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Aviation History
1965
1965 - 2763.PDF
nternational, 10 June I96S CAB DISAPPROVES CINEMA BAN THE IATA agreement to ban in-flight cinema was disapproved by tjje CAB on June 1. The Board cannot agree that such entertain- jjjent is of "virtually no benefit to the travelling public". This decision will have the affect of compelling all competing North Atlantic airlines to offer in-flight entertainment, and in the opinion of IATA it will lead to a give-away war of unprecedented proportions. TWIN OTTER AIRBORNE ONE month ahead of schedule, and just over a year after the go ahead, the DH Canada Twin Otter first flew on May 20 (Flight, May 27, page 813) at the hand of Bob Fowler, chief experimental pilot of the company. The 2hr 50min flight was remarkable for the amount of testing accomplished; this included single-engine handling and a maximum altitude achieved of some 9,000ft. On the day before the first flight several straight hops were made up to heights of 100ft. Also, on board for the first flight was co-pilot Mr A. W. Saunders and Mr B. Hubbard, flight observer. A Turbo-Beaver chase-plane was flown by Mr George Neal, chief production test pilot, with Mr Peter Martin, project engineer, on board. The Twin Otter will initially be offered at $248,000 (£89,000) basic ex-works. Certification is now expected by March 1966, and the company plans to build 15 aircraft on speculation without any advance orders. The production rate will be one per month but could quickly be raised to eight per month if demand develops. De Havilland believes, based on direct questions asked of its previous customers, that the market will turn out to be larger even than that for the single-engine Otter because the Twin Otter overcomes reticence towards single-engine aircraft. Much of the design of the Twin Otter is similar to its predeces- sor, which was made for inexpensive tooling. Even wing and fuselage jigs required only adaptation to take them from Otter to Twin Otter requirements. The simplicity of the Otter has been maintained in such features as the fixed undercarriage. The engines (Pratt & Whitney PT6A-20 turboprops) may be installed in either nacelle and the nacelles themselves are interchangeable. Beaver and Turbo-Beaver operators will find many parts of their aircraft interchangeable with those of the Twin Otter. For short routes (750 n.m. is the maximum Twin Otter range, though 150 n.m. will generally be more common) de Havilland Canada considered that a retractable undercarriage offered little advantage. At best, it was calculated, it would reduce flying time only 5 per cent, and on short flights of an hour or so this was no object. On the other hand, the ease of maintenance of the fixed landing gear and its ready adaptation to ski, floats, and oversize tyres afforded distinct advantages. Since the nosewheel ski will carry only 10 per cent of the weight, it is not expected to "dig in"— a common objection to nosewheel skis in the past. The DHC-6 Twin Otter is now being cleared to a maximum gross weight of 10,5001b—recently raised from 10,0001b. It is hoped to raise this further to 11,0001b. Maximum payload is 4,5601b with a maximum range of 150 miles. The cabin can carry 15 passengers- seven seats down each side and one between the rear. Customers 899 can have a bottom-hinged air stair door, or a double freight door 46.5in x 45in in the first models. Plans are to increase this door to 48in x 48in on subsequent aircraft. The fifth aircraft produced will have additional escape hatches to permit higher density seating—up to 20 passengers (with only a 12in aisle). In the 15 passenger arrangement, the specially designed seats fold into the walls, completely clearing the floorspace. The 18.5ft long cabin is 54.2in wide and 59in high and has a volume of 384 cu ft. The floor is built to take 2001b/sq ft and may be equipped with rails and tie-downs as optional equipment. At 10,5001b maximum gross, the aircraft can clear a 50ft obstacle in an STOL type take-off in 1,040ft. However, with the gross weight reduced to 10,0001b it can clear the obstacle in 846ft. Landing over a 50ft obstacle requires 990ft. Other relevant performance data: max rate of climb, l,650ft/min; single-engine rate of climb, 370ft/min; service ceiling, 27,000ft; single-engine service ceiling, 10,500ft; max speed, 158kt; typical cruise speed (10,000ft), 154kt. AVIATION FUEL COALITION THREE suppliers—Mobil, Regent and Total—formed a separate company last year to handle their aviation fuel and oil at London Heathrow Airport. This action was taken because there was space available only for one installation in the airport's central area and all three companies were, among others, anxious to obtain fuelling facilities at the airport. The new company, Aviation Fuel Services, was successful in its bid for a central-area site. The £500,000 programme by AFS at Heathrow has involved development on two sites—at the fuel farm on the western boundary (Perry Oaks) and on the central area. The storage unit, to which the fuel is brought by road tanker, consists of six 500-ton tanks storing JP.l and JP.4. From these tanks the two fuels are pumped through two underground pipelines to the terminal site a mile away, where the pipelines are broken down to supply the special airport refuellers. These refuellers—each consisting of a prime mover with a capacity of 4,000 Imp gal towing a 4,000gal trailer unit—are kept topped up with fuel so that they can be driven out as soon as ticker-tape information is received from the control tower about the arrival time and stand allocated to an aircraft which is to be refuelled. All but three of the two refuellers are painted in AFS colours, but each of the parent companies has one refueller painted with its own name and livery—no doubt as a gesture to the competitive spirit as well as a means of reminding users of the names of the three suppliers who co-operate in the AFS coalition. The airlines being supplied by AFS are JAL, Qantas, SAS, BEA and Luxair. The first delivery to an aircraft was made on April 1, but the central-area terminal construction and arrangements were not finally completed until last week. At present two of the four loading points on each of the two "islands" of the central-area site are operational. Pipeline provision has been made for a third "island" to be added when necessary. Each refuelling vehicle and its trailer carries one grade of fuel only and is clearly marked accordingly. Further details of DH Canada Twin Otter development are given above. The prototype of this new feederliner flew on May 20, a month ahead of schedule. Extra emergency hatches will permit the aircraft to be certificated for carrying up to 20 passengers
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