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Aviation History
1960
1960 - 1816.PDF
404 BLC FOR DRAG REDUCTION . . . did not disclose the type of aircraft involved, it is believed theywill be Douglas WB-66Ds. Their wings and tail surfaces will be largely rebuilt to accommodate plenum chambers, ducting andnew skins with suction slits (the precise and economic cutting of which will be the subject of a major part of the investigation).The slits will have widths up to 0.0625in, and will be spafced closer together as distance across the chord increases. Examination of the B-66 airframe shows that on a number ofcounts it would be particularly suited for modification in this particular application. The high mounting of the one-piece wingmakes it a comparatively simple matter to replace it by a new one incorporating the necessary auction system, and the landing gearwould not require redesign as it is housed entirely within the fuselage. Ample volume is available in the fuselage for thesuction power source and instrumentation. As one of the objec- tives is to achieve a much greater range, it would also seem logicalto fit a more up-to-date engine under the modified wing. Putting two and two together, it is our hunch that Northrop wouldconsider it desirable to fit two of the new turbofan engines, as exemplified by the CJ805-23 or the P & W JT3D (both havemilitary sponsorship, as the TF35 and TF33 respectively). Northrop state that their Boundary Layer Research Group haveconducted studies to determine engine inlet and exhaust noise- suppression techniques and levels, in addition to exploring theeffects of high-energy sound waves on laminar flow conditions. One may look more closely at the incorporation of LD-BLCinto the wing structure. Northrop make great play of the manner in which the system uses slots, rather than holes, to suck theboundary layer through, and stress the methods developed to machine these to the required close tolerances. These includespecial slitting heads and tooling, prepared by numerical control, th u-a FLIGHT, 9 Septembe, i960 for the manufacture of bonded components. The origins B fi*wing forms integral tanks between the two spars. As nv <fi H one method of retaining internal fuel would be to use a d jhlskinned torque box in which the inner skin is "solid" a th outer envelope contains the spanwise slots. The problem i>'asljsomewhat by the lower dynamic air pressure, which reduc suction duct area required. Leading and trailing edges COL .'a hollow construction similar to that employed in some h de-icing systems. Northrop say the air is "siphoned through the slots and intoducts in the airframe, then exhausts backward to provide extra thrust." Lockheed found it necessan to add two specially poddedshaft-turbine/compressor engines to provide the "blowing" power on the NC-130B. It is difficult to compare the requirements of"blowing" and "sucking" systems, but Northrop's "sucker" will probably be installed within the rear fuselage. LD-BLC would fit well on the Caravdle, Trident, Vickers VC10and Super VC10 configurations, with their uncluttered wings and aft-mounted engines. Northrop's claimed increase of range wouldmake the Super VC10 capable of carrying 58,0001b over a stage length of 7,000 miles instead of the present 4,000 miles. Thiswould permit flights to anywhere in the Commonwealth, with only one stop for refuelling. It is for such a mission that Handley Page Ltd have for so longbeen working. We reported the all-wing, all-laminar H.P.I 17 i nour September 2 issue; in our July 5, 1957 issue some of their projects for low-drag laminarized aircraft were studied, and wehad previously several times published reports of their studies and of work with special gloves fitted to the wings of a two-seatVampire. As far back as 1937 Miles Aircraft built a specially modified Peregrine with suction over the upper surfaces of thetorque box. But the contract with Northrop is the first to show any real attempt by a nation to try to reap a reward from thismost promising idea. INSIDE SPADEADAM SPADEADAM is a name which for many of us has conjured upa picture of bleak Cumberland moors and a single desolate rocket test stand. Last week the Ministry of Aviation opened theSpadeadam Rocket Establishment to the Press for the first time, and the reality was rather different. Certainly the surroundingsare desolate, but the establishment itself is very much otherwise. It was at once possible to see why this big complex has consumedmore than £20m (as was recently revealed in the second report of the Committee of Public Accounts). Unlike other Government research establishments, Spadeadamwas built for one task only: the complete static testing of the Blue Streak ballistic missile and, in particular, its rocket engine. Thelatter is a product of Rolls-Royce Ltd, who on behalf of the MoA manage the establishment. More than 2,000 were engaged in building Spadeadam; theprincipal contractors under the Ministry of Works were the ad hoc firm British Oxygen Wimpey Ltd, and the chief sub-contracts wereplaced with British Oxygen Engineering (for a liquid-oxygen pro- duction plant and general cryogenic installations) and Pye Ltd(instrumentation). Total staff today number about 600, represent- ing Rolls-Royce, de Havilland Propellers and British OxygenGases. Since Blue Streak was cancelled as a military weapon earlier this year their work has continued on a reduced scale, pend-ing the Government's decision on a British space programme. But the huge task of completing installations and instrumentation issteadily forging ahead, and the engineers with whom we talked The Rolls-Royce RZ.2 engine is derived from an earlier unit rated at 135,0001b at sea level, and two are used in the Blue Streak missile. Right, a single RZ.2 is firing on stand A3, while below is part of the component test area (note flame from turbopump gas generator) last week were anything but despondent about future prospects. The engine itself, designated Rolls-Royce RZ.2, was describedto us as "a very reliable workhorse"; it has since been overtaken by later American designs but, like most things that bear theR-R hallmark, has demonstrated excellent characteristics and reached a most satisfactory state of development. In die enginefitting shop at Spadeadam we saw five RZ.2s on vertical stands and four more on horizontal transporters. With their silver thrustchambers, yellow Alochrom finish of the turbopumps, scarlet transportation pipe-covers and green erection stands, they madea colourful spectacle. Engines are handed into an A-pack and B- pack, linked in each missile to form the complete twin-enginepowerplant. Spadeadam itself covers some 10,000 acres, over most ofwhich sheep still graze. Widely separated are five major areas: administrative, missile test, engine test, component test, andliquid-oxygen factory. There are five stands capable of running complete engines (a sixth, of novel design, is near completion)and three of these can each accept an entire Blue Streak. A more detailed description of the establishment will be published innext week's issue.
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