AIR TRANSPORT YEWS
Page 49
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RAILWAYS AND CHANNEL ISLANDS TRAFFIC.
TWO railway companies, the Southern and the Great Western, have taken between them a third share of the capital of Channel Islands Airways, Ltd. Mr. W. L. Thurgood, of jersey Airways. Ltd., and Whitehall Securities Corporation, Ltd., each has a third share. The capital is £150,000.
The company will continue the services pioneered by Mr. Thurgood since December 18, 1933. As already stated, six D.H.86 Express Air Liners will
shortly be added to the fleet. The steamship services to Jersey have suffered severely, for about 20,000 persons have used the air service in 1,2 months.,
NEW LONDON CHARTER COMPANY.
Vf jITH an office at Heston, Mr. E. VY Long Maddox, an insurance assessor who has used a -Leopard Moth a great deal for business journeys, especially to France, and has ex
. perienced a demand for charter work among business concerns, is now starting a service under the name of Maddox Airways.
Mr. F. R. Midgley and Mr. D. G. Ross are the pilots at present working. with Mr, Maddox. They have a Dragon, a Leopard Moth and a new Miles Hawk Major. They have also ordered a Miles Falcon, which is to be delivered in March. General charters are the main objective.
REMARKABLE AIR-TRANSPORT FEAT.
THOSE who are, perhaps, inclined to be too certain about the improbability of air transport being employed for really heavy goods should learn the details of a task carried out by Pan American-Grace Airways, the. big American international company. This concern has transpprted 735 tons of mining machinery from Cuzco to the Huanacopampa mine head in the Andes. Most of the machinery was for a 1,500 h.p. and a 700 h.p. hydroelectric installation.
A Ford Tr-motor (two Wasp 550 h.p. and one Wasp 450 h.p. S.C.1 engines) was converted for the work. A hatch 9 ft. 9 ins, long and 4 ft. 6 ins, wide was cut in the top of the fuselage. Rails and trolley and winch gear were installed 'to move heavy machinery fore and aft to trim the load.
From August onwards 421 round trips were made in 525 hours. The heaviest single piece of machinery weighed 4,362 lb., and there were 26 items between this figure and 4,254 lb. Cuz-o Airport is at 10,900 ft. altitude and the mine head is at 12,675 ft. Between the two points the aeroplanes had to cross the Andean Divide, at 15,000 ft., over 50 miles of jungle and ravines. The flights averaged 30 minutes between stations and live return trips were made per day.
It was reckoned that ground transport would h-ve called for 7,300 mule loads and the round trip would have taken between four and five weeks. A Fairchild monoplane helped.
'FROM GUERNSEY TO MAINLAND DIRECT?
WE are informed by Jersey Airways, Lid., that its associated company, Guernsey Airways, Ltd., the proprietor of which is Channel Islands Airways, Ltd., will probably operate, this summer, direct services between Guernsey and the mainland, using the Dragons which have 50 far been employed on the Jersey services.
The inter-island flying-boat service, which was mooted some months ago, may possibly be run by Channel Islands Airways, Ltd. A Saro Cloud flying boat is available for such duty. The Guernsey concern's capital is £50,000.
AIRCRAFT AND ENGINE MAINTENANCE AT HESTON.
Wwere agreeably surprised when risiting Heston Airport, a few days ago, to see the main service hangar and its adjacent shops full almost to overflowing with work on commercial and private aeroplanes.
In the engine-servicing works of Airwork Engine Service, Ltd., an associate of Airwork, Ltd., we saw 11 aero engines going through, including Wright Whirlwinds, Genets, Gipsies and others. We also noticed a number of motorbus and 'lorry engines, both oil and petrol driven, and several marine and motorcar engines.
The company carries out complete engine overhauls for the commercialmotor and other trades to the same limits as are demanded by the Air Ministry.for aero engines. This fact appeals to many municipal and other operators. Engines are tested at night on a Heenan and Proude plant, and b.h.p. and fuel-consumption readings are charted. At present, this department is working overtime and night shifts.
A magneto-testing shop and a battery-servicing bay have now been established.
HEAVY FUEL FOR AERO PETROL ENGINES.
A T the Bristol Airport Service Depot ri of Airwork, Ltd., a Claude' patent Atomigaz carburetter has been fitted to a Gipsy HI engine and is now being bench-tested. The engine starts up on petrol, just as when this carburetter is used on commercial vehicles, and is switched over to oil fuel when warm. The diffuser jet is heated directly from
the exhaust pipe. We believe that this is the first instance of this carburetter being tried on an aero engine. IMPORTANT DELEGATION OF AIR MINISTRY POWER.
THE Air Ministry has delegated authoritative powers of flying control to the chief pilot of Airwork, Ltd., Heston, Capt. V. H. Baker. This is the first instance of such power being vested in an official outside the
Ministry. Capt. Baker may detain aircraft or personnel, in any circumstance, when they may act, or be likely to act, contrary to the provisions of the Air Navigation Act of 1920, or the Consolidation Order of 1923.
This is a point which has long been discussed by the Airwork directors. If the control officer at any airport observes any person about to fly in unsafe circumstances, or about to commit any act likely to imperil the safety of aircraft, passengers or third parties, the Airwork directors think he should be empowered to prevent them.
At the recent Air Transport Conference the legal adviser of the Society of British Aircraft Constructors said that such power might be embarrassing, because the holder might be blamed for not preventing something which he ought to have foreseen would be dangerous.
AN ORGANIZER'S TALK ON CIVIL AERODROMES.
THE secretary of the Aerodromes Advisory Board, Mr. John Dower, L.R.I.B.A., last week gave an important addresg on the future of aviation in Scotland, to representatives of local authorities and other public bodies in Scotland, at a meeting in the Institution of Engineers and Shipbuilders in Scotland, Glasgow.
The talk was arranged by the aviation committee of the Scottish National Development Council. Valuable data in connection with the establishment of aerodromes and landing grounds were given by Mr. Dower, who also spoke of the technical requirements, probable costs, etc., of civil aerodromes.
PLEASURE FLIGHTS AT HOOTON.
ASHORTScion twin-engined cabin monoplane has been sold by Brian Lewis and Co., Ltd., Heston, to Mr. L. J. Rimmer, who, under the name of North British Aviation, has been carrying on a pleasure-flight business at Hooton aerodrome, Cheshire, on the banks of the Mersey, ever since the war.
Mr. Rirnmer has used Avro 504 machines, and his choice of a Short Scion is based on the comparative economy of this type, which carries five passengers in cabin comfort, with two Pobjoy Niagara 90 h.p. motors. The Short Scion is a slow machine, which makes it ideal for pleasure flights, and is safe to land in small fields.