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Aviation History
1935
1935 - 1403.PDF
JUNE 13, 1935. FLIGHT. 631 - THE SHORT "SARAFAND" The Largest British Flying Boat Described for the First Time : Thirty-one tons 150 m.p.h. : More Than 5,500 h.p. in Three Tandem Engine Nacelles FROM the earliest days of British aviation the name Short has been associated with marine aircraft. First came a number of twin-float seaplanes, and after wards a series of flying boats. The latter may be said to have culminated in the Short "Sarafand," which was produced in 1932 to an Air Ministry specification, but of which it has not been permissible to publish a detailed description until now. The " Sarafand," known at first as the Short R.6/28, was primarily an experiment designed to ascertain the possibilities of the type. A civil machine of similar dimensions was projected about the same time, but in the interests of economy its completion was abandoned. When the " Sarafand " was being designed it was decided to make it a biplane in order to afford a comparison with the civil machine, which was to have been a monoplane. It was, therefore, planned on strictly orthodox lines and incorporated few new aerodynamic features, thus enabling concentration to be directed towards the structural problems involved consequent upon the large increase in size. The experience gained with the '' Sarafand '' has been extremely valuable to Short Brothers, who feel confident that with the knowledge and experience accumulated since this machine was plained, the design of a very much larger flying boat of increased aerodynamic efficiency could be undertaken with every prospect of success. In its general conception the Short "Sarafand" is a normal biplane flying boat of all-metal construction, the most notable features of the general lay-out being the thickening of the lower wing-roots to avoid the necessity for chine struts, and the placing of the six engines in three tandem pairs, each pair being carried on a single pair of inter-plane struts. This feature was first introduced in the Short " Singapore," a iour- engined flying boat. The scheme of carrying two engines on such a simple structure was considered daring at the time, but was found quite satisfactory in actual service. It has the advantage of low drag. In the " Sarafand " the engines are Rolls-Royce " Buzzards " of the medium supercharged type, each developing a normal power of 825 b h.p. at 2,000 r.p.m.i and a maximum of 030 b.h.p. at 2,300 r.p.m. Large Petrol Load Monocoque construction is used for the engine nacelles, which are built entirely of duralumin. The normal petrol load of 2,112 gallons is carried in four tanks in the upper plane. A further quantity of petrol, in the form of an overload of 1,272 gallons, is earned in two tanks, one on each side of the hull, in the lower wing. Normally the engines are fed from the upper tanks fay giavity, via a distributor in the central nacelle. Fuel from the overload tanks is pumped into the upper tanks by wind-driven pumps. The machine can be refuelled either by a pump driven by the auxiliary power unit or by a Zwicky hand pump. The oil tanks are situated in the nacelles, with Vickers " U " type coolers included m the circuit. Provision is made for warming the oil for easy starting. Separate water-cooling systems are provided for each engine, the radiators being mounted as pairs behind the front inter- plane struts, underneath the engines. Controlled shutters are fitted. The engines can be started by hand or by an R.A.E. Mark II starter. Two-bladed wooden airscrews are used on all six engines, those of the front engines having a diameter of 15ft., and those of the rear engines a diameter of 14ft. Generally speaking, standard Short practice was followed in
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