…Your exit may be behind you…

(Of course it begs the question why the island is on the starboard… 😀 )

Then we Brits must have invented the aircraft carrier – the driver sits on the right LOL

Roger Smith.

For some types, the positioning of equipment made entry from the port side awkward eg. Mossie, P-61. Doesn’t help with the Lancaster though.

Some others to consider: Wellington and Warwick transports, He.70, all had starboard entry doors.

Digressing a bit, the Albermarle also despatched paratroopers through the ventral turret hole.

Best wishes
Steve P

Whitley Para’s also came out through a hole in the bottom – Whitley teeth rings a bell if you were the 9th? out???

The hole was the space where the ventral turret had been fitted. If you were dropping out of it, it was round – and very small. I don’t think it mattered how early in the stick you were, but like ejection seats, if you were in the wrong position, you’d be damaged. Same exit for SOE drops from Halifaxes (redundant ventral turret hole) and I believe, but am not certain, the same (ventral gun position) for Hudson drops.

Back to the topic, we can go on listing what aircraft are boarded in what way, but it doesn’t move the question on much.

There is a theme of carrier aircraft being boarded from the right, islands being on the right, where the crew came from. Interesting theory, certainly plausible. (Of course it begs the question why the island is on the starboard… 😀 )

Whitley Para’s also came out through a hole in the bottom – Whitley teeth rings a bell if you were the 9th? out???

All very interesting…

…but [b]why[/b]?

F4U-1/FG-1 Corsairs were starboard.
I believe that the starboard canopy control for the P-51 was for the crew-chief to activate while the pilot climbed in from the port side

quote
Consider the standard British drill instruction “by the left, quick march” shows a definite preference within the British military mind to tackling a subject from the left hand side.

This is because of how you take the dressings to keep in line, i.e. from the front rank. thereby if you turn left from being formed up in a dquad to march away you should be given the order “by the right”

Hole for the ventral turret?

Best wishes
Steve P

I am not sure, unfortunately he died in ’89, so I can’t get the detail on what happened after his Para Training, they did have a song about jumping out of Wellingtons, the words were something like:
“Jumping through the hole, Jumping through the hole, keep your legs together lads, jumping through the hole”

A quote from his Para Instructor: “Sgt Lloyd leaves the aircraft as if entering a pub, quickly!”

PS My Grandfather served in the Paras & LRDG/SAS in North Africa in ’41/42 and usually disembarked Wellingtons via a circular hole in the floor near the back…..

Hole for the ventral turret?

Best wishes
Steve P

I think that we have established that the entry side of an aircraft follows the very same rule as the fuel caps on cars, ergo:

“They are all on the left, except for those that are on the right”

PS My Grandfather served in the Paras & LRDG/SAS in North Africa in ’41/42 and usually disembarked Wellingtons via a circular hole in the floor near the back…..

[QUOTE=RPSmith]

I think hinged canopies are relatively unusual.QUOTE]

F-104 canopy hinges and is accessed from starboard

Roger Smith.

It was the post above mine, referring to the F-104, that made me think of them.

And I still say they’re relatively unusual, compared with what seems to be an international preference for sliding canopies.

Why did the entry side change on Hawker designs between the Hurricane and the Typhoon/Tempest? Same reason as that of the P-61 above?

I wouldn’t have thought that there was space for an entry door on the port side of the Mossie. The Pilot’s seat, control wires etc. would have got in the way.

Best wishes
Steve P

[QUOTE=dhfan]I think hinged canopies are relatively unusual.QUOTE]

F-104 canopy hinges and is accessed from starboard

Roger Smith.

Allison and Merlin engined ‘coupe’ or ‘coffin’ hood Mustangs, enter from the port/left hand side. Left hand side panel drops down, top panel goes over to staboard/right, enter from the port/left hand side. Even after the Malcolm hood modification primary side of entry was from port/left hand side.

Consider the standard British drill instruction “by the left, quick march” shows a definite preference within the British military mind to tackling a subject from the left hand side. And given the above mentioned connection between many of the early RAF aviators and their cavalry backgrounds, mounting from the left hand side was the way to go.

Nothing to do with right or left-handed designers or anything? :confused:

Just a thought! :rolleyes:

Sooo….

38 posts.

One suggestion as to ‘why’ a port entry bias for all types, and some interesting technical speculation n helicopter biases…

But no other guesses or thoughts as to why…

And were there any national biases? Russian? French? Latvian? 😀

I’ve been told the reason why a helicopter pilot sits on the right is because of better tail rotor effectiveness, i.e. they turn to the right better. So the PIC wants to be on the inside of a turn.

The only helicopters I know of where the PIC sits on the left are light piston types…Bell 47, Hiller 12, Hughes 269/300, etc.

I thought it was because of the right hand cyclic, left had collective, the PiC can up the collective friction, and then have his left hand free to operate the engine/annunciator/radio panels in the centre, as it is difficult to keep taking your hands off the cyclic!
(It is the same with radio Control helis, I scratch my nose with my left hand OK, but I end up needing new blades if I do it with my right!)

Continuing the thread….The Piper cub is on the right, I have seen the pilot hand-swing the prop whilst leaning forward from the door…..

The Wessex has Pilot’s entry from Both sides, but the cabin door is on the right.
This could be because the original Piston S-58 had it’s exhausts on the Left?

It could also be because the Captain sits on the Right in Egg-beaters?

….

I’ve been told the reason why a helicopter pilot sits on the right is because of better tail rotor effectiveness, i.e. they turn to the right better. So the PIC wants to be on the inside of a turn.

The only helicopters I know of where the PIC sits on the left are light piston types…Bell 47, Hiller 12, Hughes 269/300, etc.

The genesis is another matter, but the modern airline logic has the pax loading on the left while the baggage and catering is dealt with on the right.

G’day F#3

Why is the P-39 difficult to enter from the port side then?

From this view of Steven Grey’s one, there’s the throttle quadrant and trim wheel in the way

Tony Andrews