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Britain's most successful export guided weapon: the Bristol/Ferranti Bloodhound, with Blue Streak
beyond.
These are actually Bloodhound Is; the export winner is the advanced Mk 2
Matador chassis; and, since the span of the
missile exceeds 9ft 6in, it requires a police
escort. On arrival at the airfield dispersal
the transporter parks close to the bomber to
be loaded and its four steady-feet are lowhydraulically. This provides a rigid
Armstrong Whitworth Seaslug A product ered
base, which does not tilt when the big
of the recently formed Whitworth Gloster weapon
is hoisted out sideways like a lifeAircraft Ltd, the Royal Navy's ship-to-air
from a ship. The front and rear trestles
guided weapon has shown itself to have boat
are hydraulically lowered, and the missile
exceptional reliability and accuracy. On
is traversed outwards by a pair of davits
September 4 the Admiralty and MoA
through a power take-off from the
allowed the manufacturers to announce that driven
engine. The hydraulic loading
"in final test firings, from HMS Girdle Ness transporter
trolley,
by
ML
Aviation, is stationed alongin the Mediterranean, a success ratio in the side ready to receive
the missile, its final
order of 80 per cent has been obtained
positioning being accomplished by hydraulic
against fast, high-flying and low-level
energized by fore and aft handtarget drones." During these trials Can- motors,
pumps, driving each wheel.
berras were intercepted at heights well over
50,000ft, and in seven recent firings four
When the Blue Steel is hanging directly
targets were actually struck by the inert over the trolley the fore and aft trolley
missile. When Girdle Ness returns to the cradles are hydraulically raised to take its
UK at the end of this year the research and
weight. The transporter suspension, condevelopment programme for Seaslug 1 will sisting of a rear shackle and a front steelbe virtually completed. A yellow-painted
strip loop surrounding the missile body, is
Seaslug 1 is on view, with a recent type of
then disengaged and the transporter driven
control ring responding to a series of test away. The loading trolley may be positioned
signals. Of Seaslug 2, the prime contractors beneath the bomber by its own hydraulic
—Whitworth Gloster, GEC and Sperry— power, or, if it has to travel some distance,
can say only: "Longer range; better per- towed behind a tractor. The trolley cradles
formance against extremely low-flying
are elevated through the manual hydraulic
targets; surface-to-surface capability; re- system until the missile is accurately posiquires no modification to existing shipboard
tioned beneath the four crutch pads of the
environment."
Victor or Vulcan, whereupon the single
release slip holding the missile to the aircraft
ATTO Blue Steel In the outdoor guided- may be secured. This ground equipment
weapons park is an impressive exhibit, serves both types of bomber. The low-slung
Victor requires that the trolley should be
staged by A. V. Roe Weapons Research
capable of being lowered 6in, by means of
Division, ML Aviation and AEC Ltd,
pivoting links in its chassis, until the latter
and manned by a crew from No 4 Joint
is only 2in from the ground; but experience
Services Trials Unit based at Woodford
(Avro's weapon centre). Blue Steel is has shown that the Victor is by no means
transported on a vehicle based on the AEC a difficult aircraft to load.
TWENTY-SECOND SBAC SHOW . . .
Static-show highlights
Avro Blue Steel stand-off bomb with transporter and loading trolley
FLIGHT, 7 September 1961
Blackburn Astazou Designed and developed by the Societe Turbomeca, this
compact and refined single-shaft turboprop
in the 550-600 s.h.p. class is to be sold in
the United Kingdom by Blackburn Engines
Ltd, who for many years have been the
French company's licensee. There is no
other engine in the same class currently
available, and if a sufficient market materializes Blackburn will manufacture complete
Astazous in Britain. That a British-built
Astazou is far from unlikely is suggested
by the fact that three British aircraft companies—one of them obviously Short &
Harland—are showing strong interest in
the turboprop version, while the turboshaft
is attracting the attention of two different
British companies for what they term
"special projects." Some of these applications are military. There is no British
propeller specially matched to the engine,
but the turboprop exhibit has propeller
blades by Dowty-Rotol.
Bristol Siddeley rocket engines
According to the makers, "Stentor is the most
advanced rocket engine yet designed in the
United Kingdom. Using HTP and kerosine as its propellants, Stentor represents a
new concept in pump-fed rocket engines,
for it is designed to remain stored on
periodic stand-by for up to two years without ground running. It thereby overcomes
one of the main drawbacks of this type of
engine, which usually needs to be carefuDy
prepared and loaded with its propellants
immediately prior to launching. Stentor,
designed specifically for the Avro Blue Steel
stand-off bomb soon to enter service with
RAF Bomber Command, has already given
a most satisfactory account of itself during
proving trials carried out in Australia."
As is well known, this engine has one
large thrust chamber and one small one,
and the latter is evidently the chamber
employed in the four-chamber Gamma
Mk 301, which is displayed for the first time.
Compared with Gamma 201-—powerplant
of Black Knight—the Mk 301 is a refined
and probably lighter engine. Also on view
is the entirely new PR .37, which is a tiny
motor with a single chamber fed from
pressurized tanks of HTP and kerosine.
Bristol Siddeley Viper On view for the first
time, the Viper 520 (previously BSV.20) is
rated at 3,0001b thrust, with specific consumption of 0.985. As the photograph shows
the powerplant is neatly dressed, and,
fully equipped to suit the requirements of
the D.H.125 installation. The photograph
clearly shows the extension due to the zerostage, the circular compressor blow-off
valve and the intake hot-air anti-icing pipe.
Bristol Siddeley expect the overhaul life
to be 1,200hr within three years of the start
of service.
DH pre-packaged rocket As reported
last week, the de Havilland Engine Co have
a technical agreement with the US Thiokol
Chemical Corp which may lead to licence
production throughout the UK and Commonwealth of the US company's pre-packaged liquid-propellant rocket motors. These
units, currently produced to propel the
American Bullpup and Sparrow missiles,
combine most of the advantages of both
liquid and solid motors and can result in
a simple and compact motor with very high
performance, insensibility to environment,
almost perfect reliability and instant readiness. One such motor, of a size and configuration for a missile a little larger than
Red Top, has been planned by de Havilland
under the name of Spartan 1. The propellants chosen are nitric acid and a mixture
of amines, which are expelled by a pressurizing cartridge and ignite hypergolically.