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Aviation History
1982
1982 - 2764.PDF
STRAIGHT AND LEVEL "Hello hello hello, we arrest you . . . (HeavyLift Belfast at Stansted with policemen off to quell an extra-big riot) . . . on suspicion of breaking and entering". . . (HeavyLift's recently acquired Canadair Sky monster at Stansted) • How sad that Shuttleworth has had to abandon the DH.88 Comet restoration. When I think of the money and time given by countless individuals and companies over the past eight years, I wonder how such a tragedy can be allowed to happen. I suppose the wood glue doesn't stick as well as it did 50 years ago. Somehow old G-ACSS must overcome the impos sible, as she did in 1934, and fly again so that we may drink to her in "The Comet" at Hat field. Talking about "The Comet" pub, that rather indifferent model of G-ACSS still rests inartistically in its beautiful obelisk. Nephew Phillip Gordon-Marshall tells me that the obelisk, sculptured in themes of flight, was done by Second World War artist Eric Kennington (whose powerful portraits of great airmen can be seen at the RAF Museum). Phillip hasn't seen the column for years but he recalls Kennington's saying that he'd got stuck when he came to doing a fairy. So he asked a child to draw him one. Result herewith. I hope that the old original Comet will be supported by a fairy god mother. • Nephew Mike Savage was sitting in a TriStar waiting for pushback. Across the aisle a young Arab mother's baby was gurgling happily on the floor. An English stewardess doing her take-off checks made cradling motions, to no avail. Mike joined in the cradling motions, whereupon mother deposited the baby in his arms. He smiled, stood up, and gently returned the baby to its mother. Confused for only a second, she stowed the infant in the overhead locker. At this point Mike thought he'd better push the call- button. Along came an irate steward saying no, he couldn't have a drink before take-off. • At the US Air Force Associ ation weapons exhibition in Washington D.C. the British Army supported the BAe entry by supplying two actual Falklands batteries, complete with Mirage and Skyhawk graffiti and 19-year-old gun ners who shot down 13 air craft with 25 rounds including two with one round. An American General lis- What would this fairy be outside Hatfield aerodrome'' story, col 1 f*Mh[ WBP* B^'^te •.*>•&*••'. doing See 1 1 1 tening to all this Real Stuff called to another general who was passing the stand: "Hey, you gotta listen to these guys—they've got notches on their guns." PARLIAMENT ~~*";~" # Air Cdre Tarquin Shrapnel-Carruthers (Con, Potters Bar North West): Is the Minister aware that the answer to Rolls-Royce's financial problemettes is robotics? Minister: Yes indeed. These fascinating automated extra terrestrial creep-feed grinders will tell us whether Boeing is going to design a new wing for the 747, which would then need RB.211-535s instead of -5234s because a 1980s wing will be so much better than a 1960s wing. Robotics will know the implications for the RJ.500 of Delta's decision to hang out no longer for a new 150-seater and to buy 737- 200s or DC-9-80s. Robotics will know whether GE is in fact reversing out of the civil market. Robotics will solve all these questions—plus many more, including how to pay the wages when recession cuts production from x engines a month to x a year, and what to do about the production workers robotics have put out of work. Er, what was the question again? • When the day came to test BAe's Sea Wolf anti-missile missile, HMS Penelope trained her radars on HMS • He told reporters that he was I Ifed up with reading "fairy tale [comparisons" which showed! I that the 767 had a ten p:r cent I fuel efficiency advantage over f I the A310. He went on: "We were sur-1 Iprised when ' we saw these [ Ifigures because we had not pro-Iduced any ourselves. I "We now have figures and Ithe. A310 is capable of flying 1 11,000 nautical miles on 100 lbs I of fuel. Travel Trade Gazette, September 10 Fife which was to fire the pro spective victim—a small 4sin common-or-garden shell. HMS Fife fired. Sea Wolf acquired, launched and zap ped the shell to smithereens almost before it was out of its barrel. Penelope's crew cheered. From Fife's captain came the laconic message: "I see we shot your missile down." • Whenever we want to check a story about Airline A, we always ring B. He always gives us a straight answer, he trusts us, we trust him, he's never let us or his company down, and as far as I know nobody has ever let him down. I am thinking of inau gurating a Rollo Freelunch Trophy to honour such PROs. The only trouble is that they would probably get fired. IJ)4U*n~ 1776 FLIGHT International, 18 December 1982
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