MINISTER PILOTS FASTEST WARPLANE

Press, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22520, 30 September 1938, Page 22

MINISTER PILOTS FASTEST WARPLANE

DOCILE AND SAFE 303 MILES AN HOUR : mtoM oca ova - coßßairpisui.) LONDON, September 1. . Twenty minutes' flying at more than 300 miles an hour acquainted Captain H. H- Balfour, Under-Secretary of Sta|e for Air, with Jhe outstanding qualities of the Spitfire monoplane, \ WllidX I* now In course o£ deliverer to , flghter squadrons. The Minister's ' flight has shown clearly that the aero T plane, in spite of its great speed, is easy to handle; though he flew fighters during she war. Captain Balfour now holds' only the ordinary amateur pilot's A licence, and most of his flying is done in light aeroplanes. Taking off from the Royal Air Force station .at Duxford, Captain Balfour flew at heights ranging up to about 0000 feet.- He said afterwards that he had flown at considerably more than 300 miles an hour, but that at his highest speed the engine was not "anything like all out" The Merlin engine is supercharged to give its full output of 1080 horse-power at a height of 10,000 feet, where the Spitfire achieves its maximum level speed of approximately six mile* a minute. The aeroplane was not SDeciallyx ,! p!spared for Captain Balfour, who (ascended easily and confidently after ;acfew chat'with a service pilot;,-His subsequent opinion that the Spjtftre is "a very nice aeroplane for an ojd gentleman" like himself, who spejft most of his time at an office desk, speaks eloquently of the admirable flying qualities of the aircraft. A few weeks, ago Captain Balfour tried the Hawker- Hurricane, Service contemporary of ,the- Spitfire, and found it equally free from "vices." Evidently, the young Royal Air Force pilot may graduate quickly and without" trouble to' the " control of these magnificent and heavily-armed fightera—an important factor in assessing the strength of the Royal Air Force. Captain Balfour's'last squadon during thejwar was equipped with Camel biplanes.'.'capable of a top speed of little more than 100 miles an hour, and, though- swift and aggressive in manoeuvre, cursed with awkward habits that made them dangerous in the hands of an unaccustomed pilot. Their modern ' equivalent, reaching speeds more than three times as great, is docile and safe. The Spitfire is a long-wing mono-plane.-If has a fully • retractable undercarriage and wing flaps to assist landing; The- Rolls-Royce Merlin engine is neatly;*housed in a smooth, streamlined cowling, and is cooled by liquid ' *Wt through a ducted radiator " X- -JPPB'W** specially designed for mini'!",<'J**''"head resistance. A battery of ;.feS>*thine-guns is carried in the wings. : ,J ll||lj I M , 'are emerging in numbers .jcgWPJhe. Super-marine works at' South Cord Nuffield's air-frame fac- ' f>gaj&l*"Tn'ngHam has been awarded i |ic ; |*if*»3L;contract for 1000 Spitfires.