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Aviation History
1961
1961 - 1277.PDF
FLIGHT, 7 September 1961 379 Coffee in Bristol Siddeley pilots' new offices at Filton: left is "Witt" Wittridge, one of the test pilots, right, Tom Frost, BS chief test pilot M2 test pilot: Peter Hillwood, one of the English Electric experimental pilots, in the cockpit of a Lightning In two of these cases, BAC and Westland, it has meant the appoint-ment of a group chief test pilot who is in overall charge of test flying.This change, or "rationalization" as ithas been called, is physically exemplified on a door in the test pilots' offices at Wisley airfield,where Vickers-Armstrongs (Aircraft)—now part of BAC—do their test flying. The two names on the door are those of the chieftest pilot, G. R. ("Jock") Bryce, and the deputy chief test pilot, R. P. Beamont. Between them they have the responsibility offorming and leading project teams for the corporation's forthcoming aircraft, VClO, Super VClO and BAC One-Eleven (Bryce'ssphere) and TSR.2 (Beamont's). There is not necessarily, however, a hard-and-fast division between civil and military projects: to gainexperience, Bryce has flown a Lightning and Bea a Vanguard. Flying the TSR.2 is likely to be shared with English ElectricAviation by Vickers pilots, and it is equally probable that Hunting Aircraft will be brought in on BAC One-Eleven test flying. Vickerspilots have had a strong flair for versatility in recent years, with Valiant, Viscount and Scimitar production. No better illustration could be gained of how a test pilot's workbegins when the machine he is to fly is still a mock-up than from a hangar at Weybridge where wooden shapes of the VClO and BACOne-Eleven stand side by side; on some days their cockpits, it has Y /»/ • Chief test pilot and flight development engineer of Rolls-Royce, A. J. Heyworth, at work in his office while the Tyne Lincoln takes off from the Hucknall runway
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