Afterburner Book Reviews THE SYCAMORE SEEDS Early British Helicopter only to be smashed the following night in a gale. The book then covers the Cierva story in some detail, the Development chapter including, out of context, two paragraphs on By C E MacKay the Brennan propeller-driven rotor driven helicopter [helicogyro] fl own in 1924 at Farnborough but Distributed by A MacKay, 87 Knightscliffe Avenue, aborted by the Air Ministry the next year, stating that Netherton, Glasgow G13 2RX, UK (E charlese87@ there was no future for the helicopter and backing btinternet.com). 2014. 218pp. Illustrated. £12.95. Cierva’s autogyro programme contracting Avro to build ISBN 978-0-9573443-3-4. the fi rst British machines. Good coverage is given to the range of Cierva autogyros culminating in the Avro Given the paucity of coverage of British helicopter C30 Rota and its service use by the RAF. development I approached this slim (218 A5 pp) The heart of the book begins with a quotation: publication with interest. While autogyros have been “Morris, I want you to make me blades, helicopter well documented, Charnov and Ord-Hume giving blades,” with which William Weir, the fi rst Air Minister, exhaustive and well documented treatments of the founder of the RAF and supporter of Cierva, brought helicopter’s predecessor, the transition to the directly furniture maker H Morris & Co into the history of driven rotor of the helicopter is somewhat lacking. rotorcraft pulling in designers Bennett, Watson, Unfortunately MacKay’s book only contributes a Nisbet and Pullin with test pilots Marsh and Brie fi nal and short chapter to the ‘British Helicopter’ to form his team. G J Weir of Cathcart, Glasgow, pioneers of Weir, Brennan, Shapiro, Castular, Bennet took on license production of the Cierva designs, and, fi nally, Hafner in the last nine pages. developing the C30, introducing clutched rotor According to its Preface this book arose out of a drive and commencing their own redesign of the planned two-volume set covering British helicopter Top: Avro 671 Cierva C30A C28 later re-designated Weir W1, fi rst fl own by autogyro, G-ACWO, over development through to 1995 initiated by Neil Morris Cierva himself in May 1933 superseded by the W2 Hampton Court fl own by R A of the Glasgow-based Morris Furniture Company in 1934 with Ken Watson’s auto-dynamic clutched C Brie. c1934. suppliers of wooden rotor blades to Weir and Cierva. rotor enabling jump starts thus removing the need Above: Cierva Weir W14 Documentary research was ‘exhaustive’ and without for a take-off run to rotate the rotor. Continuing Sceptre, G-AJCJ, the Skeeter prototype. the benefi t of computers and the Internet. The development of the autogyro continued through to RAeS (NAL). project withered and folded but in 2013 the fl oppy the fi nal C40 designed by Bennett but Air Ministry discs containing the draft manuscript was found and interest had declined and the success of the German MacKay used this as the basis of his book. Focke-Wulf FW61 side-by-side twin-rotor helicopter It is a private publication and suffers brought autogyro development to an end, paving accordingly. Continuity is lacking, there is no index, the way to the modern powered-rotor helicopter no references, the illustrations are tiny and the now to be pursued by Weir with the fi rst British true The heart photographs are poorly reproduced. That said, helicopter, the side-by-side W5 fl own in June 1938 it does give insights into the rotorcraft world of by Raymond Pullin the son of its designer. of the book Cierva, Weir and Kay with an excellent coverage German and American activities follow with good begins with of the Hafner Rotachutes and Rotorbuggies of the coverage of the introduction of the Sikorsky R4 a quotation: Airborne Forces Experimental Establishment at Hoverfl y into British military service and its test fl ying “Morris, I want Ringway during the War. Given its origins, the book by Lt Cdr [Winkle] Brown at Farnborough. After a is understandably of a Scottish nature beginning round-up of the various eclectic German rotorcraft you to make with the bird-man monk Damien launching himself revealed as Spoils of War which gave impetus to me blades, from Stirling Castle on leather wings [date not further the British helicopter cause, the fi nal chapter helicopter given] then quickly moving on to Weir of Glasgow ‘Pioneering the British Helicopter’ surveys all too blades” and Kay of Perth with their Cierva-based autogyros. briefl y the fi nal Weir designs up to the Cierva W11 The book begins with a strange prelude Air Horse and the W14 Skeeter, later taken on reproducing a 1947 article by Air Ministry authors Hall by Saunders-Roe. Hafner’s Bristol Sycamore and and Sizer explaining, ‘How does a Helicopter Fly?’ It is tandem rotor helicopters leading to the Belvedere probably meant as light reading for the non-specialist, follow, MacKay giving a fi nal salute to Bennet’s it is best left unread! The fi rst chapter [Chapters Fairey Gyrodyne with a single photo of the Rotodyne are unnumbered] ‘Evolution’, gives a short overview with no supporting text other than a caption. of man’s attempts to fl y, fi nishing with Mumford’s Appendices include lists of patents and NACA six-rotor helicopter initiated by William Denny, ship reports, the story of a dog-fi ght between an Avro builders on Clydeside which, after tethered fl ights, Rota and a FW190 (adapted from Norman Hill), lifted off in 1913 but during attempts to restrain a history of H Morris furniture company, a list of its remaining free-fl ight it broke up and crashed. passengers fl own in the W6, thumbnail photographs His second machine, equipped with fl oats, fl ew of British helicopter pioneers and the life of Jeep Mike Breward successfully at 10ft for 100 yards on 31 July 1914 Cable. A select bibliography concludes the book. CEng FRAeS 44 AEROSPACE / SEPTEMBER 2016 KING OF ALL BALLOONS James Sadler’s ascent from The Adventurous Life of Merton Fields, Oxford, 7 July James Sadler, the First English 1810. RAeS (NAL). Aeronaut By M Davies Amberley Publishing, The Hill, Merrywalks, Stroud, Gloucestershire GL5 4EP, UK. 2015. 256pp. Illustrated. £20. ISBN 978-1-4456-5308-2. James Sadler (1753-1828) should be famous for not being famous. He misses out on the claim to be the fi rst English aeronaut because nobody saw him make a fl ight said to have happened on employed as Chemist to the Board of Naval Works, 4 October 1784: it was reported (by the local and designed mobile batteries for land cannon a new reputable newspaper Jackson’s Oxford Journal, light musket and ship cannon before returning to which had been following balloon news avidly) but the air in a spectacular launch from Oxford on 7 not witnessed or attested. Sadler had successfully July 1810, about which it was said 50,000 people launched grand unmanned balloons during the crammed into the city to see. This fl ight occasioned Undoubtedly summer, with the usual cat and dog passengers a new song celebrating Sadler as the King of all Britain’s best returned safely, but the mystery around his own Balloons, a deserved accolade (and catchy title for balloonist fi rst alleged ascent and fl ight of six miles – an Davies’ book). His son Windham – who made the impressive feat – keeps him out of the record fi rst successful crossing of the Irish Sea in 1814 – during the books. Equally mysterious is why Sadler is was extending aeronautic intrepidity but it was the fi rst mad uncelebrated in his home town, except that, as Mark father whose ascent from Birmingham on 7 October enthusiasm Davies explains in his engaging biography, Sadler’s 1811 survived a ferocious wind to travel at a record- original occupation as a pastry cook attracted breaking (fi nally!) 84mph. for balloons, snobbish disdain from Oxford University, which There are still many gaps in Sadler’s biography, making fl ights anyway prefers gown heroes to town ones. and Davies is sensible in his conjectures. Making of around 50 Happily Davies restores Sadler to full view, with the case for Sadler not only as local hero but also miles, Sadler a carefully researched account of his varied and as an Enlightenment fi gure, he provides a very interesting achievements. Undoubtedly Britain’s readable and thoughtful account of an important narrowly best balloonist during the fi rst mad enthusiasm inventor and adventurer. missed being for balloons, making fl ights of around 50 miles, fi rst to cross Sadler narrowly missed being fi rst to cross the Professor Clare Brant the English English Channel in January 1785, and he missed Professor of Eighteenth-Century Literature and another record crossing in 1812, ditching in Culture Channel in the Irish Channel just short of Liverpool, in his King’s College London January 1785 second period of ballooning activity. Nonetheless he made successful fl ights around the Midlands and Cotswolds, within reach of some national limelight. Davies fi lls in the backstory to identify exactly the places and people signifi cant in Sadler’s achievements, with new information of great local interest. For instance, he proves Sadler was able to use the Oxford Physic Gardens to attempt ascents thanks to help from John Sibthorp, Professor of Botany: that’s one mystery cleared up. Davies also positions Sadler perfectly in the big story of ballooning as it unfolded from Europe, though no fewer than nine appendices gather up various narrative loose ends.