AVIATION NOTES

Evening Post, Issue 113, 10 November 1930, Page 7

AVIATION NOTES

ATTACKS ONWAESHIES

DOUBLE PURPOSE 'PLANES

(From "Th» Post's" ReprewnUtivr) ■ • .. LONDON, 3rd-October. •Sea-going performance is linked with' increased speed and carrying load power in a new float seaplane, which is th« largest in the world. The Society,of British Aircraft Constructors, Ltd., announces that the aircraft, called th« Valetta monoplane, has been designed to obtain comparative performane« data of float and boat-hull seaplanes of equivalent power and size. It is a three-motored craft of approximately; 1500-horse power, and weighs ten tons when fully loaded. The floats "ari notable in size, each being nearly 40ft long and displacing 22,5001b. Thi« large craft has shown a maximum velo* city of about 140 miles an hour in seaplane form. A feature of the internal equipment is the wireless receiving and transmitting gear. ■ Under normal atmospheric conditions the set -has a transmitting range of 300-400 miles, using tele* graphic signals, and between 200-259 miles "for direct telephony. Provision is made and special equipment provided in the form of derrick which'maj; befitted above the engines when need* ed, for the removal and refitting of any: power-plant, while the craft _ii afloat.. . The Valetta is constructed by Short Brothers (Kbchester and Bedford), Ltd. The engines are Bristol "Jupiter" air : cooled radials and the wire* less equipment is Marconi. A DURALUMIN MACHINE. The Valetta is alternatively designed as a landplane with two immense landing wheels on a normal type undercarriage which incorpates an oil-damp-ing system and rubber springing^ A similar land or seaplane, but bujlt first in the landplane form, hasals* begun flying trials within the last; few days. This is ■; the Viastra, a , highwing monoplane in which even th« wing coverings are of metal instead, of the more usually employed'fabric. A - smaller aircraft than ■ the -Valetta, the Viastra is designed for operation with one, ttyo, or. three motors, according to the needs of the aircraft operator. One twin-engined and one single* erigined machine have been ordered < byj West Australian Airways for their,airmail line between-Perth and Adelaide; the craft now flying in this country; has three "motors totalling about -7,00* h.p. , The Viastra is built entirely of duralumin, and marked efforts are apparent to cheapen the cost of production and provide speedipr methods in the design. In the interests of economy; new straight-sided floats are being; tested; these cost approximately 15 per cent, less than floats of the usual boatshape, and the slight loss in efficiency caused by their use may be considered: by: the air-line operator as more than balanced by saving in first cost. : The Viastra is built by Vickers (Aviation), Limited;- the engines- in, tin three-engihed craft are Armstrong Si<adeley Lynx geared, air-cooled" radial! of. 240-horse power. ■ • VULNERABILITY OF WARSHIFS. Service aeroplanes engaged in an.at* tack on the Atlantic Fleet off . -th« southern coast of England during combined war exercises gained notable success. A powerful torpedo attack' wai launched on the Nelson and Bodney, two of the most formidable warships in the British Navy. The aeroplanes achieved a surprise raid, and- great "damage" was done to the surfaca craft, the two battleships being struck by.eight out of the seventeen torpedoes launched, against them from the air. The surprise was sufficiently complett to find them without their main antiaircraft 'defence ready for the fray. In addition, single-seater ship fighting planes harassed the Fleet with ma-chine-gun attacks, the pibts -diving^ their craft at high speed and sweeping the fighting tops and decks with bullets. Knowledgeable observers of the clasa between sea and air forces admit that the attack proved the vulnerability »f warships from the air..;. The importance of this lesson is emphasised when the • material employed by' the' air arm' is considered. .The torpedo-dropper* and fighters were all obsolescent machines, some of which have been 'in service for several years, and given modern machines the task of the fleet in coping with the sudden threat from the air would be still more difficult. The swiftest surface ships cannot hope to compete in ease of control, speed of turning, and'sheer velocity; •with an aircraft. Though the. exercises did not establish that a fleet may be turned back by air action alone they demonstrated clearly that air action, particularly if undertaken by * large number of machines and if in* telligently handled, can always seriously harass a fleet and frequently da grave damage. UNITED STATES OEDEB. , . The Government of the. United Statei of America has paid a high tribute *• British aero engine design and construction, having placed an order-for three Bolls-Royce 825-h.p. "H" watercooled engines. This is probably' th« most powerful .water-cooled aero engine yet in regular production in th» ■ world, and from •it was evolved the famous Rolls-Boyee racing engine which powered the victorious seaplane in th» last Schneider Trophy international contest and, in the same flying machine, holds three world's speed.records. The United States Government contemplates using the ordered enginei for research and experimental purposes, and a guess is made by some British experts that the order has something to.do with a possible United State* entry next year for the Schneider Trophy contest. However that may. be, the entire British aircraft industry takes pride in this supreme tribiita from a nation which holds a prominent position among the world's producers of aero engines. - The racing engine evolved from th# "H" motor develops more than 1900----h.p. with a weight of only 15701b—an achievement woich seemed almost impossible a very few years ago. The "H" engine, intended, for steady, trouble-free output over long period* instead of tremendous power developmneet, still shows excellent figures in1 the ratio of power to weight, its full 825-h.p, being produced by 14601b of motor. The engine is exceptionally, light and rigid; a new light alloy produced by the Bolls-Eoyce firm has recently begun to play an important part; in construction. Several big British machines, including one of the biggest flying-boats yet built in this country, are powered with the "H" engine. Six "H" motors will , provide the power for the immense 33* tons^boat, Great Britain's largest hear* ier-than-air flying machine, which ;i» being built by the Supermarine Ayia* tion Works, the firm responsible for th% record-breaking racing seaplanes. ■■