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Aviation History
1971
1971 - 0042.PDF
FLIGHT International, 14 January 1971 39 ''-a*.- ^H^M^WM^-k^M - •••• ^ ill collaborating, in continuing support and in sharing operational experience. It will also open up the possibility of further collaboration in developing and exploiting the V/Stol concept." Mr Corfield paid tribute to the late Sir Sidney Camm and to Dr Stanley Hooker—"the two men most respon sible for the conception of this air craft." This was an historic day not only for Hawker Siddeley but for the whole of the British aircraft industry. Sir Arnold Hall paid tribute to the "enormous help" of the USA, both technically and financially. "If things go as well as we hope and expect," he said, "McDonnell Douglas will build the aircraft." He could see the way to higher loads and higher speeds, and to runways becoming more and more vulnerable. He complimented the company's test pilots and staff, and the ceremony was rounded off, notwithstanding the fog, with a mag nificent display by Duncan Simpson, and HSA and RAF colleagues includ ing a foursome from RAF Wittering. It was announced at the ceremony that the USMC's next 18 Harriers will be bought from England together with long-dated materials for a further 30 aircraft. Subject to official confirma tion by the FAI, an RAF Harrier from Boscombe Down piloted by Squadron Leader Leckie Thompson recently climbed to 40,000ft in the Vtol world record time of 142.5sec. Flight next week will contain a special feature on US Marine Corps operational plans for the Harrier. Domestic Fare Appeal Nine airlines have appealed against the recent rejection by the Air Trans port Licensing Board of their applica tions for increases to British domestic fares. They represent almost all operators of domestic services, and include BEA and Caledonian/BUA. The ATLB decision was on the grounds that fare increases would aggravate the present inflationary situation, and that airlines should first take steps to improve efficiency. The Department of Trade and Indus try will be appointing a commissioner to hear the appeal; the hearing is not likely to take place before the end of February. HSA Manchester Redundancies Following the announcement by BAC of some 870 redundancies at Weybridge and Hum (Flight, Decem- Australian Fellowships Shortly before Ansett's recent announcement of a repeat order for a fifth Fokker F.28, the group's subsidiary, Airlines of New South Wales, received its first ber 17, 1970) as a result of the deci sion not to proceed with the Three- Eleven, Hawker Siddeley announced on January 8 that the total workforce of 8,800 at their Woodford and Chad- derton factories would be reduced pro gressively by between 2,000 and 2,500 employees by the middle of this year. This decision is thought to reflect the completion of the RAF contract for 38 Nimrods—for which no further orders have yet been received—and a general slump in the aircraft in dustry. HSA stressed this week that the reductions would affect not only all levels of management and staff but also hourly paid employees; it is antici pated that between 700 and 800 of the redundancies will be direct production workers, predominantly in assembly areas, while between 100 and 150 would be from the design sections. The company is confident that it can maintain the labour force at its two Manchester factories at this reduced level. RAF Vulcan Lost A Vulcan B.2 on a routine training flight from RAF Waddington last Friday morning, January 8, suffered an emergency and had to be aban doned, coming down near Wingate, Co Durham. Nobody on the ground was injured and the five-man crew landed safely, the captain (Fit Lt G. R. Alcock) and his co-pilot ejecting, the three rear-facing crew members using the downward parachute exit. A court of inquiry into the accident has started work at Waddington. All that the station could say as Flight closed for press was that the aircraft crew were experienced, that the flight was in the tactical role and that the emergency did not occur at low level. Air Canada Loan Air Canada is to borrow £12.5 million from six British banks to finance the purchase of RB.211s for the ten TriStars which the airline has on order through Air Holdings. The ten-year loan agreement results from arrangements made with Rolls-Royce SENSOR "Operation Battlecry" is the name to be given by the US Navy to a Harrier evaluation programme using Marine Corps AV-SAs oper ated from small carriers and fan- tail cruisers. Senior US Navy officers are convinced that V/Stol combat aircraft must in future be synony mous with naval air power, and that this will rapidly lead to loss of interest by the USAF and Army in the AX project. Funds are to be made available by the MoAS for development of the Pegasus 15, the 20 per cent uprated Harrier engine. Construction of one demonstration engine with a 24,500lb thrust rating is to be approved. If all goes well this will lead to a production decision by the end of 1971. The engine's bigger fan will require "coring" of the Harrier airframe but will confer major improvements in payload-range per formance, particularly when asso ciated with over-wing fuel tanks which are likely to be installed. The Pegasus 11. with 21,500lb of thrust compared with 20,500lb of the Pegasus 10 in the USMC AV-8A, is ready to be presented for type approval and should fly within the next month in a development Harrier. Mk 10 and 6 Pegasus en gines in Marine Corps and RAF Harriers will be modified in a retrofit programme due to start later this year. A decision on the 1972 SBAC Show is likely to be taken within the next month. Debate within the British aircraft industry is turning on whether the show—which will cer tainly be held—should be completely international and staged earlier in the year, perhaps in May or June, to attract bigger attendances and to offset the increasing costs in cluding an MoAS rental of more than £40,000. The survey of companies indicates an almost unanimous conviction that aircraft industry sales benefit from a show. Final SBAC figures for British air craft industry sales in 1970 will reveal a total of about £275 million exports compared with the record £304 million in 1969. Forecasts for 1971 indicate that the 1970 level will be held. One of the most dramatic growth areas is guided weapons. A share of BEA's London-Paris traffic by Caledonian/BUA is the independent's primary objective to complete the Government - backed route transfer. The main problem is the extent to which BEA's Heath row-Paris capacity would have to be cut under the Anglo-French bilateral and BEA-Air France pool ing agreement, bearing in mind that Gatwick, which would be the Cale donian/BUA terminus, taps a dif ferent market from Heathrow; Air France services into Gatwick are thus a possibility.
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