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Aviation History
1965
1965 - 0163.PDF
R/GHT Internationa/, 21 lonuary I96S 97 of finish the more obvious any deficiency in colour balance becomes. Galleys account for a major part of the design effort. Up to 150 niajor meals and as many smaller ones have to be stowed in a con- fined space from which a very small service staff must produce "hotel service," but without the corresponding backing staff. Although washing-up is not required, the rapid handling of dirty equipment and waste is a formidable and space-consuming task if not carefully planned. The design of complete galley, bar and cabin equipment stowage areas on a current big jet may account for 40,000 man-hours. The end product shows that, to achieve the service standards of international airlines, up to 301b of equipment weight per passenger is required to provide 2-2|lb of food and about the same weight of liquid refreshment. In general, the equipment items can be bought and are reasonably Standardized, but the basic structure has to be tailored to individual aircraft types. Most airframe manufacturers prefer to call in a specialist company at an early stage, but a high degree of design control is necessary, particularly over the numerous stressing cases because of the many combinations of inventory. The structural implications of a 15cwt load in a big jet galley under 9g design load- ing cases are comparable with those of primary airframe compo- nents of a complete aircraft of 20 years ago. Normally positioned at the extreme ends of the accommodation area, to allow maxi- mum flexibility of seating arrangement, the various combinations of galley loading also have considerable effect on fore-and-aft balance. Toilet compartment design has been much improved by designing all the features integral with, but readily removable from, the basic structure. Every item needs to be completely foolproof in use and free from potentially dangerous protuberances. For the BAC One- Eleven a new type of re-circulating flushing closet has been designed. This uses an air pump, operated by raising and lowering the lid, which exerts air pressure to remove the liquid. Only a ball valve is in contact with the liquid; the pump itself never comes into con- tact and corrosion is avoided. Seating as an Art A new generation of seats has come in with the jets. Paradoxi- cally, airframe manufacturers no longer produce that part of the aircraft with which the passenger has the most intimate contact. Seat design is the specialized business of a small number of experi- enced companies. It has been elevated from an academic engineering study. Physical knowledge is much greater and a considerable amount of anthropological science is applied to the shaping, materials and safety provisions. Elaborate testing techniques have also been devised to establish crashworthiness and energy-absorp- tion characteristics. Most seat manufacturers now incorporate some form of yield device which is capable of reducing the severity of crash impact so that the load applied to the floor attachment does not exceed its breakaway point. The tip-up and single-spar high-density seats have been highly successful. Aircraft Furnishing Ltd has adapted its background of directly relevant experience of high-density seating to produce a "first-class" economy seat for the VC10. The primary structural member of this seat is a single spanwise spar located under the for- ward edge of the seat cushion. This eliminates all rigid transverse structure at the rear of the seat, being well away from the shin area of the passenger seated behind and providing considerably more comfort in close-pitched configurations. This seat has been des- cribed by many as one of the most comfortable in airline service today. Aerotherm has also produced a significant innovation with its Zephyr II articulating seat, which operates within its own space cubicle. The seat-back is fixed in one position and the reclining action is confined within the seat of the passenger who wishes to recline, with no discomfort to the passenger behind. To achieve recline both the seat-pad and the lumbar portion of the back cushion move forward. A full 35° recline is obtained without compromising comfort or aesthetic aspects. For the first time, too, a passenger is able to eat comfortably from a stationary meal tray or stand up straight and leave his seat regardless of the reclining habits of the person in front of him. An added advantage of this seat is that it can be installed directly against a bulkhead, thereby saving 8in-12in of cabin space, and the last row is just as comfortable as the others. This also mer*ns that it is most suitable for fixed-back lounge applications or for use with a transverse cabin semi-partition attached to an intermediate seat-back. The idea behind this seat originated in a Weybridge requirement in 1956 for the Vanguard Central African Airways is identifying the interior dicor of its BAC One-Elevens with bush-man paintings, from old cave dwellings, reproduced on the side-wall panels. The colours fit into a carefully co-ordinated scheme by Charles Butler, which also blends with crew uniforms and service equipment pilots' seats. Styling of the unit is by Charles Butler Associates. Detailed improvements in seat design include the use of moulded polyurethane foam for cushions and squab interiors instead of traditional fillings, and infinitely variable hydraulic reclir.e mechan- isms instead of springs or bungee rope with gated positions. The most significant advance in interior lighting techniques in recent years has been the use of fluorescent lighting, operated from either d.c. or a.c. supply, instead of large numbers of individual filaments. Used architecturally, such as under the hat-racks of the big jets, these give a pleasing effect in reducing the "tube" impression of a long body by creating a greater impression of width and in reducing the otherwise oppressive effect of the necessarily large overhead racks which have to accommodate numerous recessed and movable passenger service items. It also gives an even distribution of light and avoids local blemishes on the furnishings. Control units are being perfected for these lights to provide a dimming capacity of up to 75 per cent of the light output, thus avoiding the need to provide complementary incandescent lamps for subdued lighting. Considerable use is being made of capless or wedge-base lights where individual filaments are required in confined spaces. The conventional metal cap is dispensed with and the electrical connections are made to the wedge-shaped elongation of the sealed glass bulb, with a consequent saving in space and weight. The use of electro-luminescent solid-state light sources for illuminated passen- ger notices has provided good legibility and there is virtually no heat dissipated. Just coming into use on civil aircraft is a compact radio- active light source. The low-energy Beta electrons emitted by an active element, tritium gas (an isotope of hydrogen), bombard and fluorize with a layer of phosphor coating the inside of the sealed glass envelope of the lamp, to provide a bright but bold light similar to conventional fluorescent lighting. These lights are entirely self- powered and have a useful life of about 20 years. The specially appointed business jet is coming into its own and here the furnishing designer can once again revert to craft carpentry techniques with high-grade timber to provide a board-room atmosphere because weight is not at such a premium with the lower "payload." Unless the aircraft is exclusively designed for this role the interior design and trimming of these aircraft is generally exe- cuted by specialist companies. Aircraft furnishing design and engineering is out of its swaddling clothes. It is a vital and accepted part of design right from the project stage. This is as it should be, for passenger comfort, well- being and convenience are the first and last objectives of commercial aircraft design. NORMAN BARFIELD
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