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Aviation History
1961
1961 - 1278.PDF
•u- 380 FLIGHT, 1 September 1961 Development and Demonstration . . . been said, are "crowded with pilots," arguing which instrument orcontrol should go where. (In the One-Eleven cockpit there are arrows pointing to alternative positions for various instruments.)The term "crowded" is not too strong, as there are in fact a dozen pilots at the Wisley flight-test centre, and airline pilots like to havean early look at a machine they are to fly. In addition to pilots, there will be about 50 flight test observers when the VC10 getsunder way. One of the advantages of test flying big aircraft is that a good many people can get aboard and carry out different kindsof work on a single sortie. Further, the fuel capacity allows longer time in the air. One of the local difficulties Vickers-Armstrongs face, in companywith many other aircraft firms, is that of a split location between factory and airfield. Even though the as-the-crow-flies distancebetween Weybridge and Wisley is only a mile or so, it's an un- bridgeable gap for aircraft except by air. The Weybridge run-way is 1,400yd long, which is short by current standards; but Jock Bryce has already decided to fly the first VC10 out: he reckons itshould be easier to handle on take-off, because of powered controls, than was the first Vanguard. Such a decision, typical of thosefalling to a chief test pilot's lot, has only been taken after careful calculation and due consideration of all factors involved. As Brycequite simply puts it: "One just doesn't take risks with £vm worth of aircraft." Great loyalty to his company, and a strong sense ofresponsibility, characterize Bryce's outlook on test flying. Com- menting on the difficulty of finding new pilots of the right age withsufficient experience behind them, he stresses that the "happy-go- lucky" type is no longer wanted in these days of highly sophis-ticated and vastly expensive machines. VC10 test-flying is to be done at Wisley, BAC One-Eleventest-flying at Hum: the corporation's military project, the low-level attack aircraft designated TSR.2, is to be test-flown at Warton inLancashire, the English Electric Aviation airfield. R. P. Beamont, in addition to his BAC responsibilities, is still manager flightoperations there, with responsibility for Warton and Samlesbury (also English Electric), and still takes part in Lightning test flying,doing qualitative handling of new marks. The EE chief test pilot is Wg Cdr Jimmy Dell, who joined the company from the RAF in1959, having previously been at Warton on secondment. Warton is well equipped to handle high-speed test flying and itsair traffic controllers, headed by Les Nicol, are well versed in recovery procedures: indeed they need to be, when six Lightningsmay be airborne at one time, all with marginal endurance after test programmes have been completed. (On the average, a Lightningtest flight lasts for half an hour.) For speed runs over the Irish Sea, the Lightnings do a radar climb-out towards Gt Orme's Head, thenare turned north. They are given special GCI by Killard Pt radar on the Northern Ireland coast, and similar surveillance is provided byRoyal Air Force radar for air-firing sorties carried out off the north- east coast. The radar stations "hand back" the aircraft to Wartonwhen sorties are completed: there is direct telephone contact between these two centres and the airfield's radar room. To reach GtOrme's Head, the Lightnings have to cross the confluence of Red 3 and Green 2 Airways: MoA have given permission for Wartonaircraft to cross airways under radar without prior notification. For recovery, the airfield has Marconi 264H approach control radar.ILS minima are 300ft cloudbase, 1,200yd visibility; but there may be circumstances, for example low fuel reserves, when control have"'got to get a pilot in," whatever the conditions. Handling Lightnings breeds special knowledge in the controllers, such as the need forgetting them set on their approach path as soon as possible—for, as Dave Mitchell-Hill, No 2 in air traffic, says: "a five-degree change ofdirection on an approach means a 60 bank in a Lightning." In poor visibility, Warton can provide a white high-intensity centreline, plussodium bars. The main runway is 3,100yd, including fully stressed overshoots of 200 and 250yd. This, then, is the Lightnings' lair, which it is planned will beused for TSR.2 test flying. At present there are two experimental test pilots at Warton, Peter Hillwood and Don Knight; with Dell,they concentrate on different aspects of Lightning development. For example, Hillwood's special job has been armament; Dell hasbeen project pilot on the weapon system. In the P.I days, Desmond de Villiers was No 2 project pilot: now he heads the productiontest pilots, with Tim Ferguson, Keith Isherwood and John Hall. Production and experimental pilots are physically separated atWarton, though in fact there is no clear split between the two groups: the former have their offices in a little house which was there beforethe airfield; the latter are domiciled in the flight test block. Johnny Squier—who so remarkably survived high-speed ejection over theIrish Sea and paddled himself ashore in his dinghy after the world had given him up for lost-—now has duties in addition to those oftest flying, as crew station liaison officer. In this capacity he is responsible for liaison with the Ministries on crew stations andcockpit layout. Much of his work nowadays concerns the TSR.2: he visits Weybridge regularly and at Warton is available for consul-tation by the TSR.2 design staff, especially on the aircraft systems. Other pilots at Warton are Dinty Moores and Johnny Hackett(communications and delivery); Peter Moneypenny, who is a pilot and navigator; a navigator, Brian McCann, and a flight testobserver, Arthur Lewry. From these men the project team for the TSR.2 will largely be built up. Powerplant of the TSR.2 will be a pair of advanced BristolSiddeley Olympus; development flying of such engines is done at Filton, headquarters of Bristol Siddeley Engines. Engine test-flying is quite different from the test-flying of complete aircraft, involving different attitudes and techniques. Instead of concen-trating on one type of aircraft, the engine test pilot may fly six or Lightnings' lair: a landing at Warton, the English Electric Aviation test airfield, being watched from the MoA helicopter used for ASR duties
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