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Smith

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April 23, 2007 at 10:47 pm in reply to: B-58 Hustler Prototype #1328913

Smith
Participant

Thanks again everyone … much appreciated. D

April 23, 2007 at 10:47 am in reply to: B-58 Hustler Prototype #1329623

Smith
Participant

How many “prototypes”?

Thanks guys, that’s excellent. And two different aircraft I note, the XB-58 is 660 and the other is 661.

There is conflicting information on the web about all this. Some sources allege only one aircraft (the first prototype, which I assume is the XB ie. the aircraft featured in SOC’s wikipedia link) bore the red, white and black colours. Clearly that’s not correct.

I think there were also some pre-production aircraft (Wikipedia says 11 YB-58A’s, Grissom Air Museum refers to 30 test and pre-prod aircraft) and I wonder how many of them bore these colours? I note 663 (allegedly the fourth built which makes sense starting at 660) exists at Grissom Air Museum but it’s either dull aluminium or grey these days (not that that proves the point re. initial colour scheme).
http://www.grissomairmuseum.com/airexib/planes/TB58ABomber.html

Thanks again, D

March 27, 2007 at 6:44 am in reply to: Avalon International, Vic, Aus – Trade day #538461

Smith
Participant

Hi James, nice shots … and nice to catch up with you the other day … I went on to have an equally intense/tiring and noisy weekend the week before! What can you tell me about the Neptune?

March 9, 2007 at 3:28 am in reply to: Air Atlantique DC 6 article #1279797

Smith
Participant

If you don’t hear from me in a few days expect the worst……:eek:
Cheers, Alan

Any luck Alan? Want a scan of the article? cheers D

February 28, 2007 at 10:13 pm in reply to: Air Atlantique DC 6 article #1287843

Smith
Participant

That certainly sounds like it …

February 27, 2007 at 8:39 am in reply to: Air Atlantique DC 6 article #1289579

Smith
Participant

September 1994

Well, the mind plays tricks. The magazine I’ve been looking at on top of the pile is the August 1993 FlyPast featuring SAA’s restored DC-4, And a lovely old thing it is.

But I also have the September 1994 FlyPast featuring “Coventry’s Cargo Haulers” (namely Air Atlantique) and that’s the one you want Alan.

Ah … hang on a minute. The Air Atlantique article is one of a three part series! For the most part this bit is about the DC-6’s with brief reference to the Lockheed Electras. It ends by referring to the October issue which will discuss AA’s history and its Dakotas. But it’s not clear whether September is part one or part two, ie. is the series Aug-Oct or Sep-Nov?

cheers D

February 27, 2007 at 1:24 am in reply to: Author of war novel ‘Das Boot’ dies #1289685

Smith
Participant

On a serious note … it’s a fantastic piece of work and Lothar-Guenther Buchheim deserves to be remembered for it.

On a more whimsical note … every day there’s a set of 10 questions in the world section of our local paper – hugely wide ranging, good fun to have a stab at, and quite a stretch at times. A recent question asked …
What is the German term for the act of deriving satisfaction or pleasure from someone else’s misfortune?

The correct answer is … anybody?

My far better half had a far better answer … Das Gloat!

February 26, 2007 at 10:24 pm in reply to: Air Atlantique DC 6 article #1289860

Smith
Participant

No problem Alan, will check as I said. Bear in mind it might even (gasp) be a competing publication! I just have the cover picture in my mind. cheers D

February 26, 2007 at 9:27 pm in reply to: Air Atlantique DC 6 article #1290021

Smith
Participant

Well, well, well … just last week we cleaned out the spare room for a friend to come and visit. Rediscovered a pile of FlyPasts etc. Thought she (friend) will have no interest. Piled them by my bedside to flick through. Top of the pile is a mag with picture of Air Atlantique DC6 on cover. Is this the one you’re after? I will check this evening (now morning here, at work) and reply. cheers D

February 17, 2007 at 3:25 am in reply to: Odd Mods – Little-known aircraft modifications #1299406

Smith
Participant

In case some of you haven’t seen the Messerspit/Schmittfire hybrid aircraft:-

Spitfire Vb, with DB605 engine, Me110 cowling (Aparantly similar firewall to spitfire), and Me109G prop… It also outperformed both the Spitfire V and the 109G!

More info can be found here:- Not a bad site either! Some other crazy Hybrids here too.
http://www.unrealaircraft.com/hybrid/spitfire.php

That Spit-schitt or whatever it is was non other than our very own EN830 !!!

February 16, 2007 at 12:44 am in reply to: Odd Mods – Little-known aircraft modifications #1300306

Smith
Participant

The ‘Turbinlite’ Bostons and Mosquitoes have to be up there – basically the nose rebuilt as a huge searchlight in order to illuminate night bombers for the convenience of night fighters which would then shoot them down. Not sure what the Boston looked like but the Mossie is one of the ugliest contraptions I’ve ever seen (there’s a side profile in the Kagero book).

I was googling just the other day looking for references to an alleged test of the Havoc (being the nightfighter name of the Boston) with oblique upward firing weapons. Couldn’t find it but found some references to the Turbinlite as you mention. Apparently a major problem was that the light made a particularly fine target. Well hello! What on earth did they think would happen?

February 15, 2007 at 9:56 pm in reply to: Lancaster cockpit #1300689

Smith
Participant

Luvly

Tell me being a mere gnome of no great knowledge …
I assume that’s PA474?
Is the dual control an “after-market” mod so to speak? I thought Lancs were single pilot/control.

cheers D

February 15, 2007 at 4:27 am in reply to: Lancaster BI vs BIII differences (Now Schräge Musik too)(2007 thread) #1301877

Smith
Participant

still banging away

Everywhere I look I find the same discussions about schräge musik, some saying they thought/suspected something was up, many noting the lack of any official action and drawing the same conclusion – it just wasn’t recognised.

I have to say if it were it would be a damning indictment on the heirarchy, press on regardless and all that sort of stuff.

Here we have a short piece including an interview with a Bomber Command pilot discussing the effectiveness of the corkscrew vs the earlier “from behind” night fighter stalking technique, but then saying that once schräge musik came on the scene there wasn’t much that could be done. By no means does this imply he did or didn’t know about it beforehand BTW. Interesting though.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UHBHBhLOfoQ

February 13, 2007 at 10:32 pm in reply to: Lancaster BI vs BIII differences (Now Schräge Musik too)(2007 thread) #1303146

Smith
Participant

Here’s the observation domes picture

The shot showing the different height blisters – could that not be Lancs at a repair facility? My understanding is that when the Lancs were reconditioned, they were broken down into their component sections, each section was independently rebuilt and then the airframe was reassembled using whatever components came off the line (so an aircraft that was reconditioned would only retain the nose section).

This appears in FlyPast magazine October 1998, in a multi-part series on Bomber Command by Martin Middlebrook. Over to all to form an opinion about whether it is production (as labelled) or repair.

February 13, 2007 at 9:01 pm in reply to: Lancaster BI vs BIII differences (Now Schräge Musik too)(2007 thread) #1303312

Smith
Participant

Just to further stoke the fires of confusion … could this also have something to do with allowing the bomb aimer to keep a lookout until the photoflash went off?
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