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Aviation History
1964
1964 - 0125.PDF
88 FUGHT International. 16 January 196* (Jj S t raig ht and Le ve I M Y paragraph about brothers bringsa letter from the Miles brothersbeginning: "We were flattered to come across your mention until we were pulled up short by the word 'were.' Like Mark Twain, we can assure you that this dismissal is premature, although it may be that some of our present ideas are too far ahead of the times to be recognized as pace-setters and some were put forward too long ago to be remembered as the pro- genitors of 'modern' design. "The M.52, designed circa 1943, and axed just before completion, incorporated biconvex thin wing sections, all-moving slab tailplane, power controls, afterburning, telemetering, variable area annular intake, etc. The jettisonable cabin which was another feature has taken a little longer to find acceptance. The design of the Aero- van. Merchantman and HDM.106 fore- shadowed present advances in commercial aviation. . . . We put proposals forward in 1942 for transatlantic and short-range freighters of the then novel box-car con- figuration. Then, a year or so later, for the post-war development of the same aircraft meant to inaugurate a cross-Channel car ferry service. We demonstrated, abortively, net arrester gear before Sir Stafford Cripps in 1943 and this was not followed by the present runway and aircraft carrier net barriers until long after we had abandoned hope of arousing interest in this concept. 'Do you remember our "Libellula' pro- posals of 1943, through to those for a trans- atlantic mail carrier and a supersonic air- The owl and the pussy cat went to see A superscnic airliner swift You can read of the cat in column three The owl just thought he'd add some lift liner (1946)? Compare them with current American ideas of what a supersonic com- mercial aircraft should look like. Or per- haps the Jeff Hawke strip in the Daily Express would be better!" The letter is signed "Yours modestly, F. G. and H. G. Miles" and carries this P.S.: "I've got the next decade's landing system, too, if you want it. FGM." My own P.S. is: The Miles brothers were, are, and will continue to be, pace- setters. Straw hat: Won't it start, then? Helmet: No. Straw hat: Why are your legs sticking out underneath? Helmet: I'm going to try walking it off the ground • "An interesting booklet has been put out recently for the guidance of aeroplane pilots. The thing to do under bad flying conditions, it appears, is to put a cat in the cockpit. Cats always remain upright, so the pilot merely has to see which way the cat leans to determine if the wings are level. Prudent aviators select an elderly cat, one which has used up eight of its nine lives and SO, with only one to go, has as much to lose as the man at the controls. Young cats, with seven or eight lives in hand, are not to be depended on. "A further word of warning. The chosen cat must be clean and well groomed, as your grubby cat will want to spend all its time washing itself. Trying to follow a washing cat usually results in a tight snap- roll followed by an inverted spin and struc- tural wing failure."—From the 1963 Pick of Punch. BLAMERY BOOBS AGAIN! By our Planes Ministry Correspondent • Last month Mr J. (Neddie) Blamery. the famous Socialist Planes Minister, made history by appointing a chairman of BOAC before he was even a member of the board, thereby BREAKING THE LAW. Yesterday, in a seething House, Neddie shyly admitted he had gone one better. He had, he said, appointed Lord Crathorne to be chairman of the North Eastern Advisory Committee on Civil Aviation before actually setting up the committee in the manner prescribed by Parliament. "Typical Neddie," said Grizelda, the 7ft 3in wife of the Minister of Football, "he never lets red tape stand in the way of getting things done." A Ministry spokesman denied rumours Continued on page £9)
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