AVIATION NOTES

Southland Times, Issue 21430, 26 June 1931, Page 9

AVIATION NOTES

(By

“Radial.”)

CURRENT TOPICS. Mr A. Calvert flew to Dunedin and back on Saturday last. He left Invercargill at 11 o'clock and returned at 4 o’clock, having taken one and a-half hours each way.

Flying Officer J. M. Smith left the club’s aerodrome on Sunday afternoon to attend a rofrtsher course of No. 4 Army Co-oper-ation Squadron. He flew 2K A.C.F. to Dunedin in one hour 10 minutes and left there on Tuesday for Christchurch, taking one hour and .45 minutes. This makes a total flying time from Invercargill to Christchurch of two hours and 55 minutes, which is remarkably good. Mr A. N. Paterson accompanied Flying Officer Smith to Dunedin in 2K A.A.G. on Sunday. Last week Mr F. Dyer went solo in the Mossburn district. He is the first of the trainees to make his initial solo in this district. All the other pupils are progressing very favourably. Mishap in Dunedin. The report of the incident at the Otago Aero Club's aerodrome which appeared in the Southland Tinies on Tuesday is so worded that it gives an unhealthy view of the light aeroplane, which is most unfortunate. First, if the engine cuts out when a pilot is stunting an aeroplane it is almost invariably caused by too rough handling of the machine. Secondly, the machine definitely will not “hurtle earthwards in a spin” if properly controlled. A Moth aeroplane, which Pilot Taylor was flying, will not spin unless made to do so. Thirdly, a spin is a very easily controlled manoeuvre, and the machine need not lose more than 100 feet before it is corrected if the pilot so wishes it. An engine will cut out in a Moth if the pilot goes into a lefthand spin with the engine ticking over too slowly. “Radial” suggests this as the cause of the trouble. I have repeatedly tried to see if a Moth will go into a spin of its own accord, but never once has it done so. De Havilland Puss Moth. This machine is a semi-cantilever high wing cabin monoplane with a fuselage of rigid welded steel structure, built in sections and bolted together for ease of replacement.. Normally the cabin seats the pilot and one passenger, but the seating is so arranged that a second passenger may be carried with very little if any inconvenience. A large door is provided on either side of the cabin to allow comfortable .ingress and egress. The instrument equipment on the dashboard is very complete and comprises an airspeed indicator, altimeter, tachometer, inclinometer, oil pressure gauge, oil temperature gauge, watch, compass and a special map stand. There are practically no engine noises in the cabin owing to the fact that the valve gear being totally enclosed and the exhaust pipe from the inverted Gipsy engine passing underneath the cabin. This machine is so efficiently designed (consequently has a very flat gliding angle) that a simple but efficient air brake has been incorporated. The' under-carriage compression struts are of streamline section and by simply moving a lever in the cabin these are turned broadside on to the air flow and so have the desired effect. They are so efficient that they make a difference in the top speed of the aeroplane of 35 m.p.h. Performance fully loaded: Top speed, 127 m.p.h.; rate of climb, 630 ft a minute; time to reach 5000 ft, 10 minutes; absolute ceiling, 16,500 ft; stalling speed, 47 m.p.h. Questions and Answers. Question: What is a stall ?—P.L. Answer: An aeroplane is stalled when the wings have lost their lift. Approximately two-thirds of the lift of a wing is on top because of the wings’ shape and the air flow. This disappears. if the angle of the wing is so increased that the airflow over it is not smooth, consequently you lose the major part of the lift. A special article will be given on stalls, etc., in a later issue. It requires more space than can at present be used to describe a stall completely. Entering the Royal Air Force. Anyone wishing to know the necessary qualifications and particulars to enable them to try and obtain a commission in the Royal Air Force may do so by sending to "Radial,” c/o Times Office.