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Aviation History
1980
1980 - 0144.PDF
134 FLIGHT International, 19 January I960 VMd news FAA rules on DC-10 modification THE US Federal Aviation Adminis tration has issued an Airworthiness Directive (AD) requiring all US Mc Donnell Douglas DC-10 operators to carry out stall-warning system modi fications within eight months. The AD puts into' effect recommendations made by the National Transportation Safety Board in its investigation of the Chicago DC-10 crash last May. The directive requires the installar tion of two completely independent computer-controlled stall-warning systems instead of the present sim plex system, and of two stickshakers activated by the computers, which take into' account angle of attack, air speed, and slat or flap malfunction in predicting proximity to the stall. In the Chicago accident the aircraft went Piper drops Lance and plans Saratoga PIPER has dropped its familiar Cherokee Six and Lance models but plans low-tail "Saratoga" replacements. End of the old line was confirmed when the manufacturer's domestic dealers met. Flight, however, under stands that the size of the outstanding inventory of the old models has put a blight on the traditional new-model launch. The muted launch of the new Saratoga series may also, in part, be due to the decision to abandon the much-vaunted T-tail. Adopted for the Lance in 1978, the T-tail was widely expected to be applied eventually to the Seneca. out of control because the slat-asym metry and stall-warning systems were disabled when the port engine detached from the wing, taking the leading-edge slats with it. Though the AD is compulsory for US-owned DC-lOs, all owners are ex pected to comply with it. UK opera tors already meet the principal re quirements except the duplicating of the stickshaker, because the Civil Aviation Authority regulations al ready contain the specifications now required by the FAA. A CAA spokes man says that the Authority has not yet studied the full text of the AD. DC-10 operator British Caledonian has only one stickshaker fitted which works both control columns, but says it will follow the FAA directive and fit separate systems. Bristow Spirit sets London-Paris records A SPIRIT helicopter operated by Bristow Helicopters knocked more than 25min off the London-Paris records on January 8. The actual times and speeds will be determined after correction for differences between the tracks flown and the geographical centres of the two cities, and have to be confirmed by the Federation Aeronautique Internationale. But the take-off to touchdown times and speeds were: Battersea Heliport to Issy les Mouli- neaux, lhr 15min and 169-5 m.p.h., and Issy to> Battersea lhr llmin and 178 m.p.h.. The pilots, in whose names the records will stand, were Capt Freddy Le Grys, Bristow's chief pilot for Spirits, and Capt John Aller- ton, a Bristow senior captain. A remarkable aspect of these records is that they were flown in in different weather starting with an IFR departure on a straight track of 155° from Battersea Heliport and finishing with a special VFR approach very close to the free lane for multi engined helicopters into Issy Heliport. Most of the flight was VMC above cloud at 2,000ft and Capt Le Grys kept the speed just below the 155kt VNE. The initial departure from London was delayed by very poor visibility, but was just VMC at 1,500ft depart ing from the London area. By coin cidence, the VORs at Mayfiejd, in Sussex, Dieppe on the French' coast, and Pontoise, just north of Paris, were virtually on track and Capt Le Grys did not need to use the recently installed Decca Tans F navigation sys tem. The Spirit, registered G-BHBF, is fitted with the regular Hamilton Standard autostabiliser and auto pilot. The aircraft remained on the ground in Paris for 61min and took on some fuel, though it could have returned without refuelling. Also on board were Capt Eric Brown (chief executive of the British Helicopter Advisory Board and UK representative of the FAI's helicoo- ter section), Carolyn Evans (Royal Aero Club observer), and Michael Fopp, who carried 4,000 commemora tive letters for sale by the Royal Air Force Museum, Hendon, in this 40th anniversary of the Battle of Britain. The previous London-Paris and Paris-London records were set by C.T.D. "Sox" Hosegood in a Bristol Belvedere helicopter in May 1961, in respectively lhr 41min and lhr 40min. Although the London-Paris flight is an impressive demonstration of the potential for the new IFR twin- engined helicopters, Bristow hopes these records will also emphasise the effectiveness of the machine over the North Sea, where the first two are now in service. Bristow Spirits operating from Aberdeen are now cleared for single- pilot IFR operation in all conditions except instrument approaches to Aberdeen itself. The type's five inter city speed records between New York, Washington and Boston were reported in Flight last week (page76). (•••••••P
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