Abstract
INVESTIGATION into the possibilities of a new method of overcoming the difficulties of taking off with fuel sufficient for a long flight together with a reasonable amount of useful load, will shortly be carried out under the auspices of the Air Ministry and Imperial Airways by the use of a ‘composite seaplane’ now being built by Messrs. Short Brothers of Rochester. The machine is a flying boat, with sufficient initial climb to be able to take off the water easily with an exceptionally heavy load. The major portion of this load is a high-speed float seaplane, the design characteristics of which are those required for economical long-distance flight. It is carried practically on the wings of the flying boat, from which it can be released when sufficient speed and height are attained. The power of both of the machines is used for taking off. For this experiment a small single-engined seaplane will be used, which will probably not be seaworthy enough to weather rough water on the open seas if compelled to alight. It is, however, capable of flying to the Azores under normal conditions, and in the rarely favourable case of a continuous following wind, even to fly the whole of the direct crossing to America. The problem of securing exceptional range has hitherto been dealt with by refuelling in the air immediately after starting. The operating aircraft takes off with a small fuel load and is then filled from a ‘tanker’ machine, by means of a trailing hose picked up and connected while in flight. This system has been developed successfully by the R.A.F., but has never been used extensively for either military or commercial purposes.
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Launching of Long-Range Aeroplanes. Nature 134, 875 (1934). https://doi.org/10.1038/134875b0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/134875b0