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Aviation History
1963
1963 - 0510.PDF
488 FLIGHT International, 11 April 1963 WORLD NEWS Moon Probe Progress As we go to press the Soviet spacecraft launched towards the Moon on April 2 was continuing according to plan on its pre set trajectory, with all equipment stated to be functioning normally. On April 4 Moscow radio reported that the craft would "pass close to the Moon's surface." Many Western observers had previously specu lated that a soft landing on the lunar surface was to be attempted. The 250ft-diameter radio telescope at Jodrell Bank began to receive signals from the spacecraft on April 3. The text of the first announcements of the launch of the lunar probe is given in a news item on page 501. February Exports Exports by the British aircraft industry during February are stated by the Board of Trade to have amounted to £8,941,135 compared with £8,541,319 for February last year. Largest part of this total was made up of sales of engines and parts, totalling £5,424,498. Sales of aircraft and parts came to £3,073,870; aeronautical instruments accounted for £340,083 and tyres for £102,684. Leading buyer of engines was West Germany, spending £1,116,887; leading buyer of aircraft was Australia, spending £995,076. Gp Capt Ryder's RAeC Post Gp Capt E. N. Ryder, CBE, DFC,RAF(Ref), is to be deputy secretary-general of the Royal Aero Club from May 1. A distin guished Spitfire fighter pilot during the war until shot down in 1941 when leading the Kenley Wing and taken prisoner, Gp Capt Ryder retired from the RAF in October 1960. In the previous year, when command ing Duxford, he had led the RAF team which won the London to Paris race. Bill Bedford Honoured The Royal Automobile Club announced last week that Mr A. W. ("Bill") Bedford, chief test pilot of Hawker Aircraft, had been awarded the Segrave Trophy for 1962 "for his outstanding pioneer piloting of Hawker vertical take-off and landing aircraft, demonstrating the possibilities of future development of this type of trans port." The trophy, instituted by the RAC in 1930 as a memorial to Sir Henry Segrave, is awarded to the British subject who has accomplished the most outstanding demon stration of the possibilities of transport on land, air or water. The last award was also to a test pilot, Mr Tom Brooke-Smith, formerly chief test pilot of Short Brothers and Harland. Sir George Gardner Retiring Sir George Gardner, KBE, CB, DSC, BSC, MiMechE, FRAes, who has been Controller of Aircraft at the Ministry of Aviation since 1959, is retiring from the public service at the end of April. Before going to the MoA, Sir George was Director of RAE Farnborough from 1955 to 1959. Sir George Gardner, who retires from the MoA this month He first went to RAE Farnborough in 1926, and from 1943 to 1945 was head of the instrument and photographic depart ment. Then he headed the controlled weapons department (1945-47) and from 1947-53 was Principal Director, Guided Weapons, at the Ministry of Supply. Explorer 17 Success The Douglas Delta launch vehicle achieved its sixteenth consecutive success on April 2 with the launch from Cape Canaveral of Explorer 17, alias the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's S-6 atmospheric structure satellite. Signals received at Woomera confirmed that the satellite, a 35in-diameter sphere weighing 4101b, had been placed into its scheduled orbit of 155-580 miles at an inclination of 58°. The satellite was described and illustrated in the Missiles and Spaceflight section of last week's issue. Breguet Trophy for Dr Griffith The Royal Aero Club have announced that the Louis Breguet Memorial Trophy has been awarded to Dr A. A. Griffith, CBE, DEng, FRS, formerly chief scientist of Rolls-Royce Ltd (until 1960), then after his retirement research consultant to the com pany until last year, for his work on the application of the ultra-light turbojet engine to direct take-off and landing of fixed- wing aircraft. Dr Griffith was awarded the RAeS Silver Medal in 1955 for his out standing research contributions on aircraft engine design. Russian Automatic Landing Existence of a new Russian autopilot capable of capturing and following a landing-guidance system and facilitating landings in thick fog and high winds is reported in Isvestia. The type of guidance used is not specified, but it is said that the pilot takes control for the last 30m (100ft). this may indicate that he controls the pitch axis only, leaving the autopilot to hold the centreline. Actual landings have been made in fog, strong winds and in "mountain conditions." "Sox" Retires Mr C. T. D. Hosegood, who has been flying as a test pilot since 1948 with Bristol, and latterly with Westland, has relinquished his position as chief test pilot of Westland's Bristol Helicopter Division as from the end of March. "Sox" Hosegood will be remembered for his many appearances at the Farnborough Display, but his chief contribution to test flying concerned the Bristol Sycamore, which was built and exported in quantity and was one of the most successful heli copters of its day. Mr C. T. D. Hosegood, whose retirement is announced here More recently he has been engaged on the pioneer work connected with large twin- engined tandem-rotor helicopters, in which he has made the first flights of all variants produced in this country. The latest of these is the Westland Belvedere, the largest helicopter in RAF squadron service. New production of this type at Weston-super-Mare has ceased, and all development flying is virtually completed. For his contributions towards test flying Mr Hosegood was in 1960 awarded a Master Air Pilot's Certificate, and for his work on helicopter research flying he received the Alan Marsh M»dal in 1962. UAR Fighters Since 1957 Egypt has been working on jet-propelled aircraft, and has for two years been producing the Al-Kahira (Cairo) version of the Spanish Hispano HA-200 Saeta. For at least a year a design staff has been engaged in the development of a supersonic fighter, known as the HA-300. and collaborating with Hispano in evolving six-seat business and executive versions of the Saeta (which are said to be on orde:
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