughly similar to the Vampire's. The Jet Provost's spinning characteristics are good; its rate of rollis fast, and take-off and landing are extremely simple. Its engine-handling techniques are in line with those required by the more powerful jet enginesand its response admirably prepares the student for the Vampire." An armed version is available as a light attack or police aircraft. Span, 36/r llin; length, 32/f Sin; weight empty, 4,347/b; gross weight,7,200/b; max speed, 326 m.p.h.; s.l. rate of climb, 2,400/l/min; ceiling, 33,000/r; take-off to 50/1, 1,990/t. Hunting Pembroke Supplied to seven air forces for military transportand other duties, the Pembroke is powered by two Alvis Leonides engines. Six stretcher cases can be taken in the ambulance role. Miles Student The Student (Blackburn-Turbomeca Marbore) isalready known as a trainer. Last year the makers put up a scheme for a land-carrier based on a "Queen Mary" type vehicle and capable oftransporting, launching and retrieving a flight of three of these aircraft, operating in the attack/reconnaissance role. This scheme was criticizedon the grounds that it was too large for ease of movement in forward areas and might be difficult to hide. An alternative scheme was thenproposed, using two small vehicles each capable of carrying one Student, together with the components of the catapult and arrester system. Themakers describe the scheme thus: — "The structure and mechanism envisaged for this system are broken downinto easily handled sections which can be assembled for use and dismantled for transportation very quickly and easily by a ground crew of three men. Theaircraft is launched from a platform approximately 20ft X 14ft running on guide rails about 100ft in length. Energy for the catapulting operation issupplied by compressors mounted on both vehicles through storage vessels operating at a moderate pressure ratio. Duplication is proposed on grounds ofreliability and only one compressor need be used for normal operations. The pneumatic ram is no more than 20ft in length and is connected to the launchingplatform through a simple cable and pulley arrangement employing the principle of the 'block and tackle.' The ram is pressurized to absorb the landing energyduring the arresting operation in which the aircraft hook engages in cables which are raised automatically from the launching trolley. These cables areattached to simple shock absorbers which take only the initial shock on engage- ment—the bulk of the landing energy is absorbed through the movement ofthe trolley along its guide rails, the pneumatic ram serving as a main shock absorber and being restrained from recoiling by a mechanical or hydraulic locksystem. A simple rack and sprag system prevents recoil. A small auxiliary arrester net of the type originated by Miles and now in fairly widespread use onrunways and carriers is provided . . ." Typical armament would be two Oerlikon or Microcell rocket pods. Span, 32ft 6in; length, 31/r 9m. Scottish Aviation Twin Pioneer The work of the Twin Pioneer inRAF service was exemplified in an article in Flight of August 21, 1959, and the flying characteristics of the latest version—the Series 3 withAlvis Leonides 531/8 long-stroke direct-injection engines—were des- cribed last week (July 1). Like the single-engined Pioneer, the "Twin"can operate from rough improvised strips no more than 300yd in length. Military roles are listed as communication, troop transport,paratrooping, air freighting, casualty evacuation, supply dropping, high explosive and anti-personnel bombing, and inter-theatre ferrying. Two1,0001b bombs, or their equivalent weight to a maximum number of four, can be carried on racks mounted in stub win^s.The following data apply to the Twin Pioneer Series 3:— Span, 76ft din; length, 45 It iin; basic weight, 10,062lb; max take-offand landing weight, 14,600!b; max payload, 19 passengers or 4,000/fo freight; cabin volume, 730 cu ft; speed at max com power at 2,5O0/(,158 m.p.h.; take-off distance to 50/r, 1,150/t.
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