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Aviation History
1961
1961 - 0622.PDF
632 VTOL—now or never . .. due to high fuel consumption, short hover-time and super-hurricanewind effects. The operating costs of the helicopter-type vehicles are lower than the other proposed VTOL aircraft. The hovering enduranceof the helicopter is superior ... a compound version of the helicopter offers the most satisfactory solution to date." Only on the tilt-wing configuration do Vertol and Sikorskydiffer, for Vertol's study of a 45,0001b tilt-wing transport, powered by four 2,650 h.p. T64 engines, indicated a direct operating cost ofonly 3.5 cents per available seat-nautical-mile over a range of 100 n.m., which compares very favourably with fixed-wing aircraft. Even if there is American military finance for the development ofa tilt-wing transport, any commercial version must still be many years away. So the helicopter and its derivatives can be expected todominate the commercial VTOL scene for at least another ten to 15 years. As the Compound Chinook and its Sikorsky counterpart arestill paper aircraft, it becomes clear why Britain should buy either the Vertol 107 or S-61 to meet her present needs and concentrateall possible effort and money on perfecting the Rotodyne. Here FLIGHT, 11 May 961 we have a compound helicopter in being, with a pay load cap ;ityexceeding that of the US projects and a potential perform nee almost as high. There are problems to overcome, including thenoise inherent in the pressure-jet rotor system; but imnr;nse problems have already been overcome in getting the Rotodyr!» toits present stage of development. Let it never be forgotten that if we don't develop the Roto "yneand sell it on a large scale, Britain may be out of the transiort helicopter business for a very long time, with nothing bigger th in aWessex to offer. Even now, the only major airline which operates helicoptersand which is not using or contemplating American equipme it is Aeroflot. The Russian operator continues to get by with the work-manlike but small Mi-4 on what is reputed to be the world's inost extensive VTOL network. There is little evidence that the tanciem-rotor Yak-24 is in commercial service as anything but a fabulously uneconomical nine-passenger VIP transport. Nor has there t>eenany recent news of the Mi-6 or more advanced projects. However, Russia has a habit of occasionally pulling thoroughly practical andeye-opening aircraft out of the bag, and it would be unwise to imagine that the men of the Mil, Kamov and Yakovlev designbureaux have run out of ideas. A 14ft inflated rubber boat H^ during a demonstration of a W nique for putting recon^io^ enemy Having spotted a forest 'ire, I2E will be able to do seitj water, carry in fire-figh <rs «"ij h h d A r y ffg hose on the ground. Ac Service, an uncontrollec /ire a energy in seven minut os o"
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