Popular Flying July/Aug 1958

Volume 2 Number 4. (New Series) Published by THE POPULAR F'LYING ASSOCIATION

Royal Aero Club Aviation Centre

Londonderry House, 19 Park Lane, W.l

Telephone: Hyde Park 3050

Advertising FRYERS ADVERTISING SERVICE

10 Mitcham Lane, Streatham London, S.W.16

Telephone: Streatham 0993

Editorial Offices

ROYAL AERO CLUB AVIATION CENTRE

Londonderry House, 19 Park Lane, W.1

Telephone: Grosvenor 1246 Ext. 25

Editor JOHN BLAKE CONTENTS

T,THIRD P.PULAR FLYING ASS.CIATI,N RALLY has most certainly been the most successful yet. We were, of course, extremely fortunate with the weather, but two things stand out as contributing primarily to this highly successful state of affairs. Support of the meeting by members was more satisfactory than last year and Glamorgan Aviation, on whose home ground at Rhoose we held the Rally, threw themselves wholeheartedly into the preparations. A very great deal of the smoothness with which everything ran was due to the efforts of Denys Martyn, Roy Brown and their committee, as well as the other helpers. The active members of the P.F.A. committee are few in number on these occasions, and it would be most difficult, if not impossible, to arrange anything like as good a show as we obtained without the help of local enthusiasts. While we are on the subject of helpers, this is the moment to record our appreciation of the help given us by the Airport Commandant and l-ris staff, particularly the Controllers, who could not have been more charming under (occasionally) very trying circumstances !

Individual membership o.f the P.F.A. (two pounds per annum) entitles each member ,o popuLAR nrvtNc/ree o.f charge. Additional copies may be obtained.from P.F.A. Headquarters at Londonderry House, 19 Park Lane, London, l{.1, at ls. 8d. including postage, P.F.A. Groups receive one copy free and Secretaries may obtain a discount of 3d. per cop-v on additional orders by the Group.

Seven French and about thirty British aircraft turned up at Rhoose, the French contingent slightly late, having added inadvertently to the items at another display when, delayed by weather, they stopped at Elstree for lunch. A first-class bar was waiting for crews after they had booked in and Glamorgan Aviation had organised a cold meal in a large marqllee. As one sat in the shade of the tent, scoffing one's cold ham and looking out at the rows of light aircraft parked in the brilliant sunshine, while still others droned peacefully qgerhead, it was evident that light aviation was not dead yet-not by a long chalk !

In the evening, a dinner and dance were provided at the Angel Hotel in Cardiff-where everyone was staying-and, judging by the comments one heard, very good food and service everyone received. Certainly we enjoyed the dinner. We even enjoyed the subsequent speeches.

Count Reggie de Warren, after taking a verbal crack at all the nationalities present, reminded us that he was not actually a pilot himself, being an old cavalryman, but he was trying. His aviation activities had included the purchase of twenty-four Chipmunks for the Madagascar Aero Club and when they finally flew across the Mozambique Channel he had been very pleased with the effort. He had been instructed by Denys to write to the French Aero Clubs and had been informed that the aeroplanes that were coming were all very small and very fragile; so he had confined his efforts to Berck and places nearer. Only one aircraft came from Berck, the rest from much further away; next time he would start with Algeria.

Kenneth Davies, attending his second P.F.A. Rally, this time on his home ground, reminded us of his early days as a Group member and complimented Glamorgan Aviation Ltd., who were carrying the torch for light aviation. Light Aviation in Wales had started thirty years ago at Pengham Moors. When it became obvious that Pengham was closing down, it required great courage for them to start up again at Rhoose. It was, he said, thanks to the P.F.A. and to organisations like Glamorgan Aviation that there was any light aviation left at all.

' Last year, coming from France to Sywell', said Georges Beraud, ' I lost my way. Nextyear, I said to myself, I will write to Maurice Imray and I will arrive several weeks early,to make sure. So I write to Maurice Imray, but alas, in France there is a revolution and it is not until yesterday that I arrive here'. Ultra-light aviation had' started in France and the United Kingdom had been the first country to follow her lead in construction. Now many other countries were following suit. This method of building greatly helped international goodwill by giving us a common interest. Last year they had seen our

Turbi; this year they saw the Turbulent and were happy to see it in production.

Maurice Imray announced that it was his job to hand out, not brickbats, but praise. He, too, said how wonderful it was to have all the work done by the splendid band of local enthusiasts and thanked everybody for their assistance. He summed up the activities of the P.F.A. by saying: o We are an amateur movement-we do what we can, when we can'.

Harold Best-Devereux announced the various prizes, taking the opportunity to practice l-ris French on us. Three prizes were awarded in the Concours d'Elegance (at the request of many members there had been no elaborate competitions this year). In the French section, the Minicab of M. Barritault (F-PHUC); in the Group section the Argus (G-AJOZ) of Barry Birch; and in the private sebtion (G-APIZ), Joan Short's Turbulent. The Frenchmen gained two further awards, 'highly commended' being Francis Couesnon's Emeraude (F-BIMG) and M. Vieux's Emeraude (F-BIAY) and the Allchin's Argus (G-AKFN), Chris Roberts' Tiger (G-AHVU) and Austers (G-AHVS and G-AOTJ). These last belonged, respectively, to Neville Birch and A. J. Penzer. As the prizes, in addition to subscriptions to Flight, Aeroplane and the Air League-for which generous donations we are very grateful-consisted of bottles of whisky, the French were, we feel, happy with their awards.

The next course for the COMMERCIAL PILOTS' LICENCE will begin in Qctober

This is an intensive course of flying and classroom tuition carried out on an integrated basis all from the same premises

Detoils from the Chief lnstructor ETSTREE AERODROME ELSTREE HERTS

Telephone: ELSTREE 3070

Please note that we will be closed from I 5th-27th September

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On the Wing

BY ARB UTHN OT

as specialised in its way as producing a supersonic fighter. Most of our readers who fly will already have experience of just how detached some of the well-known aircraft constructors have become from light aircraft, and further have experienced the disdain of people on their airfields who have the yea or nay as to whether a landing will be permitted by ' a light aircraft, without radio' said in such tones over the telephone as might be used by a cartoon duchess who has just learned that the scullery maid is now to pay for her association with the beastly footman.

Imagine our feelings to find that no less than the august Flight should quote from ' On the Wing' in one of its leaders recently and furthermore plug the idea that somebody should get busy and manufacture some light aeroplanes. Dare one predict that suddenly the light aeroplane movement is going to arrive or has even arrived behind the scenes?

There seems to be a danger in this however advantageous the fact that we migl-rt obtain some light aircraf,t from the situation. Already there are many signs and portents that all sorts and conditions of men are looking towards light aircraft, some, because they have been honest supporters of these things all their lives and are now finding some small opportunity to realise and help their younger co-enthusiasts to become airborne, others because suddenly here is a straw to be clutched now that the ministry contracts with their smoked salmon and bottles of wine lunches are fast disappearing, and in many ways one might say about time too. Will we obtain good light aeroplanes from the situation? A fair guess can be hazarded that in many cases we yen'f-ss many people in the industry now have never seen a iight aeroplane at close quarters let alone have flown one. Here is the proverbial chick on its way home to roost, by stifling light aeroplane flying for years by petty regulations lve have now reached a state where we have to start learning again while other countries have been gaining valuable ground by unbroken years of steady development of something which is just

Will all this change overnight with the horrible thought brought home at last that here might be the bread albeit without butter. Imagine the peremptory 'here you there' changing to politeness to the man landing in his Tiger Moth; now he might be a customer coming to look at the new four-seater such and so special rather than without any shadow of doubt being one of those damn fools cluttering the sky with a light aeroplane; it's all a nice thought to those who have kept flying despite it all.

In a more modest way the pages of the Aeroplane mention a resurgence of light aircraft in their Club Commentary and make a plea for the modern versions of the types from twenty years ago. Jolly good, but Mr. Cooper will raise a few hackles when he insinuates that ultra light aircraft in this country are likely to be effete. Has Mr. Cooper enjoyed the joy and sparkle of flying a Condor, an Emeraude, a Minicab or better still the Supercab. Times have changed since the wallowing powered parachute types of ultra light and now we can cruise across country with our girl friend beside us at an honest 100 m.p.h. on 65 b.h.p. or really overtake Geminis and the like on 90 h.p. There is nothing effete about these aeroplanes and nothing effete that our movement has been instrumental in getting some of them built and flying rather than issuing pompous and unrealistic specifications and lists of desiderata and moaning that why doesn,t some one build some light aeroplanes.

Let us summarise a little on what has gone before-at least since the war, after which some

Populor FlyinS, Julyl Ausust, 1958

thought that they could settle down and either buy or build as the spirit moved them a nice little light aeroplane. It was not to be and despite the battles fought by a few stalwarts it was some years before one could be free enough to build your own aeroplane. One of our members was told by the bureaucrats that he was a criminal because he wanted to build his own aircraft. From that point we have achieved the right of recommending permits to fly for amateur built aircraft. Also, without trumpet blowing the P.F.A. has carried out a programme of assessment to make easily available the wherewithal in the shape of plans so that amateurs can build their own aircraft. In this programme the lact that few people if any think exactly alike was a primary thought. Hence the reason for several types to suit several points of view. ' Now what we really want' is one of the catchphrases of bars and wherever flying types interested in having an aeroplane gather, and the ' what we really want' is seldom the same two minutes running. The P.F.A. therefore decided that some people wanted a singleseater; some-not all-but, fair enough, there is the need as is proved by over one hundred sets of plans sold for the Turbulent and their commercial production. But no, one just must have two seats say others and no frills, we like to fly in helmets and goggles; yes, these people exist as well, if not, r,vhy is it that the efficient Tiger Club has such a following? Again these enthusiasts are not the whole, but a suitable design, not too difficult to build, was produced for them. So on to the cabin side by side type with higher performance, a low wing and range for the serious tourist. Plans arc available for two types. Is our movement effete, Mr. Cooper, if we could produce all these various types for our members?

Add to these the availability of a British parasol monoplane design for those who like such things rapidly being followed by a two-seater highwing monoplane for amateur construction and there is a pretty wide choice. There are other designs but voluntary time is such that there are limits to the amount of work that can be put in assessing these types and making the plans

Popular Flying, lulylAugust, 1958

suitable for the English speaking reader. Add to all this that these types are cheap to operate.

Well, perhaps we do like our ultra lights, that is free choice and the man who wants his four seater has not yet been taken care of, but if he cares to look in the direction from which the present two seaters came what does he find, strangely enough they are pumping them up into four-seater versions. So much emphasises the need for steady development of light aircraftor is that where we came in a little earlier in this column?

News of constructors is sometimes hard to come by, partly because some people are just modest and in most cases a single handed task or even construction by a group demands that all the spare time available from living in a regulated society is put into the aeroplane. Even so snippets and trickles of news come in from time to time and suddenly the whole thing begins to look like a complete picture. Without thinking very hard ten types of ultra light aircraft can be named as actually being constructed at the present time in the U.K. and of these five either have flown or are ready to fly as these words are published. Add to this fact the rebuilding of existing types slowly continuing and the movement shows signs of putting some interesting aeroplanes in British skies.

The pre-war Currie Wot is making a welcome reappearance again, one having been constructed by a go-ahead group at Eastleigh while three private projects are actually under construction. The Wot is an interesting little design, being virtually a single seat version of the pre-war Moth. Two were built pre-war and were delightful looking little aeroplanes.

While most members will already knor,v the pre-war Luton Minor as a simple parasol type which was specially designed for amateur construction fewer readers will know of the Major built by the same company. A new Major is now on the stocks which retains the simplicity of the pre-war version while being improved in detail design. Purely as a personal bleat the little Luton Buzzard would be a welcome sight again. This aeroplane was dogged by bad luck from the

Continued on page 10

AMATETJR ATRCRAFT CONSTUCTORS' GUTDE

by Arthur W. J. G. Ord-Hume Part VI

The second type of, joint in aircraft carpentry is the butt joint, several combinations or types of which are used in aircraft construction.

A butt joint itself is not strong. It presents the smallest possible glue surface. However, it is often the only method of joining a strut to a longeron or a rib vertical member to a capstrip. The butt joint alone, therefore, is of little strength and other means must be resorted to to enable it to develop strength. These may be corner blocks or plywood gussets which will increase the glue area and provide positive results from what is essentially a weak joint on its own.

The butt joint is most commonly used by the designer to resist only compressive loads. In such cases there is little or no additional force at work on the joint likely to cause displacement, and it will suffice to hold the member in place by means of small plywood gussets.

Where the plywood skin of a structure is employed to withstand shear loads, the cross member once agatn has only to resist compression. However, in this case, it is attached along its length to the ply skin. This not only serves to stiffen the structure but also reduces the area of unsupported thin plywood which would otherwise bulge. The designer evolves the minimum size of an unsupported panel which he can utilise and he will assume attachment to the cross members.

When other forces are at work on a joint, the designer will make use of solid corner packing blocks to increase the cross-section of the members at that point for gluing. He may also use gussets or a combination of corner blocks and gussets. In some cases, he may resort to a metal fitting, bolted to each member in the joint, to

take the load. In this last case, it is assumed that the joint is ' dry ' or unglued although in practice it will of course be glued.

Where a member has to take a direct tension load which has to be absorbed into a transverse member (..g., a wing pylon attachment to a top longeron), it is uneconomic and impractical to develop strength by gussets since they would require to be excessively large. In this case, the member is attached by a metal fltting. To reduce the possibility of the bolts tearing out of the member under load due to the shearing of the end grain, the bolts may be staggered so that each bolt is supported by the maximum possible unbroken length of grain. An additional or alternative method of stabilising the end grain against shear is to face the member on both sides with plywood, thus allowing the bolts to pass through the ply as well as the actual member.

The drilling of a hole in wood is a particularly important operation demanding the utmost care and accuracy. Careless drilling can produce a weak and often dangerous structure. Each flbre in a strip of wood has a job to do and the designer has calculated just how much of the wood may be removed by drilling a hole without affecting the strength of the structure. If the hole is made oversize, not only has too much wood been removed, but the bolt or fitting which passes through the hole will not be supported evenly by the timber. A bolt in particular depends on the bearing surface of the wood through which it passes to enable it to resist the loads upon it.

Basically, to drill wood, the drill must be held rock-steady at the precise angle to the wood that is required. If it is attempted to drill a hole

Popular Flying, Julyl August, 1958

half-way from each side, the chances are that the two holes will not meet dead in the centre. If the hole is reamed out to fit a bolt, the hole would be barrel-shaped. The bolt would only be supported at its extremities and, when any load was applied during service, the bolt would very rapidly elongate the hole and work loose.

The correct method is to drill the hole entirely from one side. If the drill is slightly crooked, the hole will not mate up with the fitting the other side. Any attempt to rectify the matter by reaming or redrilling from the other side will be useless since the lack of bearing surface for the bolt will allow the fitting to be pulled out of place.

Should there be any doubt whatever as to the accurate placing of a hole, drill a small pilot hole first to check with.

A hole is an extremely deceptive thing. Whilst its outward appearance may seem satisfactory, it is often impossible (except with large holes) to inspect its inner surface to verify whether or not it has been properly drilled. It rests largely with the constructor to exercise extreme caution and patience over this operation. For general purpose work, a satisf,actory drilling jig may be made by boring a block of steel or iron about 2" x3" x2" on a proper pedestal drilling machine with a hole the size required. It is a sound scheme to drill the block with four holes, quite closely spaced near the centre, of diameters fr", +' +' and $", thereby enabling the jig to be used for a variety of holes. The local garage will in all probability drill the block on a proper machine for the 'odd bob'.

In use, draw the centre lines locating the hole on the wood, place the jig over this mark, sight down through the jig to double check the accuracy and then lightly clamp it into place with G clamps to prevent it moving.

It is recommended that drilling should be carried out with an electric drill but, should a wheel brace have to be used, use one with a breast plate as it is easier to hold steady. Drill smoothly and slowly and avoid 'waggling' the drill in the hole. Always rest the work on a solid block of wood so that the drill passes through into it after boring the job. This is to prevent the splitting

Popular Flying, JulylAugust, 1958

of the surface grain on the other side. Alternatively, clamp or press the block by hand to the other side, taking care to keep the fingers clear of the drill tip if it breaks through the block.

Sometimes it is not possible to drill through a jig as detailed above. In such cases, the help of one, preferably two assistants will be needed. Obtain two engineers set squares, the larger the better (about six or eight inches high is ideal), and stand these up near the hole to be drilled at right angles to each other. Hold the drill approximately vertical with the point on the centre spot of the hole. The assistants may now sight whether the drill is truly vertical by lining up against the vertical arm of each square. When both are satisfied that the alignment is correct, proceed slowly to bore the hole, pausing frequently to recheck with the assistants.

In aircraft construction, it is often required to bend wood to a curve. There are two methods of forming wood to a bow-one is by bending and the other is by laminating several thin strips of wood together in a jig.

Both spruce and ash bend readily to a certain degree. Any bend in excess of this amount will result in the fracture of the fibres. Also, when bent, the wood is sufficiently elastic to cause it to spring straight again. By softening the wood, however, not only will the timber remain bent, but it will be possible to increase considerably the sale radius of the bend.

Wood may be softened in two ways-water softening, which may be done either hot or cold, and by steaming. This latter is the most effective, but, since it usually necessitates the use of a steam box if the piece is long, it'is more usual to plasticise the wood by saturation in water.

Soak the portion to be bent in water for up to two hours until it is soft enough. Bend it very slowly to the shape required, working the bend in with the fingers to prevent sudden stretch of the fibres.

The process is speeded up by immersing the piece in boiling water or, if the piece is small enough, actually boiling it in a pan of water for a few minutes. Remove the wood with gloves and again bend it slowly. If the bend is

acute or the material thick, repeat the boiling treatment until the bend is completed.

It will be found that upon drying there is a tendency for the wood to spring slightly out of the bend. To counteract this, increase the bend from 15 per cent to 20 per cent more than is required so that the wood, when dry, will adopt a ' set ' just about at the bend required.

ln steaming the wood to be bent, the effect on the wood is similar to that when the wood is treated as above. The fibres soften readily without any loss of strength upon drying. If only a small area of wood of thin section has to be treated, it can be done in the steam from the spout of a kettle. However, for larger pieces, a steam box must be resorted to. This consists of a long metal box or large-diameter tube (of sufficient size to accommodate the wood to be steamed), sealed at one end and with a sealable door at the other. The box or tube is connected viaapipe to a water boiler heated by a gas burner. As the water boils, the steam is forced under pressure into the box containing the timber. A suitable safety valve must be incorporated in the boiler. Great care must be exercised when exhausting the steam from the box-a scald from steam is a most serious and painful thing.

Timber in a steam box should be left from one to two hours before removing. Subjection to longer periods of steaming results in the destruction of the suppleness of the wood when dried.

Before gluing any wood which has been steamed or wetted in any way, always let the piece dry thoroughly in air. On no account try to accelerate the drying by artificial methods. Air drying will preserve the correct moisture content of the timber.

Plywood may be bent in the same manner. It is easiest to bend ply with boiling water saturation. Bend the ply as far as it will safely go and, whilst stilt holding the bend, get an assistant to pour boiling water from a kettle over the outside of the radius. Immediately the ply will soften and start to fold tighter. Do not hurry the process, for the wood may yet split. By repeated application of boiling water, gradually work the ply

to the curve required and then clamp it between two boards to dry overnight.

Where it is desired to make a large curve of accurate dimensions with a comparatively thick cross section, the designer will usually call for the piece to be laminated. Formers, wing tip bows, keel members and similar pieces call for lamination.

A jig must be made to locate the strips for gluing.' Obtain alarge flat board of commercial wood sufficiently large to take the curve of the member to be made plus a margin of several inches. For very large members, a wooden floor may be used. Using a hard pencil, mark out the curve. Now cut wooden blocks about l" x2" x3" and glue and screw these to the inner edge of the curve allowing a spacing of one every two to three inches. If the curve is sharp, these blocks will need shaping.

To prevent the adhesion of the glue to the jig, paint the jig with two coats of hot paraffin and allow it to dry.

Cut the strips to be laminated and allow several inches more in length than is actually required-the excess may be removed later.

Glue up the laminations separately on a flat surface, shuffiing each strip to the next to exclude air. When the desired number of pieces have been glued up, place the bundle into position on the jig board. On the outside of the bundle, opposite each block, place a piece of scrap wood as a clamping block. As an alternative, a strip of steel may be bent into place on the outside (rather like an additional lamination) to take the pressure of the clamps.

Clamp up to each block with G clamps and leave it for twenty-four hours to dry. After removal and cleaning up, examine carefully for any signs of delamination caused by inadequate gluing. If there is any gap, run a mixture of glue and hardener in, working it well in with a thin strip of metal such as a feeler gauge, and reclamp.

In sawing aircraft timber, support it adequately to prevent it splitting when the saw approaches the other side. Where possible clamp a piece of scrap wood to the underside so that the saw

Popular Flying, Iuly August, 1958

str{PLE BUT T TOINT M IN IM UM GLUE AR.EA. WEAK.

BUTT JO'NT WITH coRxen 6LocKS, LqRqA qLuE AREA. VERY sreoNQ

BUTT f,o,Nr Wtrt{ GU Goob G.LuE AREA. STRONq

ONF BOIT tN MEMBER. UNbER TENSlotl llArtHUrt ENb Geftr| IN SHEAR.

Ti^lO BoLTSIN HEHBETe UNbER, TENSION. ONLY TOP BOEI' IS EFFECTIVE s,NcE lorueP BOLT 15 lhJ SAHE ENb 6RAIN.

Tnro Eot-ts ,N I,IEHBETE UNb€R TE-NSION. B,Tft BO'Js supp6a3t=a BY HAXIMC,fT ENb GRN'P BECAUSC THEY AR.C STAqGEPED. 7O,7O4O

Frrrrr.rc ATTAcHED ro LoNq€RoN. PooE oeslqrl.

finishes its cut in that rather than in the required piece of wood. This method produces a clean cut.

Similarly, when cutting plywood, the saw will leave a rough, split lower edge. It is not always possible to 'back up' a cut in ply as detailed above, but, by cutting no closer than &" to the desired line, this rough edge may afterwards be removed with a plane and sandpaper.

Remember that wood splits easily and is weakest with the grain when it is being cut. If one is

Popular Flying, JulylAugust, 1958

F,fTlNq AlrAcHEb fo ITNGEF,N ANb coRN"EjlT;#[u* Bot-rs.

attempting to cut along the grain or at a slight angle to it, take great care for if the saw slips or one tries to hurry the cut, the wood will splitinvariably ruining the portion wanted.

Planing wood is another operation necessitating care. Always plane with, and not into the grain when surfacing a piece of wood. Examination of the grain will show that, even on the best boards, it tends to converge slightly to one edge. If one tries to plane towards the grain, the blade will dig into the end of the grain where it meets

the surface. Run the plane so that it slices the grain from behind.

Should it be necessary to plane the end of a plank or piece of wood so that the plane is cutting at right angles to the grain, the plane blade must be very sharp and set so as to remove the smallest thickness of wood at a time, otherwise it will dig in. The forward edge of the piece of timber should be backed up with a piece of scrap wood so that the plane continues its slice into this. This is to prevent the edge being split by the plane blade.

The plane may be used for the shaping of a curved member if it is an outside curve. However, it is more usual to make use of the spokeshave with which one may also plane an inside curve. It should be held firmly in both hands and drawn firmly towards the operator. Templates may be made out of scrap plywood to check the shape of work as one proceeds.

To smooth wood or to remove glue that has dried, do not use a joiner's rasp or dreadnoughtThis will tear the grain. A rough, flat file may be used to advantage, although it will clog quickly. The file should be used to smooth off wing tips and so forth in conjunction with the sandpaper block. Clean it frequently with a file scratch card. Should the file become clogged with glue, immerse the file in boiling water for a few minutes and then clean in the normal waY.

Store aircraft timber on a rack or shelf away from draughts, dampness or heat. Never keep wood on a concrete floor. Avoid contaminating wood with oil, dirt or grease during storage and work. If it is necessary to store incomplete or uncovered components for a while, protect them from dust by means of dust sheets.

The essence of good aircraft carpentry is careful workmanship, the accurate following of the drawings and, until experience is gained, an unhurried approach. The best instructor in the world cannot supply the most vital thing. That is experience. Both carpentry and metalwork are subjects which demand practice and experience to gain proflciency. That goal may be reached with patience and care.

Remember that sound work is a sure step towards success.

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Constructor's kit consisting of partially assembled components. This kit contains every item necessary to the complete elimination of the need for any jigs. A11 metal fittings, ribs, etc., are prefabricated but their assembly requires rather more skill than does the easy kit, f794 14s. 4d. ex works.

Amateur constructors who are able to make their own ribs, f,uselage sides, etc., but buy our ready fabricated spars, petrol tank, undercarriage fittings, metal fittings, wheels, instruments, engine and propeller, should be able to complete the aircraft for approximately f,650.

Prices of kits do not include packing or carriage.

Terms: Cash with order.

Delivery: Until we build up a stock there may be several weeks delay but we aim to be in a position to deliver ex stock within the next few months.

Continued from page 5 start but with one of the new flat four engines and a little treatment here and there would still look modern and original among other ultraJights.

The Turbulent programme instigated by one of our most go-ahead members, Norman Jones, continues to progress and as we go to press we learn of a training group buying a factory-built Turbulent from The Norman Jones and Rollason set-up at Croydon.

Popular Flying, JulylAugust, 1958

A. Winner of the French section of the Concours d'Elegance. M. and Mme. Barritault look reasonably pleased with life. The picture was taken of them in the winning aircraft.

B. Winner of the private section: Joan Short's Turbulent, Norman Jones up. Spectators, from left to right are Arthur Ord-Hume, Francis Couesnon, Maurice Imray and John Blake.

C. The Barton Tipsy, now converted to Belfair standards and resplendent in new blue and white paint, put in a very welcome appearance. As you see from the rudder, they were all prepared for the National Air Races.

D. E. Allchin's colourlul Argus was highly commended in the Concours d'Elegance, and quite rightly, too.

E. Georges Beraud about to take off on a joyride-one of very many that the French contingent gave, tirelessly and with the greatest good humour.

F. A general view of the assembly. A. J. Linnell's Gemini, in the foreground, is evidently beset by the current craze for displaying pennants on vehicles-but does he have to advertise Sywell this year?

All above photos by Tempest of Rhoose.

G. The Concours-winning Minicab, a beauti_ fully-made two-seater, with 65 h.p. Continental engine. The six pointed star just visible on the rudder indicates that the aircraft was built with the aid of a State grant.

H. The coup6 Swallow belonging to the Swallow Flying Group. This picture was taken last year at Sywell, in case anyone wonders where the Bonanza came from.

I. J. The Beraud brothers' barouches. The Jodel D119 of Marcel Beraud (F-PHZH) and the Dl2l of Georges. Several differences are noticeable, especially the rudimentary fin and additional cabin lights of the D119. F-pEVM is, we believe, a Dll2 Club re-engined with a 75 h.p. Continental.

K. The Group winner of the Concours, Barry Birch's Argus. This, again, is a picture taken at the second Rally.

L. This picture of a standard Tipsy Trainer has been included to show the modifications incorporated in G-AFJR, the conversion Belfair (see other page of pictures).

$hropshire Flying Group

Many years ago in an age when mythology was being born, a young man named, Icarus stiapped a pair of wings to his shoulders and made *un,, first attempt to emulate the example of the birds by flying. Regrettably, his efforts were doomed to failure. He crashed !

But man being an adventurous type, pressed on' slowly but surely, until eventually two Americans, Orville and Wilbur Wright peifected a heavier than air machine, which they success_ fully flew. Here at last was the opportunity for rnan to break away from his natural environ_ lent and to experience the joys of flying. Over fifty years have passed since the Wright Brothers m-ade the first practical step towards the goal, 'flying for everyone '.

Populu Flying, tulylAugust, 195g

The opportunity of learning to fly came slowly to the men and women of Shropshire, bui eventually, late in the year 1954, a young man, enthusiastic and ambitious to see a flying club established in Shropshire, invited a numLer of people to join him in his endeavours. And so, ' The Shropshire Flying Group ,was born.

A general meeting was called during February, 1955, which was attended by some twenty_flve interested people- After considerable discussion, together with helpful advice from members of an already established Flying Group at Welshpool, the first aim appeared to be the acquisitio., lf un aerodrome within a reasonable distance of Shrewsbury. This was a particularly difficult problem that sent members dashing to all parts

Continued on page 16 13

Aircraft: Con.

POPULAR FLYING

DRUINE TURBULENT

Nos. P.F.A. 400 onwards

ASSOCIATION

Technical Data Circular No. I

Subject: Additional Data to Plans set Issue I. 28.6.58.

The following supplementary data is circulated to assist in construction of TURBULENT aircraft. Certain of these points are particularly included for Australian constructors.

N.B. B.S.S., D.T.D., A.G.S., are British specification abbreviations which if not available use aircraft quality equivalents.

Read in conjunction with Technical Datacircular No. 7.

TAIL WHEEL ASSEMBLY Drg. No.

23.1 Item 186. Tail wheel spring attachment bolts distance between centres: 3.5/32 ins. Rear attachment bolt centre is 21132 in. forward of front face of sternpost. 30.1 I

23.2 Tailwheel spring leaves 40 mm. wide by 4 mm. thick.

23.3 Item 191 must be tight fit in 189 and running fit on part 198.

23.4 ltem 193. Head of axle bolt is l3/16 inch diameter.

Axle nut thread is t'inch B.S.F. Grease hole bored into axle from head is 13164 inch diameter.

Tap head f inch B.S.F. to take greaser. Head of axle chamfered 1/64 inch by 45 degrees.

23.5 Delete balloon reference 376.

23.6 ltem 195. Minimum bend radius on flange 1] times thickness of metal.

23.7 ltem 196. Shape end to suit Item 203 before welding. Spindle 75132 inch diameter to be running fit on Item 204.

Threaded portion is $ inch B.S.F. with I132 inch by 45 degree chamfer. 30.1 1

DETAILS OF UNDERCARRIAGE.

24.1 Item 160. Brazed washer to be not less than 18 mm. diameter. 30.12

24.2 ltem 16l. Brazed washer to be not less than 18 mm. diameter.

24.3 Item 165. Outside diameter to be running fit on Item 177.

Final length to suit ltem 177.

24.4 ltem 166. Outside diameter to be running fit on Item 178.

24.5 Item 168. Internal diameter f inch.

24.6 ltem 169. Overall diameter to be sliding fit in tube Item 156.

Assembly to Item 157 to be push flt.

Drg. No.

24.7 ltem 170. Make flexible bush housing 159 from I inch o.d. x 12 s.w.g. T.45. Can be down to 17 s.w.g. if different type bearing used.

24.8 Item 158. Use Silentbloc bearing Part No. E. 2042 13116 o.d. or similar, with centre hole $ inch diameter.

24.9 Item 171. Housing for Silentbloc bushes 158 is I inch diameter l2 s.w.g. T.45 tube. Triangular plate welded to bush housing at top of tube extends 40 mm. from centre line of br,rsh housing.

24.10Item 172. To be sliding fit on tube Item 157. Machining radii 1.5 mm. Centre bore f; inch. Surrounding flange of centre bore 2 mm. thick.

Wall thickness at base of thread not less than 2 mm. thick. Thread is 26 t.p.i. Brass thread. (Simplified detail being issued as optional modification.)

24.llltem 173. Undercut bottom of thread 2 mm.

Cut 26 t.p.i. Brass thread on nominal diameter of 1.55 inches. Internal bore 1.44 inches.

24.12ltem 174. Diameter of spring 1.5116 inches. Delete l.l3l32 inches.

24.13ltem 175. Assembled with 4 B.A. hexagon head bolts. Lock with spring washers or wire. Word " slate " should read " slot ". 30.12

25. FOOT PEDALS ASSEMBLY.

25.1 Triangular bracket on Item 219 is Item 211. Attach with 4 B.A. countersunk steel screws and plain nuts. 30.13

25.2 ltem227. Make in 18 s.w.g. Minimum radius at bolt 5/16 inch. Centre of bolt to centre of hinge tube $ inch.

23.

25.3 ltem 220. -Base tube g inch o.d. I 7 s.w.g. Spec. T.35. Vertical tube f inch o.d. lg s.w.g. Spec. T.35.

25.4 Item 226.and other spacers on 22g are g inch o.d. l7 s.w.g. T.35.

25.5 Delete re-ference 229 where shown as rudder cable end.

25.6 Assemble_ cable end using thimble A.G.S.969.

25.7 Item 230..Spring to be adjusted so that Ir99gr pedals are lightly fnirger pressure) held forward-

25.8 [tem 389. Just an ordinary commercial Eye Screw I $ inch long x l6 s.w.g.

25.9 ltem 225. Hole in fork end f inch dia_ meter.

Tube is l8 s.w.g. T.35. Brake cable.lug should have f inch dia_ meter x 14 s.w.g. mild steel washer brazed on- rear faie with g.oa nff"t .i spelter at fork end. 30.13

26. MAINPLANE RIBS.

26.1 Item 418.

26.1.1. Gussets are.l mm. ply with grain for and aft but this is not iriportant. 30.14

26.1.2. Gusset at lower aftiaceof front spar is 26 mm. deep, all other inteispai gussets 20 mq, deep. The two obldng gussets on trailing portion of rib are 16 mm. deep.

26.1.3. {hery diagonal rib passes through Ribs 2 and idiagon.als niay be repositioned to suit.

?,6_1 a ,Spruce section is 9 x 5 mm. (All rrbs unless otherwise noted).

26.1.5. Delete balloon refeience 4Zl,

26.1.6. Ribs 2, 3, 4 and S are is drawn. Ribs 7 and,10 have trailing .it-,"lfii"O by item 4li. Ribs 8 and 9. Use interspar section of this rib only.

26.2 l_tem 419 (Rib l).

26.2.1. Nose_ rib is 9 x 5 mm. spruce faced with 1.5 mm. pty (or t/i6 idfi plii on inboard face"

26.2.2. Interspar and trailing rib is l2 x 5 mm..spruce laced with 1.5 mm. ply (or !/J6 inch ply) on inboard face.

26.2.3. Aileron cable cut_outs are cut through spruce blocks, Uase-tines -oi or blocks denoted by dotted line.

26.2.4. Delete balloon refereniei 361 and 365. Item 1Og attached wittr- * -incfr countersunk brass woodscrews.

26.3 ltem 420.

26.3.1. Outboard side of trailing rib faced with I mm. ply, grain OireZtion immaterial.

26.3.2. Nose rib for this item is as item 418.

26.3.3. Cut slots for pulleys nominal 60x8mm.

26.4 ltem 421. Delete balloon reference on t.i_b.

30.14

27. coNTRoL_co_L_uMN AND TAIL*HEDT*'

DETAILS.

27,1 Item 203. pegs shown 22.5 mm. from axle hole are glnch diameter u"O U.ui"I. :0. t O

27.2 Item204. E-nsure that there is a minimum of 6 mm. of metal around hot" foi b;;i_,'.

27.3 Item 20g. Brazed pivot housing is f inch o.d.

27.4 ltem 209. This item is lg mm. diameter overall at collars.

27.5 ltem 212. If tank is tinned steel use 2-inch diamete,r brass filler *"k .rii"bi; threaded,-say Standard Brais Thi;A-;6 t.p.i. Filler cap to suit.

Ensure 3132 inch diameter vent hole is drilled in filler cap in addition to iinch hole for gauCg wir-e, this trote sfrouf,j naue bearing length of '14 mm. Afu_iniu_ tanks have- similar neck and cap ln com- mercial weldable aluminium. eite.naii* use piper Cub filler neck assemUt. --^ -

27.6 ltem 213.Australian duralumin spec. is AN-A-13; needs normalising.

27.7 ltem 215._Radius at 5/16 inch diameter control column pivot hole is 9 mm. 30.16

28. WING SPARS.

28.1 Main sparov_erall width is 53 mm. Spar boom width l0,lq*. Grain.f ;ab fiiy; as shown on both front and,.u. f*J*' 30.17

28.2 Drill mainspar to fuselage attachment holes, 9lt6 inch diameter i. .*tfiiiirgr.

28.3 Rear spar boom material is 12 x 10.5 mm. spruce.

28.4 Note error at outboard aileron hinge block dimension from centre line 6i block to inboard face of aO.;oining^vertl_ cals is 300 rytr.each way. Dimenjionins arrow should go to centie of block. ---o

28.5 In centre of rear_spar between fuselage sides spar is blocked with spruce in nie places. Centre and outboa.:d bi;"k.;; faced with ply nominal 1.6 mm. thiak. Remaining two blocks have l2--.;;;i supports g.lued as depicted. Drill g inch hole for elevator cable at centre oi rear spar, do not cut into spar boom. Accom_ modate elevator cable pulley by routering spar block from front face.' 30.17

29. FUSELAGE.

29.1 At rib gap in side elevation on fuselase drawing, 30.07, the dimension-- itfli should read l5_45. Fuselages constructed to old dimension should-have gap filliJ with. spanwise balsa block dop6d a;d taped.

29.2 T.D.C. 7 calls for dimension 170 to be altered to 221 as result of Australian ?,C,A.reqyrest. Item 19.4 refers. Cancei this item, 170 is correct.

Popular Flying, IutylAugust, l95B

Continued from page l3 of Shropshire, inspecting recommended areas, all of which, for one reason or another, were found to be unsuitable. The need of an airfield became acute, particularly so because the Group had raised enough money, by one means or another, to purchase an aircraft. Luckily, the Royal Air Force came to the rescue, permission being given for the Group to use the aerodrome at Sleap, for which privilege a rent is paid to the Air Ministry.

their way about the skies by means of navigation, and to understand that Meteorology was something to do with the weather and not something to do with emptying the gas meter. In other words, members were being given a good grounding in preparation for the exams. which would have to be passed before they could qualify for their private Pilots' Licences.

So ended the first year, during which time the Group flew some 94 hours, and considering the frustrations and disappointments caused by circumstances beyond their control, not a bad start.

The Group got away to a good start in 1956, for the aircraft had had its Certiflcate of Airworthiness extended to cover a period of three years, a considerable saving of expense. Interest increased and the competition to be the first to fly solo was very keen. As time passed so more members experienced the unforgettable occasion of flying solo for the first time. The Instructor, patient and watchful, is left behind and you're off on your own. It is an experience never to be repeated and one which can never be understood or appreciated by non-flying types.

The aircraft, a Taylorcraft, was duly collected from Stockton-on-Tees and the first flights were made by members during Muy, 1955. Mention must be made here of the hard work carried out by Dr. D. W. Hamp, Mr. O. Foster and Mr. K. Edwards, without whose efforts we should not have been able to start flying so soon. The instructional flying was, at this time, done solely by members of the Royal Air Force, to whom we were most grateful. In particular we must mention F lLt. Greenleaf, the then liaison officer between R.A.F. Shawbury and ourselves, who was particularly helpful.

Meanwhile, our own C.F.I., Mr. L. H. Phillips, was preparing to take his civilian Instructor's Licence, which he obtained later in the year.

The winter now being upon us, a series of lectures were arranged to be given at the local A.T.C. Headquarters, by kind permission of the Commanding Officer. During this time the C.F.I., assisted by F/O Deacon, did their best to. train the new ' Fledglings ' in the art of finding

On through the summer of 1956, flying as often as possible, until, at last, Mr. G. Miller became the first member to obtain his private pilot's Licence. When the great day came, Mr. Miller flew with the C.F.I., who asked him to perform all the flying exercises that he had been taught during the previous months, and when at last they arrived back over the aerodrome, glided in and touched down to make a perfect threepoint landing, Mr. Miller was flying for the last time as a Student-pilot, he had passed his flying test. Alter completing the various ground examinations, Mr. Miller received his Private Pilot's Licence. His success was soon followed by numerous others, all of whom reached a high standard.

At about this time, towards the end of the Autumn, 1956, the Group decided to build a hairgar for the aircraft, something which was badly needed. It didn't take long for a few stalwart characters to ' get cracking' digging, erecting and painting, to build a 'made to

Popular Flying, JulylAugust, 1958

measure' building on land adjacent to the aerodrome, and by kind permission of Mr. T. Griffiths. An ideal home for Taylorcraft G-AHXG. The construction contains a number of engineering masterpieces, mainly inspired by Messrs. W. Oakley, C. Emberton and R. Jones.

Once again the winter, with reduced flying activity and more lectures. An expensive engine change in February, 1957, and then off again with renewed confidence.

The previous year had seen us fly some 150 hours, a pretty fair effort. At the A.G.M., the C.F.I. decided to set a target of 200 hours for 1957, an almost staggering flgure we thought at the time. However, everyone made up their minds that achieve it we would. Weekends were fully occupied, student members busily engaged on cross country flights to places such asWorthen, Dorrir-rgton, Ruabon, Nantwich, building up to a final effort involving landings at Derby and Sywell. Meanwhile, other members were trying, with varying degrees of success, to learn the art of taking off and landing.

The summer saw the organisation of a Clay Pigeon Shoot to raise funds for the Group, this was very successful and we hope to repeat it again this year. Our Chairman, Mr. R. Timmis, was the guiding light in this venture, ably assisted by many other members.

1957 has proved to be a good flying year for the Group and we have already passed the target of 200 hours. Lectures have again been started and are held every Tuesday evening. Early

in 1958, a Clubroom was acquired and members are now busy making the place habitable and somewhere attractive to receive visitors, of whorn we hope we may see many in the future. We would welcome visits from other Groups, particularly on Sundays, when refreshments are available, served by our charming hostess, Mrs. A. Wojda. The clubroom, which was in abad state of repair, has been decorated by members, of whom Messrs. A. Wojda and T. Hockenhull have been working foremen.

So, when in the future you see a small, blue and silver high-wing airuaft flying over Shrewsbury at weekends, spare a thought for the intrepid aviators overhead, who have cut down on ' beer and fags' to enable them to afford the pleasure of flying, and if any of you feel you would like to be up there with them, then why not come along one Sunday to Sleap Aerodrome, Wem, nr. Shrewsbury, and give it a trial.

Finally, we would like to extend our thanks to the staff of the Popular Flying Association, without whose help and advice in the early days, our task would have been much more difficult, if not impossible.

The Southport Aero CIub SALE OF WICKO

Since our advertisement appeared in popurnR FLvING we have had four strong enquiries to purchase the Wicko. We hope to effect the sale before our next Newsletters.

LANDING COMPETITION-BARTON

Many members attended the landing competition last month and a pleasant day out was had by all. We were not fortunate enough to retain the visitors trophy at this meeting, it went to Mr. Westoby of Blackpool.

BLACKPOOL

AND FYLDE AERO GROUP

4 new group has recently been formed at Squires Gate Airport under the above name.

Popular Flying, lulylAugust, 1958

They operate a Chipmunk atf,3 18s. 6d. per hour, membership fee f,l per annum.

I am sure that they will welcome any of our members who wish to fly the Chipmunk at this cheap rate (they are usually f5 per hour). I personally have joined their group and have had a sample ride in the Chipmunk. Never having flown one before I had a most enjoyable half hour without making their instructor ill (though I tried).

WINDSOCK

Members will notice that we have a new Windsock which has again been provided by Shell Mex & B.P. Ltd. These windsocks are apparently very expensive, according to the Shell gentleman who telephoned me last week to try to talk me out of having this new one. They cost them f.24 each.

The old one was stolen. According to reports we have received, three car loads of men arrived at midnight on a Saturday recently, lowered the pole, removed the windsock and replaced the pole'

NEW MEMBERS

The Club has never been so strong in recruiting new members as during the last few months'

We now have forty-six full flying members, twenty-eight non-flying members, one junior member and five honorarY members'

We are huppy to welcome to the Club since the last Newsletter the following members:

Mr. H. H. Clumpus, Mr. R. I. Rimmer, Mr' T. G. Breakell, Mr- P. Loweth, Miss A' Lea, Mr. C. H. Mullard, Miss M. F. Wilkinson, Mr. R. A. Gee.

The Sherwood FlYing Club

We welcome the following new members and hope that their association with the club will be a happy one: Miss Gillian Levers, Mr' and Mrs. Sawyer, Messrs. F. W. Mellows, W' J' Lambert, M. D. Pockney, N. N. Ducker, J' W' Marlow, D. S. Oddy, C. N. Dean, Glenn Francis Hi1l, P. G. Jordan, M. A. Sterk, John Standley, D. G. Frost, I. G. Palmer, W. H' Morley, J' D' Andrews, and Leslie Collier.

Mr. and Mrs. Sawyer and Wilf Dale flew to Holland in a Miles Gemini over the Whitsun holiday.

Congratulations to the following on achieving their Solos, Lawrence Roe, Michael Pockney, Trevor Marshall, and K. F. McCullum.

Amongst the new members enrolled, David Frost and Ian Palmer are the youngest members in our Club, they won a Flying Bursary, and were trained at the Marshall School of Flying, Cambridge, and gained their Private Pilot's Licence recently.

FORMATION OF A PARACHUTE CLUB

Some of the members will remember the pleasure we had of meeting Mike Reilly, an Instructor of the British Parachute Club, and seeing him make a parachute jump at The Hucknall Air Display, and his subsequent record breaking delayed action descent a few daYs later.

Mike has offered us his services, if a group of members wish to form a local parachute club. A11 those interested please contact the undermentioned: Glenn Francis Hill, 54, Loughborough Road, Bunny, Notts., Telephone No. Ruddington 384.

NEW INSTRUCTOR

All members will be pleased that we have acquired the services of, Mr. Eric Dring. We formally welcome him to our Club. This brings our total strength of honorary instructors to four. The other instructors (for the benefit of new members) are: Mr. Frank Kirk, Chief Flying Instructor, Mr. Hector Taylor, and Mr' Cyril Marson.

CLUB NEWS

Glamorgan FIYing Club

Recently we moved from tsuilding No. 2 to No' 6, at the moment comprising half the Police Hut at the old entrance to the airfield. This has greatly increased our space and positioned us in a most satisfactory position on the airfleld. The Bar is now double the size and thanks to Colin Davies' excellent performance with a paint brush the inside has been made to look most elegant in a relatively short space of time. Now one only has to stroll out from the Bar to be standing on the edge of the airfield or sitting in deck chairs sipping lemon squash (or something stronger) on hot summer evenings, watching all kinds of aircraft come and go literally

before one's eyes. It is all very pleasing and we do hope that some of our less regular attendant members will come down and have a look around. A projection is being erected on the end of the present building as a sort of observation room which will give us a view of the whole fleld from inside the Club House. Soon after this, when the Police move into the building we have just left, we will be decorating the remainder of Building No. 6 and should be able to offer members every facility that a club should be able to offer its members.

RALLY

The Rally has come and gone and if anything it exceeded our expectations. To begin with, the weather on the Friday afternoon changed from being-to put it at its best-indifferent, into one of those sudden rare settled spells, such as we had not experienced before this year. Saturday and Sunday followed suit with clear skies, a gentle southerly breeze, brilliant sunshine and good visibility.

Club members worked like Ancient Egyptian slaves for most of Friday getting building 30 fitted up with aBar,brieflng and reception rooms; erecting flag poles, public address systems and generally laying out the ground to receive visitors. The Commandant gave us all the help we could possibly want, marked out the parking area, arranged for the crash crew to marshall aeroplanes, motor cars, people, etc., and generally keep the situation under control.

Glamorgan Aviation entertained to luncheon among others Councillor Kedward, Chairman of the Glamorgan County Council; Mrs. Winn.Iones, Chairman of the Cardiff Rural District Council; Mrs. G. R. Lewis, Chairman of the Rhoose Parish Council; Sir Hugo Boothby; The French Consul, Comte R. de Warren; Mr. William Hargreaves, Divisional Controller; Wing-Commander Ogden, Airport Commandant and Mrs. Ogden; Wing-Commander and Mrs. Elwin; Mr. and Mrs. S. Kenneth Davies; and Mr. David Llewellyn, M.P., and Mrs. Llewellyn, during the early part of the afternoon. We haven't enough praise for the patience and efficiency of Air Traffic Control who coped

Popular Flying, JulylAugust, 1958

with the conditions we provided as well as normal Schedule Traffic and Glamorgan Aviation's pleasure flying. Considering the amount of activity and the relatively small grass area available for use, a very high standard of flying was noticeable and it was very agreeable to sense an almost pre-war feeling such as one remembers of the Rallies and displays of the 1930,s.

The Dinner at the Angel that evening was a great success and extremely well organised by Mr. Gwyer the Manager. After Dinner Comte de Warren welcomed guests and distributed prizes for the arrival competition and concours d'elegance. Also Mr. Kenneth Davies, M. Beraud, leader of the French party, and Mr. Maurice Imray said a few words. Dancing went on till midnight and owing to the curious licensing laws in the principality, we were obliged to stop drinking activities which tended to have a slightly freezing effect on the performance ! Next morning, after luncheon, the guests gradually dispersed in the afternoon and all members who had been working hard drifted back to the Club building No. 6 and relaxed in the cool of what had been the hottest day of the year to date. Just in passing we would like to say how much we appreciated the help given us by Wing-Commander Ogden, the Crash Crew, Sergeant Tomlinson, who kept order on behalf of the Ministry of Transport constabulary, Cambrian Engineers who handled the refuelling facilities in spite of their own heavy flying programme with great efficiency and the Air Traffic Controllers who kept order and their heads, everybody else who took part in the general organisation, without any one of which the affair would have been very much the poorer. A final word to the caterers, J. F. Everest, who worked in extremely hot and difficult conditions, who, it was unanimously agreed, put on a firstclass show.

Apart from the Rally, June has taken its normal course. Though the weather has been generally sub-standard, flying hours were, however,another record.

More first solos-Jim Callan, Glyn Rees, John Rowland (and Terry Crook of Cambrian !*), *First on Tiger Moth that is !

also pleasure flying is continuing to build up in a most satisfactory way, nearly 1,000 passengers have been carried.

For some reason we have suffered a slight setback in our press. During June we were only mention€d on 29 days out of 30 in the South Wales Echo or the Western Mail.

At the time of writing we have read with dismay of olrr old friend Frank Evans', of Swansea Flying Club, serious accident near Brecon while returning in his Mosscraft from the Deauville Rally. We hope sincerely that his injuries are less serious than they seemed from the first account in the newspapers.

No. 22 Cambridge Private Flying Group. Another Tiger Moth is being obtained to replace G.ANLG. The registration is G.AHEI. It will have Gosport and electric intercom. The machine will be fitted with navigation lights for night flying. Availability will be the beginning of August.

NIGHT FLYING

Night flying will commence on G.AHEI after reversion to G.M.T. providing the flare path is available. The cost will be f,3 l5s. per hour because of aerodrome charges. Previous experience on instrument flying is essential and can be done in daylight at normal charges.

Armstrong SiddeleY FlYing Club

This month we are' caruying the torch for Jim '. Jim Hilton now adds the distinguished title of 'Private' as prefix to his name, for the lad is now serving Queen and Country as a member of the Army.

Before his departure on Thursday, l9th June, Jim gave a little farewell party in the Clubhouse on the preceding Tuesday which was a very good way of declaring the newly erected bar ' Open 'but not a very good way of preparing for a day's work on the Wednesday by those who are left behind. For all that, we wish him well in his new life but sincerely hope he doesn't take to heart too much the traditional remarks made by senior N.C.O.'s about one's Parentage.

He must have known something of the nearness of his call-up because in the last few weeks

he has been cramming in the hours. On the Tuesday in Whit week the lad was busy all day soliciting assistance from a navigator to fly down to Shoreham-by-the-Sea on the Thursday in order to attend the Royal Aero Club's International Rally. He flnally secured the able assistance of Doug Cunningham, of Gliding Club fame and one of our Associate Members, and together they set off bright and early for the warmer regions of the Sunny South.

Denis McManus takes up the story from here as he had made previous arrangements to meet the Baginton party at Shoreham, he being on holiday in London that week.

Upon arrival at Shoreham, Mac found the heavens wide open and the rain coming down in sheets. He argued with himself that no one in their right mind would fly an aircraft in that sort of weather, but since he had an hour cr so before the next train back to town, Mac decided to just have a quick look at Shoreham Airport to see what brave souls had turned up. He says his surprise was immense when he saw a very wet and sodden Tipsy parked on the grass and his pleasure was complete when he found Jim and Doug in the Airport buildings just about to sit down to lunch.

In the afternoon, between cloudbursts, the trio wandered around the airfield, getting themselves kicked out of the Control Tower by the Controller and out of the R.Ae.C. refreshment tent by John Blake.

[There was barely enough drink for the staff as it was.-Ed.l

It was pretty evident that there just wasn't going to be any Rally, so they got a lift into Brighton where they spent the rest of the afternoon. (Oh ye of little faith-it was a iolly good Rally-Ed. again.) By early evening the sky had cleared a little and the rain had stopped. Mac left for the more cheerful comforts of London and home, while Jim and his navigator returned to Shoreham. There they obtained clearance to return to Baginton-a trip accomplished without event save that it was completed in record time-for the Tipsy that is !

Popttlar Flying, Julyl August, 1958

On Saturday, 7th June, we held our second Club dance of the year in the Coventry Aeroplane Club, by kind permission, and yet again it proved a great success. This oocasion was chosen to present the two cups awarded annually to the Best Pupil of the Year and the PupilMaking-The-M ost-Progress.

Don't quite know what the subtle difference is between the two but obviously our two instructors must know what they are at-the choice for the awards being the results of their joint deliberations.

The best progress was made jointly by our two charming lady members, Margaret White and Diane Hill.

The best pupil was Jim Hilton.

As we say, we certainly are carrying Jim's torch this month.

Now that Jim has gone, his place has been filled as Assistant Ground Engineer by Don Craven who has already proved himself capable in his new task. Don also fills the vacant position on the Club Committee so that we remain at full strength all round.

As already mentioned we have started extensive alterations to the clubhouse and this is being done in three or four stages.

The idea was first muttered in Committee some eighteen months ago and our old friend Ron Christmas drew up several schemes for the job, but it was left to Stan Clarke to finalise the arrangements and to get on with the job.

Stage one has now been completed and the bar has been moved from its position on the left of the door across to the right hand side wall and the settee that occupied this position has been moved across to the other side.

The speed with which this move was accomplished and the lack of inconvenience caused by such a move has been due to a sustained effort on the part of Derek Hart to whom we offer our thanks. We also offer apologies for the inconvenience caused by the accumulation of materials in the crew room and we sincerely hope members don't break their necks in a fatal fall in the effort to reach the flight sheets. The Committee suggest you approach Popular Flying, JulylAugust, 1958

the notice board in parties of four securely roped together. Just bear with us a little longer and members will see it was all worth while.

A hearty welcome to Neville Higgins, A.E.D.O., Ansty, who has joined our ranks recently and congratulations to Lawrence Pegg, of Test Plant Engineering who has gotten himself promotion from an Associate to a Full Member.

Nice to have you both with us and let's hope the weather improves in the coming weekends for your initial training.

And congratulations to all our full members upon becoming Associate Members of the Coventry Aeroplane Ciub. Whilst this may be an unexpected pleasure, we should explain that it comes as a result of a mutual agreement between our two Clubs whereby for an annual block payment the members of the A.S. Flying Club are now able to enjoy the facilities offered by the Coventry Aeroplane Club's clubhouse. It also brings us into line with the privileges enjoyed by the A.W.A. Club and the Gliding Club. Associate Members cards are to hand and we will distribute them as soon as possible.

(We would like to congratulate C. G. Jaynes on the June issue of the A.S. Flying Club Newsletter. The Editor and contributors have produced an exceptionally interesting issue.-Ed.)

AYIONS FAIREY 'TIPSY NIPPER'

Span, 19 ft. 8 in.; Length, 14 ft.9 in.; Height, 5 ft. 3 in.; Weight empty, 360 ib.; Engine Weight (VW) + accessories (included above), 125 1b.; Maximum designed weight, 660 1b.; Load factor, 7.5; Wing Area, 80.5 sq. ft.; Aspect Ratio, 4.8; Mean Aerodynamic Chord, 4 ft. l+ in.; Wing Dihedral (spar bottom face), 5' 30 min.; Angular range nose wheel: left, 20', right, 20"; Undercarriage travel: Nose wheel, 8{ in., Main undercarriage, l l in.

Provisional Performance figures with Volkswagen engine, subject to correction after completion of tests for propeller adaptation.

Take off speed, 38 m.p.h.; Take off run, 150 yards. Landing Speed, 38 m.p.h.; I anding run, 100 yards. Cruising Speed, 65 m.p.h. Maximum Speed, 75 m.p.h.

WINGS

These are of one piece construction and consist of a wooden structure in which all the loads are taken by a single spar. To simplify construction, this spar is of rectangular cross section of constant width and with top and bottom faces parallel to each other throughout the whole span.

The leading edge of the wings is 1 mm. ply covered, which is easily bent to shape.

The ribs are of simple Warren girder construction; they are built out of spruce strips reinforced by ply gussets.

Access into the cockpit is extremely easy, a portion of the mainplane aft of the spar folds down and is used as a footstep. When not in use, this flap, which is a metal structure, is raised and forms part of the wing.

The wing can be easily and rapidly taken off and reassembled to the fuselage for ease of transport; for instance, the fuselage with engine and tail unit can be towed behind a car whilst the wing is carried on the roof on a suitable supporting cradle.

FUSELAGE

Steel tubular structure of conventional design, bronze welded.

On the ground, the visibility is excellent on account of the tricycle undercarriage. For taxiing, the nose wheel is steered by the rudder pedals. The wheels are of ultra light construction and are very simple to build. They are fitted with maintenance-free auto-lubricating plastic material bushes.

Brakes, simple to manufacture, are fltted on the main wheels; they are operated by a lever on the joy-stick.

The fuel tank, of light alloy construction, sealed by a synthetic compound, is designed to form part of the fuselage fairing and also to support the instrument panel and front windscreen attachment points.

The engine cowling and propeller spinner are moulded in fibre glass. The cowling is attached to the airframe by small fasteners and it can be easily and quickly removed for inspection.

The lower fuselage fairing is also a fibreglass moulding, which, likewise, is easy to remove, to give access for servicing of all the controls (shock absorbers, stick, rudder pedals, etc.).

ENGINE

The Volkswagen car engine has been chosen as it is cheap to buy, easy to obtain and simple to maintain. For those who contemplate more than local flying, the Porsche car or industrial engine is even more suitable.

HELPING THE AMATEUR

Various solutions have been used in the past to meet the amateur requirements. 1, to supply a set of drawings; 2, to supply the raw material; 3, to supply a certain quantity of flnished parts.

Our present intention, in order to facilitate the work of the remote amateur is to supply: A kit of parts, packed in a case of approximately ll ft.6 in. x 2ft.7$in. x 2ft.3] in. and of a gross weight of less than 400 1b., enabling easy and cheap transportation, specially in the case of long distance shipment by rail or sea.

This kit of parts would contain: fuselage structure, completely finished with all the brackets and details welded in position; tricycle undercarriage complete, ready for assembly with hubs, tyres and brakes; metal rudder, finished, ready for fabric-covering; flight and t

Populerr Flying, Julyl Aueust, 1958

engine controls and ali the other metal parts, completely finished, ready for assembly; all bolts, screws, nuts, washers, nails, etc.; fuel tank, ready for fitting; fibreglass fairings as moulded, ready for cutting to final shape; windscreen with its fixtures; light-alloy footstep flap; all wooden parts, cut to approximate sizes, ready for finishing and gluing; three-ply sheets in sufficient quantity; a set of dimensional drawings for all the assemblies and also for the rnanufacture of the wooden components to be rnade by the amateur; a brochure with photographs and sketches describing and illustrating the building and assembly stages.

MANUFACTURING JIGS

On the inside faces of the panels of the packing case, the full size outline of the spars, ribs, ailerons, fln, tailplane, elevators, etc., will be painted. These panels can, therefore, be made into construction jigs and will avoid any errors in the interpretation of the drawings.

The provisional price for the kit as above is, f.375, packed, ex works, Gosselies.

60 pages 1/5 monthly

Famous for acaurate and h igh ly

led seale drawings !

Whether it is ultralights, the latest jets, or nostalgic old timers, you can rest assuied that they are covered by "Aeron-rodeller". Each issue features at least two 1l72nd scale draw-' ings always backed by factual information and first class photographs. Curr:nt series features " Famous Biplanes " by George Cox, covering well-known aircraft such as the Avro 504, Boeing F484. Fairey Fantome. Fiat 9\.12, Albatros DIII, Heyford, Bristol F2B, S.E.5a, S.P.A.D., etc., with many more to follow. In " Aircraft Described " several ultra-lights such as the Druine Turbi, the Turbulent and the Bebe Jodel have alieady appeared, in many cases back numbers and reprints of the articles are available.

^ Sen-d stumped (4!d.) self-adclressetl envelope Jor Jree speciman copy of the mapozina together with latest list of scale clrawiigs to:

MODEL I

AERONAUTICAL PRESS LTD.

38 CLARENDON ROAD, WATFORD, HERTS

The'Tipsy Nipper' NEWS ITEMS

Ardem conversion kits are being made available to help overseas constructors. This kit comprises all parts except magneto which is obtained individually. Assembly details are being included but not detail drawings of how to make each individual part.

A propeller for the Ardem engine is now being made by Airscrew Co. and Jicwood Ltd. Also Airscrew Co. have already delivered props for Turbi constructors.

A series of one fifth scale inboard profile type prints is being made available for amateur constructors and those interested through the P.F.A. These are prepared in conjunction with the designers and consist of a side elevation of the aircraft and show internal details of the aircraft. They are intended to form a useful supplement to the plans as issued and be interesting documents for those who just like that sort of thing. Price will be one pound sterling, or three dollars U.S. for those who order before lst September, 1958. U.K. post free, overseas postage extra. No. 1. Druine Turbi; No. 2. Druine Turbulent; No. 3. Piel Emeraude; No. 4. Druine Condor, others to follow. 23

detai

Two pictures of the new Belgian Uttra-light aircraJi

Certifieate of Airworthiness & Permil Io Fly 0verhauls

Group and ultra light aircraft speedily overhauled at reasonable prices by

L i ghtpr a r.,yf lll.J*T,* S ervi ces

SMALL ADVERTISEMENTS

Members of the Popular Flying Association may have the use of this coluntn .for advertising articles wanted, exchange or disposal for ONE INSERTION Ltp to 24 words FREE. If more than one insertion it must be paid cash in advance at the rate of 4d. per v,ord (min. 12 words). Box. No. ls.6d. exta. Non-Members chargeable at the rate of 6d. per word (min. 12 words\. Box No. ls. 6d. extra.

Cheqtres and Postal Orders should be crossed ancl sent to Fryers Advertising Service, lO Mitcham Lane, S.W.16.

WANTED

MAGS, CARB, AIRSCREW for 36 h.p. Jap. Also pair wheels 12" o/a Dia. Details and Price please. J. Taylor, 46, Sunnyside Road, Ilford, Essex.

FOR SALE

\A/ICKO G-AFJB. in excellent condition with low hours on Gipsy Major engine. C. of A. to May, 1960, over f,300 spent recently to bring this unique aircraft up to top condition. Fitted with 30 gallon fuel tank, ideal for touring with this range. Many spares and fitted brand new reconditioned propeller. There is nothing to compare with this aircraft on the British Register. f.650. Southport Aero Club, 146, Roe Lane, Southport, Lancs. POPJOY AND SCORPION MOTORS. Available.

Nominal price. Contact Leibbrandt, P.O. Box 3 17, Capetown.

" SAILPLANE AND GLIDING rr-1hs only British magazine devoted to the sport of gliding. Published every other month. Send stamped addressed envelope for descriptive leaflet; or 2s. lOd. for current copy; or l7s. for a year's subscription to British Gliding Association, 19, Park Lane, W. l. lF YOU ARE BUILDI NG an ultra-light aircraft we would like the opportunity of quoting you for tanks, cowlings, metal fittings and other components. We can quote you for any part of any type of current ultra-light aeroplane. Letters to Peregrine Engineering & Trading, Elstree Aerodrome, Herts.

MODEL AIRCRAFT

To PopuLAR FLYING AssocIATIoN

Londonderry House, Park Lane, W.l

Dear Sirs,

Please send mefus..................copies of popuLAR FLYTNG commencing with the ............issue to the address below. I enclose cheque 20s. fo, l2 months' subscription including postage.

Address

Date...

lf more than one copy is required kindly state and increase amount on cheque accordinglY.

Cheques to be crossed POPULAR FLYING ASSOCIATION.

THE OFFICIAL JOURNAL OF THE SOCIETY OF MODEL AERONAUTICAL ENGINEERS

Full reports of International and National Rallies, including the World Championships. Plans and constructional details of record-breaking and contest-winning models. Prototype features. Engine Test Reports.

116d. monthly from any newsagent or bookstall

FREE specimen copy from MODEL AIRCAFT, 19-20 NOEL ST., LONDON, W.l

"'*'":i:Tl';'J#i1["

Aircraft Materials, Accessories, etc.

For POP RIVETING PARACHUTE FITTINGS AND LIFE.SAVING EQUIPMENT

Aircraft Materials Ltd

Midland Road, London, N.W.l

EUSTON 6151 (7 lines)

Helicopter Sales Limited

Now in their tenth year (the longest established independent rotary wing sales organisaticn) can offer the widest range of new and second-hand heliccpters, having supplied equipment fcr military and commercial operation in more than filteen countries

CHARTERS FINANCE . TRAINING AND INSURANCE ARRANGED

14 Woodlands Parade'High Street' Watford

Telephone : Gadebrook 2998

THE

British Interplanetary Soeiety

12 Bessborough Gardens, London, S.W.l

The Society publishes a technical Journal and a popular magazine, Space.flight, and holds regular lectures, visits, etc., in London and many other towns.

Fellowship t3 3. 0. Membership f2 2.0. Applicalion .forms, lecture programmes, and other particulars available on request.

1911 First and still the Finest 1958

CHtt0i{ Aireraft Finishes

ntanufactured by CELLON LIMITED

Kingston - on - Thames Kingston 1234

1911 First ond still the Finest 1958

C[tl,0N ti*eraft Finishes

manufactured by CELLON LIMITED

Kingston - on - Thames Kingston 1234

Announcing the latest radio aid r,.Works

The Pathfinder Aero Homer f30

Don't get lcst-use the PATHFINDER-Ihe portable and lightweight homing set designed by privaie pilots fg-r private pilots. Completely self-contained wittr long life dry batteries. Carry it in one hand-home on beacons-ffy range patterns. A modern aid at the right price. .Invaluable for touring, instructing, ferrying and test flying. Immediate delivery from

PEREGRINE ENGINEERING & TRADING

Elstree Aerodrome, Herts,

AIR-BR|TA! N is

THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF AVIATION ENTHUSIASTS, and offers services of every kind to its mentbers. These include six regular publications, over 100 Informaticn Specialists to answer queries, regular meeting places in all parts of the country and a nation-wide aircraft reporting corps.

Full details may be obtained front:

HONORARY SECRETARY, AI R.BRITAIN

ROUNDWAY HOUSE THE ROUNDWAY RUSTINGTON SUSSEX

AIRCRAFT MATERIAI,S

I,TI)

Midrand s,fi l",lill":.l, N'w' 1

for AGS, AS and BS Standard Parts, Fabrics, Materials, Steels and Non-Ferrous Metals to approved specifications