FlightGlobal.com
Home
Premium
Archive
Video
Images
Forum
Atlas
Blogs
Jobs
Shop
RSS
Email Newsletters
You are in:
Home
Aviation History
1969
1969 - 0465.PDF
FLIGHT International. 13 March 1969 LETTERS . . . letting down on a touchdown QFE ought to adjust his minimum upwards by the difference in height between the touchdown point and the QFE datum. If he fails to do this he will descend below the published minimum on an instrument approach, apart from any discrepancies in height during the let-down itself. These necessary adjustments are not the sort of thing one wants to be doing by mental arithmetic, so perhaps we need separate minima and let-down plates for an approach using a touchdown QFE. This would also help to sort out the missed approach, which is almost always complicated even when the ordinary QFE is used. One of your correspondents points out that both QNH and QFE heights are printed on let-down charts. This, in my experience, just is not true. My charts print the QNH heights in bold type and, beside them in italicised figures, the equivalent heights above the lowest runway threshold. This need not be, and probably will not be. the same thing as the QFE height. Admittedly, any errors introduced are always on the safe side, but a system which deliberately introduces errors seems to me to be a bad one. In short, then, I would agree that QFE, assuming the QFE for a particular runway has been set, is a great help for landing but that it has serious defects when applied to the instrument approach using our present methods. I believe that we ought to try once again to resolve the problem before we get deeply involved in our auto-landing programmes. On auto-landing approaches, at some point on short final the radio altimeter must be cross-checked against the precision altimeter and 1 cannot conceive of this being done unless the precision altimeter is set to the. threshold or touchdown QFE. It is terribly easy to become parochial about this problem. We really need a system which is foolproof (I use the word advisedly) and which will work every where for everybody on all occasions. It is a tiresome subject, but is it too much to try it once more? Crowthorne. Berks MIKE O'SULLIVAN 403 Bolingbroke for Posterity SIR,—With reference to Mr R. Trestrail's letter in your issue of February 27, may l put his mind at rest? On behalf of the RAF Museum I am involved in a survey of a Bolingbroke (Serial No 10001) here at Henlow. This aircraft was acquired from Canada quite recently. Though it has suffered from having been sited out in the open, there is no major damage. As far as we can tell, only minor items are likely to be missing; we will know more when the survey is completed. In due course this aircraft will be fully restored for exhibition. Should any of your readers have any items from Blenheim ./Bolingbroke aircraft or publications relevant to them they would be most gratefully received by the RAF Museum. RAF Henlow. R. R. LEACH, Beds Fit Lt Wanted for the Vimy Replica SIR,—With reference to the replica of the Vickers Vimy aircraft now being constructed, and for which we are reconditioning the magnetos, difficulty is being experi enced in obtaining original spares, particularly rotors and distributor blocks. We wondered if any of your readers would know the whereabouts of any complete Watford C6 magnetos or spares that we could purchase. We would be most grateful for any help in this direction. May lands Avenue. ROTAX LTD. Hemel Hempstead. A. Thomas. Herts Chief Engineer. Controls IN BRIEF No I SFTS (1), Ambala, is holding its twenty-second reunion on April 19 at the Chevrons Club, London; details from the hon secretary, Mr S. C. Booth, 2X Dene Road, London Nil. SIR.—Let us get back on the beam and tackle the overall question: Captain Paul Gibbs (Letters. February 20). quoting the RAF techniques, says; ". . . and it would not matter what they had set on their altimeters- bananas if you like, or any other locally agreed unit." This is what puzzles me. Why do highly trained men. with no suicidal tendencies, kill themselves (and others) by a simple oversight in correctly setting altimeters? Setting altimeters is a task that my daughter could do when she was six years old, and accurately. It requires efficient eyesight, little intelligence and a minimum of mathematics to accomplish correctly. - . . Why. then, does a highly qualified man on occasions find it beyond his capabilities? Needless to say. since appearing in print I have had many discussions with brother pilots, and one very good scheme mentioned was that used by the Royal Navy, lt requires an altimeter-setting read-back when requested by ATC prior to starting the approach. If pilots mis-set altimeters this may be a double check if they read-back what they have set on their dials and not on their pads or logs. 1 feel that the Department of Aviation Medicine at Farnborough would have some enlightening comments on this subject. Lingjield. Surrey MIKE t'ONRY SIR,—Like one of your previous correspondents, 1 am a captain with Cambrian Airways, who, according to their last published seniority list, employ 108 pilots. Company policy is for both pilots to set QFE on their respective altimeters for final approach and landing, and I have yet to hear any of my fellow-pilots criticise this policy. Stockhridge. Hants i. S. EAIRF.Y DIARY Mar 13 Mar 13 Mar 13 Mar 19 MarlO Mar 20-27 Mar 21-23 Mar 24 Mar 24 Mar 25 Mar. 25 Mar 25-27 Mar 26-28 RAeS Southend Branch: "New Generation of Aero Engines," by H. Cundall; No. I Committee Room, Southend-on-Sea Civic Centre. 7.45 p.m. Institution of Mechanical Engineers: Internal Combustion Engines Group: Discussion, "Closed-cycle Engine—The only Powerplant of the Future?", I Birdcage Walk, London SWI. RAeS Cambridge Branch: "The Highlands and Islands Service," by Capt A. C. McLean; Lecture Theatre O, Cambridge Univer sity. 8.15 p.m. RAeS Chester Branch: "Concorde Supersonic Aircraft." by G. Warral; Stanley Place. Watergate Street. 7.30 p.m. RAeS Yeovil Branch: Annual general meeting and Junior paper evening, Yeovil Technical College. 6 p.m. RAeS Southampton Branch; "BAC One-Eleven—User/Pilot Point of View," by Capt P. Tickner; College of Air Training. Hambte, 8 p.m. RAeS: 22nd Louis Bleriot Lecture: "European Co-operation in the Aeronautical Industry and its Future," by Ing Gen L. Giusta; 4 Hamilton Place. London Wl. 6 p.m. RAeS Graduates' and Students' Section: "European Airbus," by Hugh Tansley; City University Union Society, St John Street, London ECl. 1-30 p.m. IFALPA: 24th Conference. Amsterdam. Seventh International meeting of Parachutist Skiers. Meribel, France. RAeS Bedford Branch: "Concorde Flight Test Programme." by E. B. Trubshaw; The Hall. Mander College. Bedford. 8 p.m. Instructors' Forum, Oxford. RAeS Graduates'and Students' Section: Annual general meeting and film show; 4 Hamilton Place. London Wl. 7.30 p.m. RAeS Cambridge Branch: "Any Questions" Session; Cambridge University Engineering Laboratories, 8.15 p.m. Institution of Electronic and Radio Engineers: Conference, "Lasers and Opto-Electronics;" University of Southampton. Institution of Civil Engineers: Symposium, "Compatibility of Transport Systems," Loughborough University of Technology joint meeting with RAeS, Institute of Transport, and Lough borough University of Technology). Parts Show; May 29-June 8 "Flight" Light Aviation Show, Cranfield. Beds: July 24-27.
Sign up to
Flight Digital Magazine
Flight Print Magazine
Airline Business Magazine
E-newsletters
RSS
Events
