Advantages of the ROLLS-ROYCE CONWAY BY-PASS TURBO JET for long range airliners * Lower weight giving increased payload Lower guaranteed specific fuel consumption Lower first cost and operating costs Less noise * R 0 L L S -R 0 Y C E A E B. 0 EN GIN E S LEA 0 THE WO R L 0 Editorial Offices: 19 PARKLANE.LONDON, W.1 Telephone: G ROsvenor 1530 and 1382 Editor: FRANK HILLIER Advertisement Manai'er: Proprietors: Derek Merson 2 BREAMS BUILDINGS AIR LEAGUE OF THE BRITISH EMPIRE LONDON, E.CA LONDONDERRY HOUSE, 19 PARK LANE, LONDON, W.l. Telephone: HOLborn 5708 Vol. XVIII AUGUST 1956 No. 8 A.T .~. ReforDlS N 28th June the Secretary of deal slower than is necessary and cer­ citizens. It is also a matter for regret O State for Air was asked in the tainly much slower than is desirable. that there is no mention in the report House of Commons if he was aware The Air League was among the of giving greater responsibility to the of the sense of frustration which was individuals and bodies which gave local A.T.C. committees. Until this growing among officers of the Air evidence before the Taylor Com­ has been done, it is to be feared that Training Corps, owing to their lack mittee, and was at one with most of difficulty will persist in finding suffi­ of knowledge as to whether any of them in deploring the over-elaborate­ cient men of responsibility and the recommendations made during ness of the A.T.e. administration. It standing to join these committees, the hearings of the Taylor Com­ was modelled closely on the R .A.F., since such men are naturally dis­ mittee, were to be adopted. The with its cohorts of clerks and order­ inclined to service on bodies which Parliamentary Secretary replied that lies, to cope with the mass of paper have no worthwhile function to be a statement covering all the recom­ work, which is the curse of all Service performed outside the limited sphere mendations was being distributed departments. The long chain of which at present is allotted to them. that day to all A.T.C. wings. administration was also under fire. However, the excellent report of Before reviewing the Committee's It is gratifying to know that the main the Taylor Committee and adoption recommendations, which are of the finding of the Committee is that the of its main recommendations will greatest interest and which in fact R.A.F. Groups in Home Command have the effect of bringing about a reflect what most of those acquainted should cease to be responsible for very considerable economy in the with the A.T.e. at close quarters have local A.T.e. administration, which is administration of the Corps, which long considered essential, it is appro­ to be entrusted to A.T.e. wings, may well reduce its cost to the tax­ priate to mention that the Taylor which would be responsible direct to payer by something like 50 per cent. Committee was appointed almost a Commandant. Had the repeated advice of those in exactly a year ago. It reported six The very important question of the bestposition tojudge been heeded months ago, and it has taken all that maintaining the links between A.T.e. during the last few years, this happy time for the Air Ministry to study units and neighbouring R.A.F. sta­ result could have been obtained a this report and make up its mind tions has not been overlooked, and long time ago. Practically all the concerning it. Although the Com­ means are to be devised to bring this evils of the present system which mittee reported in January, it was not about. were brought before the Committee, until 16th March that it was pre­ We still believe that it would have have been well known for a long sented to the Air Cadet Council, been better to have a civilian as while. It is a pity that action should which considered it on that day and Director-General of the A.T.e., be­ have been so long delayed. at a second meeting a month later. cause it is to be feared that the ten­ We have frequently commented in dency will continue, which has been these columns on the slowness of manifest in the last few years, for one business transacted at the Air Min­ of the original important aims of the THIS MONTH'S COVER istry and the fact that it has taken the A.T.C. as laid down by the Air Air Ministry six months to announce League,its original founder, to be for­ A LENGTHENED nose, deletion of the dorsal fin and vortex generators on the the findings of the Committee, whose gotten, that is to say, that it should outer-wing panels, are the main external report was neither lengthy nor not be regarded simply as a Service ditl"erences between the prototype and pro­ abstruse, indicates that the pace of Pre-entry organisation, but should duction Handley Page Victor, which will be business in the Air Ministry is cer­ have the wider object of producing introduced into R.A.F. service in the next tainly not increasing, and is a geod not only keen airmen but good few months. Photograph is of XA917. 257 and it should 3'lso be remembered that this is only the second British supen;onic man­ The ~ase for the carrying vehicle. Before commenting upon the design features of the F.D.2 a brief statement of its history is of help in appreciating how it fits Triangle into the world picture of supersonic flight. Originally, in 1949, the Fairey Aviation Company was investigating a transonic Some Comments on Delta Wings for High Speed Flight research aeroplane. By 1950 this had been resolved into a tailless delta layout, and with particular reference to the Fairey F.D.2 estimates suggested that the speed could be extended well into the supersonic range. 11 was in this form that Fairey received a Min· By JAMES HAY STEVENS istry of Supply contract for two aeroplanes. By 1950, it will be recalled, only o~e Critish and one American " pure" (i.e. tall­ HE straight-wing and delta schools of Although the slender wing can just about kss) delta aeroplane had flown (the first T thought on supersonic aircraft layout be made strong enough, it is impossible to t .vro 707 and the Convair XF-92A), al­ hold views which permit of little or no com­ make it sufficiently stiff, so that the only though the Americans had been piling up promise. It is, too, noteworthy that these solution would be the "judo" technique of supersonic piloting experience with the Bell two schools appear to be largely eliminating the Short Sherpa's isoclinic wing. The swept X-I and the Douglas Skyrocket for several the swept wing as speeds increase beyond wing also suffers from lack of area, the kcy years. Design work on the F.D.2 was fin­ about Mach 1.5. There are still certainly factor in high-altitude manoeuvrability, ished by 1952, by which time practical two formidable contenders in the U.S. without an undue drag/aspect-ratio penalty, experience with tailless deltas had grown. Navy's Chance Vought Crusader and the while it is unlikely to offer much fuel Fairey's own F.D.I had flown, albeit with a R.A.F.'s English Electric P.I, but little sign volume. In short, the swept wing would "safety" tailplane ; two variants of the of further examples coming along. appear to combine the more undesirable Avro 707 had been flying, so had the The reasons for the likely demise of the features of the thin, straight wing and the Boulton Paul P.III and the Douglas Sky ray . swept wing are mainly structural. In order delta. One Avro 707 and the XF-92 had crashed to keep down the shock-wave drag of the These are, very much in brief, the bare due to difficulties of handling at low speeds. wing in true supersonic flight the thickness/ facts on supersooic wing characteristics. Thc Fairey had also gained some experience of chord ratio has to be reduced to 5 per cent swept wing has been ruled out (though not delta behaviour with its rocket-driven or less. Under these conditions, in order to completely eliminated) above Mach 1.5; it V.T.O. m-odeJs. gain reasonable physical depth for strength remains, therefore, to discuss the rival To complete the history, Mr. Peter Twiss and stiffness, it is essential to adopt a low merits of thin, straight or delta wing for flew the first F.D .2 on 6th October 1954, aspect-ratio. Reducing the aspect-ratio of a speeds up to, say, Mach 2- 1,300 m.p.h. in and the second on 15th February 1956­ wing of given area and thickness ratio from the stratosphere. Last month the Lockheed both dates could have been much earlier but 5 to 2 will almost double its physical depth arguments for the F-I04 Starfire and its for the fact that the Gannet was in the super­ and at the same time reduce the bending straight wing were given, and to some extent priority programme. Following a careful forces acting on it-by triangulating the low dissected.· It is not, unfortunatcly, possible test schedule, performance was slowly raised aspect-ratio planform, the gains in chord to give many of Fairey's reasons for choos­ until the first supersonic flight (on the climb) and thickness are concentrated at the root.