1938/9. Whittle, a distinctive personality, is undermining all that reciprocists know and love. A venture capitalist puts up some seed £ and asks A.M to suggest a deliveror. In despair at sloth on big power (Centaurus, Deerhound, Sabre, Vulture) for the crucial long range, big payload types, they firewall aero-engineers, mired already. Of course he (and RAE, with Griffith’s axials) went to Rover, Vauxhall, and to the only practitioners of spin, MetroVick/AEI/BTH.
When we sent W.1 to US, MAP suggested they do the same, so they chose turbineers Allis Chalmers (bad move), Westinghouse (so, so) and supercharger-ers GE (inspired). There was no basis in dynamics to presume that pistoneers would command this metallurgy quicker than marine/power compressorists – it’s about internal flow of hot gas, not external flow of cold air. In early-1943 Hives came from behind and the swap was done, tanks for gyres, good for Rover, while Fedden at MAP persuaded Ministers that turboprops could be done with spare Bristol resources. What then happened? RR/Bristol delayed assorted Pennines/Centaurus while learning to screw. It was Halford at empty little DH that got on with it – (to be) Meteor first flew on (H.1, to be) Goblin.
If A.M had been so myopic as to put ASM/Bristol/Napier/RR into bed with Whittle in 1938, we would have neither big piston nor W.1/H.1. Fresh resources were essential.