SHUTTLEWORTH

Super Shuttleworth

Blue sky, summer breeze, magical aircraft in flight… Brian Hope reports on a very special, and much-welcomed, airshow. Pictures by Nigel Hitchman.

he Association has had links with The

TShuttleworth Collection for many years, a significant number of their lighter aircraft operating on the LAA Permit to Fly scheme. In 2019 an LAA Flying For Fun themed evening airshow was organised and proved very popular, with activities throughout the afternoon in one of the hangars, including the LAA-supported Young People’s Aviation Art area, LAA YES activities and an Association stand where people could find out more about the opportunities open to them to make flying more affordable.

We were able to repeat the event again this year, thanks to Shuttleworth’s innovative Covid distancing parking system, where visitors had an enlarged individual parking space from which to watch the airshow. This ensures social distancing is maintained, and it works remarkably well. Unfortunately, it was not possible to repeat the hangar exhibits this time, but we still were able to have a line-up of LAA aircraft open to the public where they could learn about our kind of flying.

For many visitors, the real charm of the evening airshows is the intention to fly some of the oldest types in the Collection, the Edwardians, WWI types and the Lympne Trials types, provided the weather is suitable.

The forecast was good, and so it turned out to be, with a blue-sky day and a light but refreshing breeze throughout the afternoon which took the fierceness out of the hot sun. The show included many of the Shuttleworth favourites, including the Comet, the Hawk Speed Six and the Mew Gulls, Spitfire and Lysander, Replica Fokker Triplane and SE5A and more, but as the sun went down, what little breeze there was almost dissipated completely, and a hush descended across the airfield as the anticipation rose that this was going to be a very special evening.

Over the final hour or so, some of the oldest aeroplanes in the world flew. They didn’t just make a brief hop down the runway, they flew in all their glory, just as they had over 100 years ago. It was magical and a privilege to have seen it, and certainly as the display ended in the gloom at 2130, the audience drifted away mesmerised by what they had witnessed, grateful to the Shuttleworth Collection for keeping these magnificent machines airworthy rather than locking them away in a dusty, lifeless museum. ■ Above The 1910 Deperdussin monoplane (G-AANH) is believed to be the Laon, France based factory’s 43rd example produced. It is powered by a 30hp Anzani Y-Type 30 three-cylinder radial engine.

Above A truly iconic light aircraft, the Alex Henshaw Gravesend – Cape Town – Gravesend configured Percival Mew Gull. If you have never read Henshaw’s account of his record four-day 1939 flight, do yourself a favour and get a copy of Flight of the Mew Gull. An incredible pilot and a superbly capable machine.

Left The ANEC II was built by the Air Navigation and Engineering Company Ltd., to take part in the 1924 Lympne Trials but problems with its Anzani V-twin engine prevented it from taking part. Acquired by Richard Shuttleworth in 1937 it had by then been modified from its original two-seat configuration to a single seater, the undercarriage modified, and a flat twin 30hp ABC Scorpion II engine fitted. It was restored to flying condition in this configuration and has been flying since 2004.

Below The initial English Electric Wren first flew in 1921 and two further examples were built to compete in the 1923 Lympne Trials. An ultralight motor glider, the aircraft weighs a mere 232lb (105kg), and is powered by an 8hp ABC flat twin. It shared a first prize of £1,000 with the ANEC I, by covering 87.5 miles (140.8 km) on one gallon (4.5 litres) of fuel. This sole remaining example is the third aircraft built and was restored to flight in 1957.

Above The Blackburn Type D monoplane is the oldest flying British aircraft and first flew in 1912. It was damaged in 1914 and remained stored on a farm until bought by Richard Shuttleworth in 1938. It was restored to flying condition in 1947, using a 1916 variant of the original 50hp Gnome 7 Omega seven-cylinder rotary engine. It features wing warping rather than ailerons for roll control. Above The Royal Aircraft Factory’s SE5 entered service in early 2017, over 5000 of the type being produced. The Collection’s original example is an S.E.5a and was originally serial F904 of No. 84 Squadron RAF. It flew in civvy street as G-EBIA from September 1923 to February 1932 and was then stored until 1955, whereupon the Royal Aircraft Establishment restored it to flying condition and presented it to the Collection. A further refurbishment was performed in 2007.

It’s a corker of a Condor!

Clive Davidson reports on the story of bobbing along on the crest of a cork – or not!

very now and again life throws you a curved

Eball, and one such was lobbed my way just the other week. We, David Trimmer and I, had been engaged in circuits and wheeler landings when, on the downwind leg, I noticed we were no longer showing any fuel via the usually fool proof ‘wire on a cork’ indicator in the

Condor’s sole, front-mounted, tank. Normally a bit of pitching up and down sloshes the fuel and the indicator rises and falls, showing we have a few thimblefuls left… but this time not even a smidgeon of Below Dave Trimmer retrieving the errant cork float from the tank of his syndicate Condor.

Left The broken wire and float. It appears to have snapped at one of the ‘level nicks’. movement, which rather worried me. Had we not 30 litres plus on the pre-flight dipstick before the start of our sortie? And that was only two circuits ago.

Having landed, with one of Dave’s rather good wheelers, we stopped at the fuel pumps to investigate. The top half of the indicator wire lifted out the cap and the float, and the other half was left bobbing in the 30 odd litres of fuel we had hoped we still had, a mobile phone torch showing, naturally, that it had the wire facing downward.

After a short discussion on the options for retrieving the float via the relatively narrow neck, we borrowed a pair of long-nosed pliers, and having put another 20 litres of finest UL91 into the tank, used the plastic measuring rod to whisk the fuel around to develop a whirlpool to get the float directly below and fairly close to the neck. Dave’s hand-eye coordination then clasped it with the pliers on his first attempt!

Of course, we both claimed to have thought of the technique, but if Dave should like to furnish our hangar fridge with another packet of dark chocolate biscuits, I will relinquish all claims to the idea! ■

A stitch in time

Dudley Pattison resolves a fabric stitching issue on his KFA Safari fin…

hile building the Safari I came

Wacross a problem that I have not encountered before, and unable to find a solution in the Polyfiber manual, I had to ‘dream up’ one. ‘Dream up’ is an apt phrase, as when people talk of how many hours it takes to build a particular aircraft, they would never add in the numerous hours spent lying in bed in the middle of the night thinking about the project. I estimate that I could add 20% at least to the normal daytime hours. But it is in this ‘extra’ time that I often come up with solutions to problems, and this is such a case.

If you look at the fin rib section drawing, which is effectively a slice through the fin, you will appreciate that there is a problem to be overcome if you wish to rib stitch the covering… there is an internal tube that will not allow you to pass a needle through the fin from one side to the other. I know that many people, including some kit manufacturers, will say that gluing the covering to the ribs is fine, but I know enough about aerodynamics to recognise that if your covering separates from the structure, especially on the upper surface of the wing, it most certainly will ruin your whole day. So, erring on the belt and braces side, generally I would always stitch fabric.

So, the first thing to do is mark out the positioning of the stitches. The space between each stitch will depend upon the speed range of the aircraft and its wing loading, and the correct spacing can be found in the manual for the covering being used. Next, puncture the covering at each side of the rib at the marks with a bradawl or similar sharp tool. Cut a length of rib lacing cord for each stitch position, and don’t be shy, make it excessively long. Next, apply the rib tapes. In the Polyfiber system these are self-adhesive, but I don’t know about other systems.

Rib Drawing: Step by step

Photo 1 – Step 1: Pass about 150mm of a cord through a hole that is on the same edge of the rib as the internal tube and allow it to hang loosely inside the structure. Make a tool, as shown in the photo, from something like 24swg piano wire (a large paperclip could provide suitable material). Note that the hook end needs to be small enough to pass through the stitch holes and it’s a good idea to file a lead onto the outside edge of the short return of the hook end. Pass the hook through the hole opposite to the hole that the cord is hanging through and do a little fishing. Push the tool in at an angle to touch the covering on the far side then gently move the tip sideways to collect the cord in the hook end and gently withdraw. A little practice and you should make a catch nearly every time. In this photo the cord to the left has been pulled through, while the one on the right is in the process of being pulled through.

Photo 2 – Step 2: The next stage is to pass the needle Above A crosssectional diagram of the Safari’s fin. back through the component picking up the end of the cord on the way through.

Photo 3 – Step 3: The other side of the component (rudder in this case) with all cords pulled through and the first two stitches on the left knotted. The knot will be the same as a starter knot described in your manual for continuous rib stitching. I think that this is usually a square (reef) knot followed by a granny knot. The knot is made to the edge of the rib where it is possible to pass the needle straight through.

Photo 4 – Step 4: Can you spot my deliberate mistake? This photo was meant to show the two tails of the cord being collected by the needle and being passed through to the other side. The eagle-eyed among you will see that while the cord to the left of the needle has been knotted and passed through, the two tails have been prematurely threaded into the eye of the needle as they haven’t been knotted yet. Come on, keep up!

Photo 5 – Step 5: Finally, pull the excess tails taut to pull the knot on the other side of the component around the corner of the rib capping and cut the excess cord off. The two tails will jump inside out of the way. The cutting can be done with a scalpel, but it is much safer to use a decent pair of side cutters. ■

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A museum must

An interesting museum housing homebuilt aeroplanes. Paul Bussey reports…

Above The Norfolk and Suffolk Aviation Museum, in Flixton, Suffolk, had long been on my wish list, and having now visited it, of particular interest to LAA members will be the museum’s homebuilt aircraft. Luton L.A.5 Majors were never that plentiful, even in their heyday, and nowadays make for an exceedingly rare sight. The example on display at Flixton is G-APUG, and it is believed that construction commenced at Sawbridgeworth in Hertfordshire by L D Blyth in January 1959.

It was later sold to L D Firmin of Camberley, Surrey and moved to Blackbushe in October 1963. The project was then acquired by Michael Powell in 2000/1. Both wings and the tailplane were found to be in good condition, but due to the fuselage having been stored in the open, this had naturally suffered quite badly from the elements.

Following storage at Wattisham Airfield in Suffolk, the aircraft was donated to the museum by Michael Powell on 17 October 2006. The fuselage required major work, which was undertaken by museum member David Dawson. The aircraft is currently displayed with the uncovered wings attached to the fuselage and it is hoped to obtain a correct engine and undercarriage in the future. It is probably the oldest Luton L.A.5 Major to have survived.

Left Another Luton derived aircraft on display is G-ASRF, the Gowland ‘Jenny Wren’, which was designed and built by G W G ‘Jack’ Gowland at his home in Potters Bar, Hertfordshire. This variation on a Luton Minor featured a fully enclosed cockpit, with a child’s seat in the rear. It incorporated the modified wings from Luton Minor G-AGEP, together with a tricycle undercarriage. The engine is a Lycoming 0-145-A2 rated at 55hp, which has been closely cowled and fitted with exhaust augmenter tubes. First flight was at Panshanger Airfield in Hertfordshire, which took place on 13 October 1966 and it is known to have attended a PFA Rally at Sywell in the early 1970s.

It later suffered an engine failure on take-off and was badly damaged. The incomplete aircraft, plus a surviving wing, was donated to the museum by Jack’s widow Peggy and arrived at Flixton on 11 September 2004.

The fuselage has since been rebuilt, again by David Dawson, with other associated work by Derek Small, and thanks to them another unique example of PFA build ingenuity has been preserved for future generations to admire.