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Aviation History
1971
1971 - 0095.PDF
88 LETTERS. engines that we use in most light aeroplanes are ridiculously prone to this unacceptable disease and yet hardly anyone has shouted loud and clear that the problem should be tackled at the roots. With Gipsy Majors in Chipmunks, which are not so des perately prone to the problem anyway, the hot/cold control is wired permanently into hot, yet on the Continental, for example, we are told not to keep running in hot for more than 30 seconds. Earlier engines hardly ever suffered. How many thousands of hours were amassed on Tiger Moths and Magisters with no thought for selection of hot or cold air? Troubles were very rare. Most of us, I think, would be prepared to lose a little in nominal efficiency, power, compression ratio and other trap pings of the high-pressure life of a modern aero engine and have one that keeps running regardless of the air outside. It should be the designers and manufacturers who face the problem, not the pilots, or the engineers who must retrieve and repair the bent machines. Let the designers find ways as did their predecessors of three or more decades ago and then more people will live longer. Also, insurance rates might even take that unusual step of going down. Watford, Herts D. F. OGILVY SIR,—Dr Urmston is correct to be alarmed at the number of accidents caused by carburettor icing, but I think he is wrong to blame the engine manufac turers for not providing automatic carb heat. Flying is already an expensive pastime, and it would be wrong to expect everyone to fly with inefficient engines just because a few fools are too lazy to learn how to use their engines correctly. There is nothing wrong with manual push-pull controls, whether they are for controlling r.p.m., mixture strength, or carburettor heat. The fault lies with those instructors who do not teach their students how and when to use them. Tiptree, Essex ROY WILKS Airship Economics SIR,—Mr Masefield could have substituted the word helicopter in his article of December 24, 1970, and reached the same conclusion, yet the helicopter "does a damn fine job in a goddamn awful way." He did not say a word about the almost silent Vtol city- centre-to-city-centre possibilities offered by the air ship. The airship could have been the answer for the thousands of passengers trapped recently at the "latest" technology airports in fog. Travel between London and Paris, for example, need never have stopped for fog if airships had been operating with radio aids. City to city, the time would have been the same as airport to airport. Perhaps we should use the money saved by not having a third airport (the subject of another uncon vincing calculation) to develop quiet V/Stol machines to operate reliably in all weathers. Perhaps the air ship has a corner to fill, as does the helicopter. Blagnac, France R. S. KING Height 'n' Speed SIR,—"Terminal energy management... to arrive at the prescribed touchdown point at the desired land ing velocity." (Flight, December 31, 1970, pages 1016-1020.) What a wonderful lot of new jargon for the gliding pundits to adopt! Walton-on-Thames, vie DUBERY, Surrey RAE Gliding Club FLIGHT International, 21 January 1971 IN BRIEF Mr Peter Masefield and Mr R. E. Nicoll point out that the aeroplane referred to by Roger Bacon as the Atlantic-Napier (Flight, January 7) was in fact the Alliance Biplane designed for the England- Australia Race, and which crashed soon after the start on November 13, 1919. Mr Geoffrey Negus of Northwood, Middx, com ments on the article "The Right Approach for V/Stol" in Flight for December 31, 1970, and feels that re-adopting Northolt would be the way to pro vide the right facilities; he recommends transferring BEA's London-Birmingham service to British Air Services for better frequencies and load factors. Mr A. R. G. Dow (High House, Upper Ladyes' Hill, Kenilworth, Warwicks) is trying to find out details of the Service history and ultimate fate of the three Spitfires donated to the RAF by the London and North Eastern Railway. Bruce Robertson's book Spitfire records their numbers as X4913 (named "Flying Scotsman"), X4914 (named "Cock of the North") and BM202 (also named "Flying Scotsman"). The first two were Mk Is, the other a Mk V. Replies direct to Mr Dow, please. Rene J. Francillon (PO Box 748, Mentone, Calif 92359, USA) is compiling the history of the Douglas Aircraft Company since 1920 and would welcome photographs of the following aircraft: Douglas DC-1 (while G-AFIF); DC-2s (G-AGBH and G-AGAD); DC-2s (impressed into RAF and operated in Middle East and India); DC-3s (impressed into RAF); Skymasters of the RAF (particularly EW999, ex-USAF 43-17126); Havoc I (Pandora); Invader Is in British markings; Northrop Nomads in RAF and SAAF markings; Northrop 2E K5053; and Northrop 2L G-AFBT. Infor mation about the two last-named aircraft would also be welcome and details of the proposed licence- production of DC-2s and DC-3s in the UK. DIARY Jan 21 Jan 26 Jan 26 Jan 27 Jan 27 Jan 27 Jan 27 Jan 27 Jan 28 Jan 28 Jan 28 Jan 28 Jan 28 RAeS Cambridge Branch: "Test Flying Concorde" by E. B. Trubshaw, joint lecture with the Eng.A.S.; 7.30 p.m., Bassingbourn Village College. Institution of Mechanical Engineers: discussion, "The Application of Fracture Mechanics to Fatigue Crack Propagation"; 6 p.m., 1 Birdcage Walk, London SW1. RAeS Boscombe Down Branch: "Organic Materials for Aerospace Applications" by Dr D. K. Thomas; 5.30 p.m., A & AEE Boscombe Down, Wilts. Slaet North West Area Group: "Advanced Navigation Systems" by F. J. Sullings; 7.30 p.m., Salford University, Lanes. RAeS Agricultural Aviation Group: all-day symposium, "Agricultural Aviation—Day-to-Day Problems"; Lecture Theatre, 4 Hamilton Place, London W1. RAeS Christchurch Branch "Operational Aspects of V/Stol Aircraft—Dornier Do.31" by H. Hoffert; 8 p.m., Anglo-Swiss Hotel, Gervis Road, Bournemouth. RAeS Weybridge Branch: "The Islander" by F. R. J. Britten; 5.15 p.m., Apprentice Training School, BAC Weybridge. Kronfeld Club: "Air Racing" by Beverley Snook; A.S.L. Group, Rose Bowl recognition contest; 74 Eccleston Square, London SW1. Slaet Brize Norton Group: by H. J. Hartland; 7.30 p.m., "The ARB and Licensing" RAF Brize Norton, Oxon. RAeS Southend Branch: "Ballooning" by Wg Cdr G. F. Turnbull; 7.45 p.m., The Bell Hotel, Prittlewell. RAeS Bristol Branch: "British Policy in Procuring Military Aircraft" by Stephen Hastings, MP; 7 p.m., Senate House, University of Bristol. RAeS Cambridge Branch: "Air Racing" by J. Blake; 8.15 p.m., 'O' Lecture Theatre, University Engineering Labs, Cambridge. RAeS Belfast Branch: "Private Flying—Fixed- and Rotary-wing Aircraft" by Sqn Ldr D. E. K. Mock; 7 p.m., Main Lecture Hall, Ashby Institute, Queen's University, Belfast.
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