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Aviation History
1962
1962 - 0454.PDF
FLIGHT International, 22 March 196: Whitworth at Bitteswell. Aircrews coming to Benson—the Argosy operational crew complement is pilot, co-pilot, navigator and engineer, plus air quartermaster/des- patcher—do about seven weeks' flying in the OCU and two weeks' ground school. The Argosy flight simulator installed at Benson trains pilots and engineers in all aspects of flying the aircraft and managing its systems. It is said that with this installa tion the RAF becomes "the first Air Force in the world to take delivery of an aircrafi flight simulator complete with a full visual flight system." Designed, developed and manufactured to an Air Ministry require ment by General Precision Systems Ltd. it provides a replica of an Argosy cockpit with complete simulation of all systems and instruments panel and a terrain model of the approaches to an area surrounding a typical runway and airfield complex—in this case Gatwick. As described in Flight for January 20, 1961, the terrain model depicts an area of approximately 12 miles by 3J miles produced at a scale of 1 : 2000 on a continuous belt 35£ft long and 10ft wide. The model area is scanned by an image orthicon camera tube and system, and the monochrome picture, relayed through 625-line closed-circuit TV is dis played to the pilots by projection on a screen or by means of a 21 in tube mounted Two of the Benson Argosies—referred to in the news-story on this page—seen through the clamshell rear-loading doors of a third aircraft 452 SERVICE AVIATIO Air Force, Naval and Army Flying News Argosies Enter RAF Service AT approximately 1245hr on Tuesday of last week the Borough of Walling- ford flew over Wallingford, Berks. Aboard XN853, the Armstrong Whitworth Argosy AW.660 which now bears this name were civic representatives of the ancient borough: their flight followed a ceremony at nearby RAF Benson (given the freedom of Wal lingford nearly four years ago) when the Mayor, Cllr Charles Smith, had unveiled the borough's crest on XN853 and the aircraft had received the double blessing of the station and Mayor's chaplains. When he welcomed the Mayor to Benson, the commanding officer, Gp Capt H. F. O'Neill, spoke of Argosies carrying the Wallingford crest out to Aden or into parts of Africa. The aircraft were, he said, a "new element in the medium-range force in Transport Command"; they had compre hensive navigational equipment for the role they were to fulfil, and in addition to tactical duties they would be seen in ever-greater numbers on RAF passenger routes. Speaking of the new aircraft, Gp Capt O'Neill commented: "we like the Argosy; it's a pilot's aeroplane, as we say." Referring to the changes which are taking place at Benson to convert it to a "medium-range operational transport base," the station commander said that there was "a great deal of tidying up to do," before it was finished. But he referred with special pride to the installation of the flight simulator with visual attachment. At present there is an Argosy operational conversion unit (which is to move down to Thorney Island in about a year) and an embryo squadron at Benson. The latter, No 114 (first Argosy squadron in the RAF), is commanded by Wg Cdr W. I. Harris; the old OCU is under the command of Sqn Ldr G. C. McCarthy, formerly Transport Com mand liaison officer with Armstrong
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