THE GOLDEN HIND

Evening Post, Volume CXXVIII, Issue 14, 17 July 1939, Page 7

THE GOLDEN HIND

GREAT FLYING-BOAT

SPEED AND RANGE

CAPACIOUS MONOPLANE

(By Air Matt, from "The Post's"

London Representative.)

LONDON, June 22.

The Golden Hind, the first of three SIJ-ton monoplane flying-boats buiit lor Imperial Ainvays. Nvas launched at the Short Company's slipNvay at Rochester last week, and Avas towed to moorings tor final adjustments before her hying trials. She has the highest loaded tonnage ot any Briusn aeroplane yet built, grossing a few hunarea pounds more than the sixengmed fc>araiand military biplane boat which was designed and built at Rochester seven years ago.

The Golden Hind ana ncr sister cralt, the Grenadier and Grenville, which are scheduled tor launching at intervals of a month, weigh with lull load approximately 70,5001b The Sarafana- weighed 70,0001b. Their wing area at 2 it*o square feet is mucn less than the 3460 square feet ot the giani biplane, illustrating the modern trend as speeds increase to reduce wing area relative to load airborne.

The wing span of the biplane was 120 feet; that of the Golden Hind is 134 feet. The neNv ship is 14 feet longer and four feet higher, its greatest height being measured over the tall tail fin

In performance, the modern aeroplane is much ahead. The maximum level speed of the Sarafand was 150 m.p.h. and its range with full military load in still air at cruising speed of 105 m.p.h. was 1450 miles The Golden > Hind reaches a maximum level speed! considerably in excess of 200 m.p.h. Its cruising speed is 180-190 m.pil. and its operational range with ioad some 3400 miles Fuelled for maximum distance, it could fly 6000 miles non-stop. It could carry 120 passengers and their luggage over distances of 1000 miles, or' 150 passengers for 500 miles, though it actual purpose is to carry smaller loads across the world's oceans. An early task of the Golden Hind and her sisters may be survey flights along Britain's projected route to Latin America FOUR HUGE ENGINES. Figures convey little of the miracle of modern engineering which is the Golden Hind. More than a million rivets hold together the immense allmetal hull. The four mighty engines —Bristol Hercules 14-cyUnder doublebank units each delivering 1380 h.p for- take-off—drive constant-speed con-trollable-pitch three-bladed airscrews which are 14. feet in diameter. In - appearance the new seaplanes closely resemble the Empire boats which are the mainstay of Britain's overseas air services, though everything about them is larger to the de. i gree necessitated by the 70 per cent, increase in loaded weight. They are high-wing monoplanes; the immense wings, with their enormously strong girder-like internal structure and "stressed skin" metal coverings, are attached on a level with the upper decking of tlie hull The four engines, dwarfed by the thickness of the wings behind them, are housed in resistancelessening nacelles. _~._,_,, ♦-. ; Internally the hull is divided into two decks. Above are the crew's quarters, including compartments for pilot age and navigation, and three big holds for mails or stowage. Space below, 'with the exception of the bow compartment from which mooring operations are conducted, and the aft baggage hold. may. be given over entirely to passenger cabins; its actual layout must depend on the purpose for vvhicn the aircraft is to be used—for longrange or medium-range flying, for mailcarriage only, or for passengers in varying numbers and mails