FAIREY ROTODYNE 60th anniversary lecture, including archive film
Monday 27th November at Maidenhead Town Hall SL6 1RF at 7.45pm
Speaker David Gibbings, who worked on Rotodyne
Tickets £10 from Maidenhead Heritage Centre 01628 780555
Further information 6th November is the 60th anniversary of the maiden flight at White Waltham of the revolutionary Rotodyne, the world’s first vertical takeoff airliner. This special anniversary lecture tells the story of Rotodyne from its conception through the flight test programme (including route proving to Paris and Brussels) to the disappointment of its cancellation in 1962. David Gibbings will also look at VTOL projects since the trail-blazing Rotodyne – which was definitely ahead of its time.
By: J Boyle - 2nd November 2017 at 23:32
Alertken..interesting stuff there. The history of how some helicopters were bought over others is as interesting as similar decisions concerning fixed wing types, though rarely told.
I have books on the H-21 and Bell tandem rotor HSL that give hints, but stop short of going into depth.
Interesting that the USMC went with the CH-53 and not the Chinook like the U.S. Army. Both were outgrowth of smaller series, the SH-3 Sea King and the Vertol 107 (which became the CH-46 for the USN/USMC.
By: alertken - 2nd November 2017 at 21:02
Sir Richard Fairey was no more addicted to risk investment than were his UK-Aero contemporaries. Rotodyne was funded by MoS 6/53 for beachhead/battlefield insertion. It was the sole funding source for Napier Eland, which did find some application as CV540/CC-109. USMC defined such a Requirement, HH(X), so Kaman, with no credible in-house scheme, took a licence in 1958. RAF contemplated maybe 12, 1960 C.J.Gibson,Air Staff& Heli,PTP,17,P25. MoA gave Fairey a further £4Mn, 1960 to encourage civil adaptation (and fund RB.176 tip-jet) in response to BEAC/Okanagan/Japan showing interest, and as part of inducements to Westland to take on Fairey Helicopter, 2/5/60 (buying Belvedere was another, dowry for Bristol Helicopter).
USMC chose CH-53, 1962; RAF chose a rough field fixed wing and were nudged by MoA from Herald to Avro 780 (contract 3/62). MoA then terminated our Rotodyne funding 26/2/62: our total bill was £13.65Mn.**
Others have blamed Westland for choosing the wrong 1961 big beast, from Westminster (S-56), Bristol bigger twin-rotors, Rotodyne and S-61. But who here would dispute USMC/CH-53, or RAF choosing fixed wing, or RN choosing proven USN SH-3D Sea King, 6/66 (from the 5/59 licence), or would invest against some airline vague interest in a few. Tyne by then was schemed for Rotodyne Z, but RR had no more appetite for risk investment than did Sir R.
(**added 3/11: A.Dow,Pegasus, Heart of the Harrier, P&Sword,09,P.73 has unquantified MWDP $ to MoS/MoA for Rotodyne, presumably related to HH(X). That buys access to Intellectual Property: I know of no such US exploitation of, say, tip jets).
By: J Boyle - 1st November 2017 at 00:35
“…on a smaller scale.”
In other words, only for the rich. Glad to see pop stars getting to their first class airline…or bizjet…seats more quickly. 🙂
By: Meddle - 31st October 2017 at 21:59
The AW609 is sort of a stab at the urban to airport VTOL model, on a smaller scale.
By: J Boyle - 31st October 2017 at 21:42
Too back the UK govt. pulled the plug.
I would think the money would have been better spent on this rather than the Trident. 🙂
Tentative orders from the U.S. and Japan, a U.S. license agreement.
I don’t know if it would have been a commercial success for operators (depending on operating costs and whether they could get subsidies) but it’s a shame that we still don’t have urban to airport VTOL service.
By: Meddle - 31st October 2017 at 21:32
Free pair of earplugs supplied on the door? :applause:
By: Beermat - 31st October 2017 at 19:19
This will be fascinating. Dave tells a great story.
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October 31, 2017 at 7:11 pm