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Aviation History
1978
1978 - 0279.PDF
FLIGHT International, 25 February 1978 489 Taxes and land shortage threaten US private fields A RECENT FAA report reveals a steady decline in the number of American privately owned airfields which are open to the public. Poten tial Closure of Airfields predicts that 120 busy private fields could close during the next ten years because of financial or other problems. Rising property taxes, high cost of capital improvements and maintenance, and lack of land for expansion are cited in the report as common causes for the potential closures. The report suggests that the most effective means of preventing closures rest with state and local governments in the form of tax exemptions, zoning and other land-use controls, financial grants, and in some cases public acquisition or maintenance of the fields. The report recommends that efforts should be made to keep open those fields that serve significant numbers of aircraft, and especially those that help relieve congestion at busy air- carrier airports. Seventy-one of the threatened fields are included in the FAA's National Airport System Plan. The FAA was directed under the 1976 Airport and Airway Development Act Amendments to survey public air fields and determine how many may close, and to report its findings to Con gress. The survey covered 293 of the busiest privately owned airfields still open for public use, plus 112 recently abandoned strips. Individual copies of the report are available free from the Department of Transportation Publications Section, TAD-443.1, Washington DC 20590. New Zealand trio completes 1,000km formation flight FORTY-three years ago four gliders were flown together from the Wasser- kuppe in Germany to Brno in Czecho slovakia to beat the world formation distance record and achieve the first 500km distance. Last month this achievement was more than doubled when three New Zealand pilots—Dick Georgeson, bolder of the FAI Gold Medal, Bruce Drake and David Speight —declared a formation world-record goal of 1,254-26km. Flying a trio of Nimbus lis, they got there 12hr 20min after take-off. The flight, which started at Tower Peak Station (43°39'S) in South Island and ended with a landing in North Island, was made mainly in mountain wave. Re-engined Pik-20E more sprightly THE motorised version of Eiri Avion's popular 15m sailplane, the Pik-20E, has been re-engined and is now flying with a Bombardier-Rotax development of a 500 c.c. snowmobile engine. The original Kohler 30-35 h.p. two-stroke was not powerful enough for take-off with water ballast from a grass field. Power output of the new engine has reached 47 h.p. in a test bed when equipped with the Pik-20E's intake and exhaust system. With the new engine, climb rate is around 500ft/min (2-7m/sec) at maxi mum weight of 1,0501b (470kg), and the Pik-20E is claimed to clear 50ft (15m) in less than 1,750ft (520m). Noise level is down to less than 60dBA at 300ft (900m). A second aircraft is being construc ted as a production prototype, and an other airframe is serving as a struc tural test-bed. The company is now hoping for an empty weight below 6171b (280kg), so that the minimum wing loading should equal that of the heaviest 15m sail planes. Up to 2601b (120kg) water bal last varies wing loading from 7-2- 9-61b/ft2(35-47kg/m2). World hot-air endurance attempt JULIAN Nott was last week awaiting weather suitable for an attempt on the world endurance record for Class 6 (56,000ft3) hot-air balloons. This is the most competitive balloon class, incor porating 90 per cent of the world's hot-air balloons. Nott will be flying G-BERE, the B-25 balloon sponsored by Fisons. The take-off site, which de pends on the wind direction prevail ing on the day, has not been confirmed as we go to press. Weight is a crucial factor. The cur rent record is held by a seven-stone American, but Nott tips the scales at some 13 stones. He is therefore saving a lot of weight with his own design of burner, never before used in a bal loon. Instead of the usual propane gas, it is fuelled with kerosene, which unlike propane can be transported in plastic containers and does not have to be stored under pressure in heavy metal cylinders. More weight is being saved by using a Hot-Air Balloon Com pany carbon-fibre gondola weighing only 301b. Nott claims that his endurance bid represents a significant technological breakthrough for the sport. Private [FtLOlKfiT Jaw-jaw better than roar-roar A ONE-DAY conference on light-air craft noise is to be held by the Air fields Environment Federation at Cran- field, Beds, on May 11. The pro gramme will look at the legal, techni cal and environmental considerations. Speakers from the Greater London Council and Department of Trade will cover local, national and international legislation, and there will be techni cal presentations from Rolls-Royce and Dowty Rotol. Full details are available from the Airfields Environment Federation, 697 Warwick Road, Solihull, West Mid lands B91 3DA; telephone 021-705 0111. The first of 15 T.6IE Venture II motor-gliders, developed by Vickers-Slingsby from the Scheibe Falke, has now entered service with the Air Training Corps m-mtmm
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