January Lecture the Raes Space Group – Role and Activities by Howard Nye, Geoff Busswell and Alex Godfery, Raes Space Group
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HATFIELD BRANCH NEWSLETTER JANUARY 2021 January Lecture The RAeS Space Group – Role and Activities by Howard Nye, Geoff Busswell and Alex Godfery, RAeS Space Group Thursday 21st January, 6.30pm, online. See back page for details NOTE: this lecture takes place on a Thursday From the Chairman Welcome to our January newsletter. I would like to the Chair of the RAeS Space Group and the President wish you all a very happy New Year and hope that the Elect. This lecture will be on Thursday 21st January, to roll-out of the Covid 19 vaccines means that we can fit in with availability of the lecture team. In February, look to a return to some kind of normality. we look forward to the annual Student Lecture When the first lockdown was introduced in March, Competition. This will follow the usual format with and we were forced to cancel the Geoffrey de Havilland 3 students giving short talks followed by Q&A. Last Memorial Lecture, no one could have envisaged April, we were forced to cancel the Safety Evening that we would still be in lockdown almost a year on. run by GASCo and we rescheduled it for this April, not As with many other organisations, we were forced expecting that we would need to hold it as an online to adapt and so far we have run 3 online lectures, webinar. starting with the rescheduled de Havilland lecture in As usual, we will close the season with the AGM in October. I know that there were some initial problems May. We cancelled this last year but this year we will with members being unable to access the MS Teams need to run an online version. In the current virtual presentations. Hopefully, these problems are now world, there is inevitably less contact between the behind us. We plan to continue with the online format committee and the branch members, so the AGM for the remainder of this season. I am aware that the is your opportunity to influence the running of the branch meetings are an opportunity to socialise with branch. Committee members will be up for re-election other members, so as we develop the programme for and, as always, we will be keen to welcome new blood. the 2021/22 season, we will need to consider if we can More details of the arrangements will follow, nearer reintroduce physical meetings, perhaps with an online the time. stream as well. Stay safe Our January lecture is led by Howard Nye, who is Steve Rogers HATFIELD BRANCH Page 2 NEWSLETTER JANUARY 2021 Lecture Report – Aircraft Galleys, Adina Caraba, Collins Aerospace For the December Lecture, we were delighted to welcome Adina Caraba, a colleague from my time at Collins Aerospace. Adina, who originally hails from Romania, is now the Director of Engineering for Collins Aerospace at Leighton Buzzard. Adina opened her talk by briefly explaining the structure of Collins Aerospace, which is part of Raytheon Technologies and is now one of the worlds largest providers of systems for commercial aircraft. She compact and light as possible. All this in a structure showed the wide range of interior products supplied by which needs to pass through the aircraft door to allow the company including seating, galleys and lavatories. installation. Collins Aerospace also manufacture a range of inserts to complete the galleys. These include the ovens, beverage makers and trolleys. Collins Aerospace supply interior products to most major manufacturers including Boeing, Airbus and Sukhoi, the Russian company who are building the SSJ100. In 2008, as B/E Aerospace, they were awarded the contract to supply the galleys for the new Airbus A350XWB and established a new 10,000 sqm facility in the Philippines to manufacture the new galleys. So far, Airbus have delivered almost 400 A350s and have orders for another 500. Adina showed us the details of the galley manu- Tracing its history back to C F Taylor, the company has facturing and assembly process. Starting with the over 50 years’ experience and has developed an enviable manufacture of the honeycomb panels through the reputation as a leader in galley design and manufacture. galley assembly and system installation to the finished The Leighton Buzzard facility was originally established galley, ready to leave the factory. as B/E Aerospace almost 30 years ago. We are grateful to Adina for taking time out of her The aircraft galley may look simple on the outside, very busy schedule to prepare and present a most but under the skin it is rather more complicated. Adina enjoyable and informative lecture. explained the details of the main systems which go For those unable to join the lecture, a copy of into making a modern galley, including the structure, Adina’s presentation is here: electrics, refrigeration, plumbing and air extraction. Aircraft Galleys December 2020 Although most of the galley manufacture is carried Please note that this material is Collins Aerospace out in the Philippines, design, test and certification proprietary and must not be copied or reproduced take place in Leighton Buzzard. The galley structure without written permission from Collins Aerospace. needs to withstand the 9G crash case while being as Steve Rogers HATFIELD BRANCH Page 3 NEWSLETTER JANUARY 2021 Members’ competition: clue on how we may learn from the past as we look into Over the past months you may have noticed that the future. Peter’s particular insight has been focused members have been encouraged to identify an on the work of the RAF Museum www.rafmuseum. image of a trophy, this quiz was in recognition of how org.uk where he curated a number of exhibitions and aerospace has progressed through competition. The exhibits. We should not underestimate the value our Trophy in question is on display at the Royal Museum heritage brings to today’s aerospace challenges. of the Armed Forces and Military History Parc du Given our current challenges, I foresee that air travel Cinquantenaire, 1000 Bruxelles, Belgium. may never be the same. Our Geoffrey de Havilland http://www.klm-mra.be named lecture by PrivateFly illustrated the concept The trophy may be found on display here: of integrated on-demand travel services and how we may see flights from local airports to local airports delivering lower carbon footprints and an overall time saving. Enabling technology such as on-demand multimodal transit services could mean that when you need to escape working from home, your journey starts from your desk with a walk to the awaiting hydrogen - electric car which delivers you to your hydrogen -electric aircraft or airship having pre-cleared customs and air traffic control. Once seated your office is at your hand with satellite connected services. On arrival, you may choose to continue your journey or meet with your guests on board as the return journey is made ready. You may think this is a flight of fancy, however Airlander is continuing the concept of slow high endurance travel to remote locations with stunning views of the surroundings. For those who think this could never be, just think how things may have been This museum has been a significant place in my different if hydrogen balloons had evolved beyond work environment and I became a routine visitor on the Hindenburg. The application of new materials and Wednesday afternoons. Like most museums there is capabilities could mean that solar powered hybrid air too much to explore in one visit, but for those who vehicles may move on from unmanned air vehicles to have a specific interest they can be inspirational. Our a personal autonomous transit infrastructure as we committee member Peter Elliott is a leading authority reach for a sustainable future. Continued on Page 5 2020-21 Lecture Programme Members’ competition Confirmed lectures (Wednesdays): Email the name of this trophy to [email protected] for a chance to win the mug shown below. 21st Oct: Geoffrey de Havilland Lecture: PrivateFly Air Charter Operations, Adam Twidell 18th Nov: Handley Page & Radlett, Chris Scivyer 9th Dec: Aircraft Galleys, Collins Aerospace Thursday 21st Jan 2021: Space Lecture, Howard Nye, Geoff Busswell and Alex Godfery 17th Feb: Student Lecture Competition 17th Mar: TBA 21st Apr: GASCo Safety Evening, Keith Thomas 19th May: Lecture TBA, preceded by AGM All lectures are online. Please contact hatfield@aerosociety. com for an invitation 8 HATFIELD BRANCH Page 4 NEWSLETTER JANUARY 2021 Ken Wallis: the man who would be Sean Handling characteristics Connery Whether powered by internal combustion or an In 1979, as a student of Aeronautical Engineering at electric motor, it is important that the thrust line of the Kingston University, I was privileged to meet Wing aircraft aligns with the centre of gravity. This limits any Commander Ken Wallis, leading developer of autogyros secondary effects of control when power is applied. and innovator of engineering excellence. Wing The mass of fuel for an engine will be reduced during Commander Kenneth Horatio Wallis – Wikipedia entry flight, whereas an electric motor and battery pack Amongst his achievements was his role as Sean will not change, allowing a more consistent alignment Connery’s stunt pilot in the 1967 James Bond film with the thrust line and centre of gravity. An electric You Only Live Twice, flying one of his WA-116s – Little motor produces a relatively flat power curve. This Nellie. may eliminate the need for a reduction gear (to match In this spirit of innovation, and recognising our the propeller performance otherwise required for an urgent need for more-sustainable future flight, this engine.) article examines the feasibility of exchanging the Without the exhaust or emissions associated with internal combustion (IC) engine for a battery-powered an engine, the main noise source will be restricted to electric motor.