AVIATION NOTES

Southland Times, Issue 25306, 8 June 1935, Page 19

AVIATION NOTES

(By

“Contact.)

Fixtures: Sunday, June 16.—Monthly mombing and landing competitions. Club News. The competitions held on the King’s Birthday were an unqualified success and the flying was of a very high standard. Pilots A. N. Patterson and W. Cameron tied for first place in the crosscountry navigation event, while W. Cameron won the bombing competition by two points from Pilot E. R. Curtis. With regard to the trophy given for the former event, Pilot A. N. Patterson very generously renounced his claim in favour of his less experienced rival. This sportsmanlike action should provide an incentive to other pilots to take part in competitions and so foster a healthy club spirit. Pilot Cameron who has not very many solo flying hours to his credit, has been a very consistent performer of late, and these last two wins prove him to be a pilot well above the average in ability. There were 15 competitors in the navigation event, the possible for which was 100, and the points secured, in order of merit, were as follows:—A. N. Patterson 90, W. Cameron 90, F. Finlayson 88, A. Williamson 82, Dr. McNickle 79, E. R. Curtis 77, Dr Reekie 72, E. Mitchell 70, D. Cross 68, Miss D. Patterson 63, J. Carrick 62, W. Johnston 61, J. McC. Smith 52, J. Davies 51, J. Gilbert retired.

The last mentioned pilot, J. Gilbert, who has only recently obtained his “A” license, is to be commended for entering for a competition of this nature, but he was extremely unfortunate in encountering a bank of low cloud which caused him to retire. Although such conditions would not have deterred a more experienced pilot, it would be too much to expect this young pilot to do navigational work as well as fly the machine in bad visibility. * There were nine competitors in the bombing competition, for which the possible was 300 points. The results, which do not indicate a very high standard of perfohuance, were as follows:—W. Cameron 264, E. R. Curtis 262, J. McC. Smith 221, D. Cross 188, A. Williamson 174, Dr Reekie 174, J. Crombie 172, F. Finlayson 162, E. Mitchell 142.

I have to congratulate trainees R. Walker (Winton) and J. McMillan (Nightcaps) upon attaining their first solos. If perseverence and determination count for anything, the latter pupil should make a first-class pilot. Trainee J. M. Stewart (Gore) is making rapid progress and it should not be long before he takes off without the instructor.

Pilot J. H. Davies flew to Queenstown via Te Anau with ‘J. Carrick as passenger. The return trip to Invercargill was made the following day. Trainees E. J. Boyd, J. D. Collie F. J. Tranter and Dr. E. K. Abbott are in the various stages of dual instruction, but it should not take many weeks for this quartette to pass out into the solo class.

Pilot. E. R. Curtis was accompanied by three passengers in the Fox Moth cabin plane in a flight over the lakes district. Although low cloud and scattered rain showers were experienced from Invercargill to Winton, further inland visibility was excellent, with a perfectly clear sky. The flying scholarship at Gore has so far attracted 60 entrants which augurs well for the future of flying in the Eastern District. It may be some time before the winner of this scholarship is announced, as there are several competitors yet to take their flying tests. Vickers Vildebeests for N.Z. Defence.

New bomber aeroplanes designed primarily for coastal defence and built to the order of the New Zealand Government were demonstrated in flight at Auckland recently. This latest addition to the defences of tills country means a substantial contribution to the protective system of the Empire.

The machine chosen is the Vickers Vildebeest biplane, a long-range tor-pedo-bomber, which is the standard equipment of some Royal Air Force squadrons. I understand that the Government is likely to change the type name, thinking it incongruous that aeroplanes in its service should carry the name of a distinctively South African animal.

It derives power from a single Bristol Pegasus 620 h.p. air-cooled motor, and is notable for big load carrying capacity. One imnortant difference between the R.A.F. Vildebeests and the local craft is that the latter dispense with the torpedo, carrying in its place a large bomb-shaped fuel tank which increases the still-air range of the machine, cruising at 122 m.p.h., to 1250 miles. With that fuel load, military load in the form of bombs or other armament that may be carried amounts to nearly a ton, which is more than the majority of modem bombers can carry over a comparable distance. When being demonstrated in England Vickers test pilot showed to excellent advantage the quick take-off, high rate and angle of climb, power of manoeuvre and slow landing qualities of the aeroplane. He started his demonstration with a halfroll “off the deck,” a startling evolution more usually performed in.a powerful single-seater fighter than in a big bombing plane. In one dive at full speed he judged the distance from the film operators so accurately that cameramen who were standing on top of their vans ducked as the machine passed overhead.

With a full load, the Pegasus-power-ed Vildebeest has a “ceiling” of 17,500 feet. It reaches its best speed of 140 m.p.h. at a height of 5000 to 6500 feet. Landing speed, fully laden, is only 58 m.p.h.; control is maintained at all points of the speed range and slow landings are facilitated by the installation of Handley Page wing-slots. Notable is the ratio of disposable load to empty weight. Of the maximum loaded weight of 8500 pounds, no less than 4271 pounds, or more than half, is disposable load—an excellent achievement.

A decided advantage gained in ordering the Vildebeest is that it is exactly similar to, and interchangeable with, the Vildebeests in the R.A.F., which simplifies several strategical problems and such routine matters as the storage and provision of spare parts. The complete batch of twelve machines for this Dominion will be ready for delivery soon.