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Aviation History
1978
1978 - 0199.PDF
•S™ >n i-reriRi n-rinrvi *\ I W«t andlng 11 February 1078 Number 3595 Volum»113 irjTEHrjATIOMAL [1S1 International Business Press Associates IABCI Member of the Audit Bureau of Circulatioris © IPC Business Press Ltd 1977 Founded in 1909 First aaronautical weekly in the world Official organ of the Royal Aero Club Published by IPC Transport Press Ltd, Dorset House, Stamford Street, London SE1 9LU Telephone: 01-261 8070 (Editorial) 8397 (Photooraphlc Library) 8081 (Advertisement Sales) 8392 (Advertisement Production) Tolegrams/Telex: 25137 BISPRS G Publisher Bryan Cambray FIMI Editorial Director IPC Transport Press Maurice A. Smith, DFC Deputy Publisher and Group Advertisement Manager David Holmes Advertisement Representatives Jack Bush, C'ive Rigden, Richard Chandless US Advertisement Sales Manager Jack Vlelra, IPC Bus I- ness Press Ltd, Suite 1705, 205 East 42nd Street, New York, NY 10017. Tel: (212) 867 2080 Telex: 421710 Other advertisement representatives: see back of this issue USA news-stand distribution by Eastern News Distributors, 14th Floor, 111 Eighth Avenue, New York 10011. USA mailing agents: Expediters of the Printed Word Ltd, 527 Madison Avenue, Suite 1217, New York, NY 10022. 2nd-class postage paid at New York, NY and additional offices. US Direct Air Mall, $91 00 p.a. Air-speeded to US$60 20 p.a. f dltor J. M. Ramsden Assistant Editor Hugh Field International Editor Mark Lambert Technical Editor Michael Wilson BSc, CEhg, FBIS, MRAeS Chief Sub-editor Brendan Gallagher Editorial Staff Cliff Barnett Ian Goold Mike Hirst BTeeh Nigel Moll Stephen Piercey Doug,Richardson Bill Sweetman Air Photography Tom Hamlll Chief US Correspondent Warren H. Goodman, Spring Valley Road, Ossinlng. New York 10562. USA Telephone (914) 941-0805 Subscriptions Manager B. F. J. Nason Telephone 0444 59188. UK and overseas subscription rates at back of Issue. Stansted planners and raincoats THE world's busiest international airport continues to get busier. London Heathrow is at present handling about 25 million pas sengers a year through three ter minals, all of which are bulging. The proposed Terminal Four on the south side obviously isn't going to be ready now for another three or four years at least. The latest White Paper (page 350) makes it clear that the aeroplanes must go to Gatwick and—a name to make the planners tremble—Stansted. Stansted gave its name to the first great victory in the United Kingdom of public protest over executive decision. In 1967 the government of the day backed off a confirmed, reconfirmed and final executive decision to make Stan sted the third London airport. The victory pealed by Thaxted's Nor man tower has endured little more than a decade. It is suggested that Stansted should take four million passengers by 1982—ten times the present throughput requiring four times the present terminal (but not runway) capacity. The post-1990 Stansted capacity, possibly using a second runway (on existing British Airports Authority land), would be 16 million passengers. The White Paper is delightfully vague about post-1990, promising "discussion" of a 16-million-pas- senger Stansted and of two other "options"—which seem to boil down to Maplin and Cublington or Thurleigh again. This takes us back to the £1-13 million Roskill Commission inquiry of 1968-71. Gatwick is being built to take a maximum of 16 million passengers, launched and landed on one run way. The controversial second runway is rejected. Luton, which with Stansted is the second northern London airport, could take five million passengers a year on and off its one runway. Unlike Stansted, Luton is an industrialised, urbanised area. "Urban pollution" is what Stan sted residents fear more than noise. We have met those who dissent from descriptions of Essex as an area of outstanding natural beauty, but the "support urbanisa tion" is a matter of planning. The rail and road (Mil) access already exist, and the wealth which an air port brings could even help to finance the preservation and re demption of the Essex landscape and history. This remains to be tested; but the residents have it in their power to ensure that preservation prevails over pollution. Noise need not be a problem if long overdue decisions are taken. The early planners' worst assump tions about noise and movements have been mocked by aero-engine technology—which has made aero planes double the size for half the noise—and by the tripling of oil prices, which slowed the air trans port economy (along with every other). The planners were in fact given a lucky break. They should have used the time by dealing with the source of the noise problem. It is surprising indeed that Rolls- Royce, which has all the skills, resources and employees to do the job, has no new "CAN 5" engine between 8,0001b and 40,0001b thrust —no new engine in the category which accounts for most of the air port movements. The White Paper says that all non-Annex 16 aircraft will be banned after 1985. But where's the quiet - engine tech nology policy? Properly planned airports frequented by genuinely quiet aircraft are the right solu tion; yet instead of fixing the hole in the roof we get another official report discussing raincoat options. NEXT WEEK We look at Pratt & Whitney's JT8D-209 and publish the first census of airliner simulator manufacturers and users. Airiner simulator census also JT8D-209itteft-strsfan IN THIS ISSUE World News Air Transport Defence Avionics General Aviation HELICOPTER REPORT Business WINGS ON THE FARM Private Industry International MISSILES OF THE SMALLER NATIONS Letters Spaceflight Straight and Level 346 349 352 354 356 360 363 367 370 371 379 382 384 Front cover: There is no substitute for a large radial engine, many agricultural aviators believe. Engine and other ag-aviation problems are considerered in "Wings on the farm," starting on page 363 (Thrush Commander photograph by Tom Hamill)
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