Wonwings Diary-a blog with a difference.

[Guest]

I remember i bought my first Stirling just because it had a bomb cart and bombs

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-Special request-De Havilland Chipmunk panel

De Havilland Chipmunk instrumentation.



Instrument panel layout for the De Havilland Chipmunk.



Artificial Horizon.

c3bwc you can scale the instrument down to whatever size you need,the two instruments are different use which one you need.

[Guest]

Now that brings back happy A.T.C memories

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-Airspeed Oxford trainer.

Airspeed Oxford Trainer.



This model was based on the Frog Airspeed Oxford kit,I wanted to represent a machine operated from R.A.F Church Lawford,Warwickshire so finished her in overall silver with yellow taining bands and the appropiate training command codes,there is sufficent detail at this scale to look good and being a monocoque plywood covered machine she is very smooth with no rivets to contend with,a very enjoyable period Frog kit,the subject was inspired by the late great model builder Doug Mc Hard who suggested a range of models to the International Model Aircraft group for whom he worked at that time.







One of the best training command colourschemes ever in my opinion,DF447 Airspeed Oxford on approach to Church Lawford airfield in the nineteen fifties.







Another view of DF447 about to do a touch and go.

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-The Spartan Arrow aeroplane.



Spartan Arrow biplane.



During the 1930's the British Spartan aeroplane company designed a direct contender to the Gipsy Moth aircraft,it was named the Arrow,the aircraft sold well mostly to New Zealand where she had a good reception,very few Spartan aeroplanes survive today ( not to be confused with the American company of the very same name ) and G-ABWP is the sole survivor,there is a Spartan Three Seater in New Zealand that was restored in the UK.



The model was built using much modified wings ( note the balanced ailerons ) from a Frog Gipsy Moth,the tail is plastikard,the fuselage is new and scratch built,plus the undercarriage which was made from re-arranged Gipsy Moth parts,you just need to see any potential parts that are of use and study them with a view to conversion.







A grand old lady that still appears at vintage aircraft fly ins,the Spartan Arrow G-ABWP climbs out from her airstrip.







The distinctive fin and rudder of the Spartan Arrow,note the mass balanced large ailerons,the Spartan Arrow is a classic from yesteryear.

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-The Real Workhorses.

The reality of workhorses throughout the world, are machines that earn their keep ferrying vital supplies regardless of conditions,in this case a 64 year old Douglas Dakota is in use carrying dried fish between small islands,vital supplies that must get through regardless of bad weather,some of these aircraft barely clear the mountains flying down valleys,one mistake and they are in trouble,if you get engine problems then the only solution is to land on a remote road and just hope that you do not hit a tree or run off the road,if the problem can be fixed then it is off with the cowlings and out with the spanners,if not then you could be stranmded for days and may have to eat some of that dried fish! raw meat is sometimes hauled abroad,health and safety would have a field day,but such things do not exist in areas where survival is the name of the game.

Maintenance ? well if there is time then it gets started,otherwise you just need to trust the reliability of those old Pratt & Witney powerplants,bust a wing and you salvage one from the nearest wreck,this is the hard reality of the venerable workhorse,the fast dwindling piston engined aircraft that are not museum pieces but part of need to survive in areas thousands of miles apart,think about it ?



Tired crew at rest above a cargo of dried fish.

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-Airfield walkabout

Wellesbourne 09-08-2006



Munster Joinery's Citation Encore N652NR basking in the sun at Wellesbourne,not sure about leaving those flaps down ?



D-EGVA Cherokee Arrow II



G-OTOY R.22 on loan to Heliair for the week to fulfill training requirements.



Serial 11364 R.44 II emerges from its crate,this one will become G-SAIG

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-Requests for information,and a small matter of etiquette.

Over the past year or so there has been a lot of requests for information sent to me personally,I am only too pleased to supply photographs,drawings,details of a particular machine etc to those who need it for their models,sometimes the required info takes considerable time to locate, whilst I have built up a large filing system over the years it still needs physically finding as there is a need to go through folders etc ! all this needs to be fitted into a busy days domestic schedule,but as I said earlier I do not mind trying to assist my fellow modellers.

However it has been brought to my attention that some information that I kindly assisted with to somebody unknown to me, has appeared in a publication,once more without any acknowledgement or even mention of Scale-Models or myself ?

This is rather underhanded and rude and has happened because I trusted that person thinking that it was for use on his modelling subject.

So I have decided in future that unless I know the 'real name' of someone who has requested the information,as opposed to QC1234 etc then the request will have to be declined.

It is a pity that these steps have to be taken but in order to protect myself it is essential,all that I need to know is who the person is who has requested said info.

Thank you for your understanding.

[Guest]

Anyone who genuinely wants this information for a project should have no problem with the request Barry.

The only ones with a problem would be the ones whose motives are not as honourable.

What is up with people nowadays?

[Guest]

God i hate that its so bloody decietful and underhanded

[Guest]

It might be worth a polite letter to the publisher who should be as concerned as you as to the source of the material he is publishing.

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-Tiger Moth spin entry & recovery.

To:Air Accident Investigation Branch,

Farnborough House,

Berkshire Copse Road,

Aldershot,

GU11 2HH.

01-08-2006

G-ACDJ Tiger Moth,crash 18-08-2005

Dear Sir,

I am writing to you to offer some information that could possibly be of some use to you in your investigation of the crash of the above aircraft,having read in detail the excellent report I feel that something important has been overlooked,I will add that this is in no way intended as a criticism merely to highlight and possibly add to your findings,I hold nothing but respect for the AAIB and the difficult and demanding work that it does in the interests of furthering air safety.

During the sixties I was deeply involved in the maintenance and repair of De Havilland DH.82A Tiger Moth aircraft,sometimes even going on post restoration test flights that entailed the spinning of these machines,the characteristics varied very much from one machine to another,some aircraft were reluctant to spin,whilst others went into the spin very quickly,there were examples whereby the aircraft was reluctant to pull out of a spin one of which resulted in a rather lengthy court case between the previous owner.

Whilst the fitting of anti-spin strakes would assist the pull out of a spinning Tiger Moth this was not always the case,it is well known that the the blanketing effect of the rudder was the result of slipstream around the rear fuselage without the strakes,the history of the strakes was the direct result of the wartime fitting of bomb racks underneath the wings of Tiger Moths which caused instability problems laterally and caused many Tiger Moths to crash under then unknown circumstances.

So how stable is a Tiger Moth laterally ? well this is a complex subject not helped by the history of some much restored aircraft,it is well known that G-ACDJ a particularly vintage aircraft had been repaired many times over the years and is probably a far different aircraft than it first emerged at Hatfield back in the thirties as a brand new aircraft,subsequent repairs can add a lot of extra weight to any aircraft and notwithstanding the aircrafts normal weight and balance schedule,something else must be remembered,lateral stabilty is very much allied to lateral static balance something that is often overlooked,in other words the aircraft should balance in the lateral axis,just the same as it does in the fore and aft sense,well how exactly is this checked as I have never seen it mentioned anywhere in any aircraft repair manual ? well the only way is to suspend the aircraft from the engine crankshaft via a simple jig that will lift the nose from the ground,the rudder is then locked and a simple gimbal joint placed underneath the tail skid spoon so in effect the aircraft is suspended between the two points,with two people on either wingtip the aircraft will start to roll one way,industrial weights or quantities of ballistic plastercine is then placed on the light wingtip until the wings become level,this will determine whether the aircraft is statically out of balance.

It will be necessary to ensure that the hangar floor is level by checking with a spirit level before conducting the above test,but it does work.

Most Tiger Moths will when throttled back start to turn under the torque of the propeller effect,any further bank could be attributed to either warps in the aircrafts wings or any inbalance as described above,depending on the severity of same will determine how unstable the aircraft could get,and at a worst case scenerio start to enter an insippiant spin.

The case with the bomb racks as fitted on some wartime aircraft was a warning how outloading underneath the lower wings would upset the balance of such aircraft.

The hidden dangers are wings both top and bottom that are of unequal balance due to numerous repair work that has been undertaken that can add an alarming amount of weight.

I submit these suggestions in the spirit of continuing aircraft safety and from personal experience in maintaining and operating these delightful aircraft,and above all trust that you will find my notes of use in the future.

Thank you and I look forward to your comments.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~

And the reply received on 10th August 2006 from Alan.P.Simmons,Principal Inspector of Air Accidents-

DearSir,,

Thank you for your interesting and informative letter dated 1st August 2006,I have discussed the contents with the inspectors involved with this accident,and can advise you of the following points.

We did check the aircraft’s weight and longitudinal balance,and although this was not detailed in the report,it was within the correct range.We were unable to check the aircrafts lateral balance,and this is not recorded in the documentation.We did check the aircraft’s trim settings,and there was no evidence of any unusual trim position.The investigators also spoke with other pilots who had flown this aircraft,and there were no reports of any unusual behaviour.

We are aware of issues with spin entry and recovery with Tiger Moths and examined a number of flight test reports before forming our conclusions.

In short we do not think lateral balance was an issue,but if it had been we would have no way of reliably proving it.Nonetheless I thank you for your thought-provoking comments.

[Guest]

Well done Barry, a positive reply and one that demonstrates a willingness to correspond with people outside the branch.

I believe all investigative bodies owe it to thier own integrity to pursue all avenues from all sources and remain open minded to such input.

[Guest]

I also think it was well written and obviously from a learned source! It was nice to get a reply that tells you that they did consider your points and not just fob you off with a form letter

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-Vintage Diecast Ship Models needing identification.

Warship#15





Warship#16





Warship#17





Warship#18