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Aviation History
1937
1937 - 3251.PDF
FLIGHT. NOVEMBER 25, 1937. On the right is the shapely Miles Kestrel trainer with, above, a close-up of the installation of the Rolls-Royce Kestrel XVI. (Flight photograph.) The Airspeed Oxford is destined for the training of R.A.F. personnel in advanced flying and the use of equipment. It has two of the new Cheetah X engines. (Flight photograph.) advanced army co-operation machine in existence. The braced wings are of single- spar construction and are fully slotted and flapped, the operation of the flaps being entirely automatic. Other characteristics are an excellent all-round view from the enclosed cockpits, a fixed undercarriage with internally sprung wheels, and landing lights in the wheel fairings, Bristol Mercury XII or Perseus VIII engine and D.H. v.p. airscrew. It is claimed that the Lysander can be taken off from, and land on, a football pitch and that the flying qualities are such that the machine, will stand a great deal of mishandling and abuse. Dimensions of the Lysander are : span, 50 ft. ; length, 30 ft.; height, n ft. GENERAL PURPOSE THE "G.P." machines of the R.A.F. have earned a name for exceptional versatility coupled with fine performance. Normally, they are officially categorised as light bombers, although the Vickers Wellesley, dealt with in the appropriate section as a medium bomber, is an exception. Types in ser vice at the moment are, the Fairey Gordon (Siddeley Panther Ha), Hawker Hardy (Kestrel X), Westland Wapiti (Jupiter VIIIF), Westland Wallace (Pegasus IIM), and Vickers Vincent. The Vincent is a development of the Vildebeest tor pedo bomber and is fitted with a medium supercharged Pegasus engine. Equipment includes Army co-operation gear, desert rations, two guns, and a formidable bomb load. TRAINING THE new types park at the last R.A.F. Display, and the S.B.A.C. Display featured a number of new training machines, designed for the schooling of pilots and crews in the operation of up-to-date, high-performance military air craft. Three of the types concerned—the Miles Magister, De Havilland Don and Airspeed Oxford—are the subjects of large- scale production orders from the Air Ministry. A development of the Hawk series, the Magister, is a wooden, low-cantilever-winged two-seater with a fixed single-strut undercarriage and trailing-edge flaps. The engine is the D.H. Gipsy Major, which gives a top speed (at 1,825 lb.) of 145 m.p.h. Landing speed, take-off run and landing run (with flaps and brakes) are, respectively, 45 m.p.h., 70 yds. and 100 yds. Complete dual controls and instruments and a blind- flying hood are specified. In a different category, the Miles Kestrel trainer seems destined for a useful career. A low-wing wooden monoplane with "inverted gull " wing roots, this model is powered with the R.R. Kestrel XVI engine, which drives a three-bladed D.H. v.p. airscrew. Quite apart from its functions as a high- performance trainer, it may be used for reconnaissance and bombing, and may be considered as a two-seater fighter, a multi-gun single-seater fighter, or a general-purpose machine with a speed range of 5 to 1. Data are: Length 30ft., span 399ft., track 12ft. 6in., wing area 210 sq. ft., top speed at 16,oooft. 295 m.p.h., service ceiling 30,000ft. With its trailing edge flaps, Gipsy Major engine and sturdy construction, the Miles Magister will be a welcome addition to the ranks of Service trainers. But one outstanding characteristic of the De Havilland Don comprehensive trainer is the cooling system of the Gipsyking engine. (Flight photograph).
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