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Aviation History
2004
2004-09 - 2605.PDF
Straight & Level roger.bacon@flightinternational.com Planet VLJ Overheard at a recent Eclipse Very Light Jet (VLJ) event: Safety: "It won't crash because we've given it the best safety systems, and you won't crash because of the great training - BUT - we have designed the actual aircraft itself to be crashworthy because.. .er.. .well you know.. .s**t happens!" Design: "The whole skeleton is made from machined parts. We stole this from the Boeing Phantom Works - we only steal from the best!" Technology: "We use friction stir welding, or, as our competitors sometimes like to call it, stir-fry welding." Competition: "And speaking of which -we did not know it was going to be called the Citation Mustang. Internally we called it the 'Pinto'." "I'm telling you - the guy who wanted these delivered was fat, with a white beard and dressed in red clothes." Sailors of the USS John C Stennis load mail into a C-2 Greyhound Right Reg? Q: "Why was Burt Rutan's SpaceShipOne registered N328KF?" A: "Well Brian, it is pretty obvious actually. It represents 328,000ft (you know, KF), which is around 100km, or the notional edge of space." Q: "So is it true the SpaceShipTwo might be registered N367KF in view of the last altitude attained?" A: "Not sure. We've heard it might be something like N369KF because with Virgin aboard you never know quite what they will get up to.. .in terms of absolute altitude naturally." A plague on your air show Rain, fog, low cloud - every air show-going Brian has seen at least one or other of their favourite events abandoned or curtailed in some way because of Mother Nature. Imagine then the dismay of nephews and nieces Down Under, who had gathered on an otherwise perfect sunny day, to see the much-loved Temora Aviation Museum warbird flying day last month only to be greeted by the sign: "Unfortunately we are unable to fly today due to a locust plague on site." Nephew Dave Richardson reports: "The little flying b******s refused to be grounded and rampaged all over the airfield on both flying days. Naturally given the value of the museum's warbird collection [including the world's only flying Lockheed Hudson, an aaaaaahhh Gloster Meteor F8, Australia's only flying Spitfire and Canberra etc], the no-fly decision was accepted as a wise one. But in nearly 40 years of attending air shows I can't remember a more novel reason for curtailing a flying display!" Can anyone top that? Border skirmish Investigations are under way as to why a US National Guard Lockheed Martin F-16 pilot on a nightime training mission fired 25 rounds of the aircraft's 20mm cannon at Little Egg Harbor Intermediate School. Two early theories: one -the district had voted for the Democrats; two - the pilot thought he saw Canadians. AIRCRAFT ENGINEER FLIGHT 10.12.1954 Liverpool Prepares Speaking at the Liverpool Luncheon Club, the engi neer and surveyor of that city, Mr. H. T. Hough, made a number of observations regarding the possibili ties of future helicopter operations and his city's plans to be prepared for such developments. He said: "The Liverpool City Council has long been aware of the advantages of helicopters and has for some time given careful considera tion to the possibility of providing landing stations which will be ready for use as soon as safe and economical machines are avail- On the subject of municipal landing stations Mr. Hough continued: "One of the chief advantages of the helicopter is that, like a bus, it can stop any where there are simple landing facilities. Liverpool has in mind several surface landing sites in its long term plan, and in addition has approved in principle a roof-top landing site over a bus station and multi storey car park." 50 YEARS AGO able.' II Canada's "Saucer On arrival at Southampton on December 2nd, Mr. C. D. Howe, Canadian Minister of Trade Commerce and Defence Production, told reporters that Canadian scientists had worked for twelve months on a "flying saucer" project. Mr. Howe also dis closed that the aircraft was oval-shaped, "with exhaust pipes not unlike the drawings which have appeared in magazines." Pleasant Afternoon A Meteor pilot of No. 604 Squadron, R.Aux.A.F, had a lucky escape after baling out at 20,000ft over the Thames Estuary when his aircraft got into a spin (from which, reportedly, it would not recover) near Southend last Sunday. The pilot - P/O Brian Cross - used his ejector seat successfully, then found him self with a torn parachute. Although the parachute collapsed three times during the decent, Cross suf fered nothing worse than a suspected fractured ankle when he alighted in four feet of water. Monty on NATO In speeches at Los Angeles, Field Marshal Viscount Montgomery asserted that the dominant factor of a future war would be air power. "Air power is indivisi ble," said Lord Montgomery, adding, "if you split it into compartments you merely pull it to pieces and destroy its flexibility. If we lose the war in the air we lose the whole war and lose it quickly." The time would come, said Lord Montgomery, when the seas would be controlled from the air. Aircraft would also make big naval surface craft obsolete. 50 7-13 DECEMBER 2004 FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL www.fliqhtinternational.com
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