BRITISH NAVAL AIRCRAFT

Press, Volume LXXXI, Issue 24740, 4 December 1945, Page 4

BRITISH NAVAL AIRCRAFT

—-♦ CHRISTCHURCH VISIT TO-DAY PLIGHTS OVER CITY AND ASHBURTON Sixteen naval fighters and torpedobombers from* the British aircraftcarrier . Indefatigable will fly over Christchurch and 'Ashburton this afternoon. The aircraft will land at the E.N.Z.A.F. station' at Wigram at 4.30 p.m. and will remain there until Thursday morning, when they will fly to Ohakea, in the North Island. They will take off from Wigram at 9 a.m; and will fly over the city on the way north. The flight,' which includes eight Seafires, the naval equivalent of the Spitfire, four Fairey Firefly reconnaissance fighters;'and four Grumman Avenger torpedo-bombers, willfly off from the Indefatigable at sea at 11,43 a.m. and 12.15 p.m. After a demonstration over Wellington they will proceed to Wood-' bourne aerodrome, near Blenheim, for refuelling and, will take off again at 3 p.m. They will pass ovel* Christchurch at 4 p.m. on the way to Ashburton. .. Commander -Nigel Hallett,. E.N., D.S.C. and bar, who commands No. 7 Carrier Air' Group on the Indefatigable, will lead the flight. He has keen a fighter pilot since 1940 and has flown and fought with distinction from Norway to Tokyo. On arrival he and his pilots will be welcomed by the Mayor of Christchurch (Mr E. H. Andrews) and Group Captain C. E. Kay, O.C. Wigram. Arrangements have been made for members of the public to be admitted to the airfield between 4 p.m. and 6 p.m., and the Air Force authorities have asked for their co-operation in leaving the station promptly at the end of the two-hour period. Members of the public will also Be able to inspect the aircraft from outside an enclosure. Before the arrival of the aircraft a display of .aerobatics will be given, by a pilot in a Corsair fighter. Special transport arrangements have been made by the Christchurch Tramway Board.. A Runaway Aircraft Crowds thronging the Indefatigable at Wellington last week were not able tb see as much of tpe carrier as newspaper reiijrters who visited her earlier in her stay. They were, however, able to see the steel ropes, on the after part of the deck, which catch the hook lowered by aircraft to stop them quickly, and be‘yond the ropes barriers, each like a two-wire fence with wires of gigantic gauge. If the ropes lying on the deck do hot halt the aircraft the first barrier should, and if hot that barrier then the second. Sometimes, however, an aircraft’s hook does not engage in the ropes and the barriers are hurdled. Men on the Indefatigable have a . photograph showing such - a rare occurrence with the runaway aircraft piling up on others on the forward part of the deck and men moving smartly out of danger. The only casualty on that occasion was one who jumped over the side and was never seen again. Visitors could see, too, the swastikas and rising' suns on the island superstructure which record the number of enemy aircraft destroyed. The island has another memento of action,- dents left’when a kamikaze crashed on the flight deck. One panel was blown in and has been replaced, but the others stiff show the marks of battle. Aircraft behincPit* 11 £ ™ nt ° f the island and land . Two huge lifts each capable of carrying several aircraft break the long expanse of the flight deck. One brings the aircraft up and the other takes them down. J,ust below there are two hangars one running about half the length of the carrier and much of the width. The other is about half the size. The full complement of 84 aircraft can be earned comfortably. In the cavernous main hangar the aircraft are packed lightly, with their wings neatly folded. To fit them in the tips of the' wings have to be folded again. There is just room to move bstween the aircraft, if the sea is reasonably calm. If there is much movement a man moving between two aircraft has to be careful to avoid being jammed. In a Typhoon The Indefatigable was with an American fleet when it was struck by at yP.“ oon -. The motion was so violent mat the aircraft were rubbing against each other, and to prevent damage they were thinned out. some being taken to the flight deck and lashed dowm All hands had a busy time keepmg them securely fastened. The Indefatigable came through so well that the American commander signalled a message of congratulations on the shin's handling during the typhoon, which had caused some trouble among Americall. “What typhoon?" signalled back the captain of the Indefatigable. if ire is a constant menace on an air-f-t‘Ca^ner.J,n act ion. The hangars are equipped with sprayers and steel curtains are provided to localise outbreaks. Apart from its flight deck, lifts, hangars, and curious suoerstructure-a carrier is much like any other warship It bristles with guns, thoiifffi in her case they are almost entirely for antiaircraft defence, and internally there is tJne usual remarkable economy of space That economy is seen in living quar-

ters and it can be felt, too. in the climb down narrow companionways to the boiler rooms. The men who work m the boiler rooms have one of the least enviable of Jobs. On their way down they pass through an air lock because, if the high pressure of air in the boiler rooms was'dissipated by the opening® l an ordinary door, the flames in the furnaces would sweep across the rooms. Tlie high pressure adds to the effect of the heat. So hot was the boiler room when reporters visited the ship that the steel steps were almost too hot to touch, although the boiler was in use only for providing ship services.