|
Showing 1 - 5 of
5 matches in All Departments
On 13 September 1931 the Schneider Trophy was won outright for
Britain on Southampton Water by Flt Lt John Boothman flying
Supermarine S6B, S1595, with a record-breaking average speed of
379.08mph. Ralph Pegram relates the story of the Schneider Trophy
competitions and describes the development of British high-speed
seaplane designs. He examines the anatomy of the S6B (including the
Rolls-Royce R engine), as well as giving rare insights into its
flying characteristics and how it was maintained, operated and - of
course - raced in the final competition.
The Coupe d'Aviation Maritime Jacques Schneider (commonly called
the Schneider Trophy, or prize or cup) was a prize competition for
seaplanes. Announced by Jacques Schneider, a financier, balloonist
and aircraft enthusiast, in 1911, it offered a prize of roughly
GBP1,000. The race was held eleven times between 1913 and 1931. It
was meant to encourage technical advances in civil aviation but
became a contest for pure speed with laps over a triangular course
(initially 280 km, later 350 km). The races were very popular and
some attracted crowds of over 200,000 spectators. Since 1977 the
trophy has been on display at the Science Museum in London. The
race was very significant in advancing aeroplane design,
particularly in the fields of aerodynamics and engine design, and
would show its results in the best fighters of WW2. The streamlined
shape and the low drag, liquid-cooled engine pioneered by Schneider
Trophy designs are obvious in the British Supermarine Spitfire, the
American P-51 Mustang, and the Italian Macchi C.202 Folgore. This
book is a history of the 100+ different aircraft types designed to
contest for the Schneider Trophy from its inception in 1912 through
to the final post-script in 1934. The narrative covers the
political dynamics of the contests, the rivalries and the
partnerships that led to the development of these aircraft. Each
aircraft and engine is described along with the story of their
construction and testing. The core of the book is a set of detailed
1:72 scale 3-view drawings and photographs from the author's
personal collection, most of which have not been published
previously. The text and drawings draw upon the author's
comprehensive library of drawings, photographs, blueprints,
reports, books and magazines on the subject and contain much new
information. The majority of these aircraft, including some of the
better known types, have been served poorly in the past in terms of
availability of drawings. The book will appeal both to readers with
a casual interest in the Schneider Trophy and to those seeking a
comprehensive source of information on the subject. It will be of
particular use to aircraft modellers. At present there are no books
in print on the subject of the Schneider Trophy, the most recent in
English was published in 2000. The majority of the more recent
books date from 1981, the 50th anniversary of the final contest.
Popular history has a tendency to simplify, and accounts of the
life and career of aeronautical engineer R.J. Mitchell are no
exception. Remembered most fondly for his epochal Spitfire design,
his other designs - many of them failures and disappointments -
have largely been ignored. As a designer for Supermarine, Mitchell
produced a huge body of concepts, projects and ideas that never
left the drawing board. In Beyond the Spitfire Ralph Pegram brings
Mitchell's previously unseen work to light in an attempt to
evaluate the entire portfolio of one of Britain's most talented
aeronautical designers. Illustrated with a combination of layout
drawings and impressive CGI renderings of Mitchell's designs, this
book is an insightful and indispensable addition to our
understanding of the work of a man often called a genius.
|
You may like...
Loot
Nadine Gordimer
Paperback
(2)
R398
R330
Discovery Miles 3 300
Not available
|