WesWorld

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July 3
Mallard, a Gresley Class A4 locomotive, in speed trials today achieved a world-record run of 126mph. The attempt was made with a six car streamline set plus a dynamometer car, with a total weight of 240 tons. The Mallard was chosen by LNER because it was one of the four engines with a Kylchap exhaust. These engines have freer running qualities and higher speed than the standard A4 locomotive. Mallard has had about three months of service prior to these trials. The run started from Barkston triangle, running southbound. The Mallard pulled the train over Stoke Summit at 75 mph, then accelerated downgrade at a gradient of 1:178 to 1:200 over six miles distance to attain a speed of 114 mph. It eventually reached a speed of 125 mph, with a peak at 126 mph for a few seconds. After that it ran at a speed of at least 120 mph for another three miles. By then the inside big end showed signs of overheating and the engine had to return to Doncaster for repairs.

July 8
Vickers and the War Office today released details of the new A16 Medium Vickers Tank. A single prototype was developed this year by Vickers utilising an A15 chassis with the turret of the A12 and with extra 10mm thick armour plates welded to the front hull. The front MG was removed and a new stronger front plate added. Speed dropped to 12mph and trials were disappointing therefore no orders are forthcoming and Vickers does not intend to export the design preferring to develop newer designs.

July 11
Today marked the official formation of the Air Defence Cadet Corps as the RAF’s official youth training organisation similar in concept to the Navy’s Sea Cadets and the OTC units the Army runs in several public schools. Several units will be formed with gliders to promote early interest in flying and to teach the basics to those who wish to later enter the RAF.

July 19
Dr John T. Randall and Dr Harry A. Boot of the Nuffield Laboratory of the University of Birmingham today published their research paper on their work on a new type of vacuum valve called the Cavity Magnetron. The first magnetron diode valve can be traced back to A.W. Hull of the USA who in 1921 produced a cylindrical thermionic diode in which the behaviour of the electrons flowing from the cathode to anode were controlled by and axial magnetic field. The Cavity Magnetron has a six-segment copper anode. The Cavity Magnetron is a generator of microwave (roughly 10cm) waves for use in newer radio-location gear. It is understood that the General Electric Company, Wembley, is now working to improve the design to prepare for manufacture of a trial series of valves.

July 24
The un-rotated projectile has begun a series of test firings at the Aberporth range. It is thought these trials will shortly move to Jamaica later this year during the winter months.

Navy News July 6th 1938

The Admiralty had annouced the disbanding of the 3rd Battle Squadron in 1937 and at Portsmouth on the 1st of this month the formation was disbanded and then reformed as the 4th Battle Squadron was re-numbered.

Of more sadness was the decommissing of the two old workhorses of the Navy, HMS Royal Oak and HMS Royal Sovereign. These two old battleships were decommissioned during a ceremony in the afternoon and by dusk the ship's crews began to depart for new wardrooms and messes across the fleet.

It is assumed that both battleships will be placed on the disposal list while their sister ship HMS Revenge will become the fleet gunnery vessel and may soon enter refit for her new role. While rumours and plans of upgrades to HMS Ramilles and Resolution continue it seems both ships will soldier on in the Far East until replacement by the Admiral Class in the late 1940s or upgraded Queen Elizabeth class battleships in the interim.

August 8
Supermarine test pilot Geoffrey Quill took the prototype Spitfire Mk III fighter up for its first flight today. Since the aerodynamics of the Spitfire are well known the test programme is solely concerned with the new engine and performance trials. The RAF will shortly begin armament trials with the third prototype machine. The Mk III is powered by the new 1,185hp Rolls-Royce Merlin V with a two speed supercharger. The armament has been revised too and now consists of two 20mm Oerlikon FFB cannon and four .303in Browning MGs in the wings. Maximum speed is estimated to be 374mph at 13,000ft; range 470 miles and service ceiling around 37,000ft. Deliveries to squadrons may begin as early as March next year.
[Note: The FFB is a licence-built FFL cannon]

August 10
Imperial Airways have begun commercial flights with the new De Havilland D.H.95 Flamingo airliner on their London-Amsterdam route. This all-metal high-wing monoplane private venture design first flew on 23 December 1937 and can carry 17 passengers and a crew of three/ four. Designed for economical operation it is capable of operation from rough strips with limited facilities. Orders so far are; Guernsey & Jersey Airways Ltd (2), Imperial Airways (17), Scottish Airways (3), Hillman Airways Ltd (4) and British Allied Airways (18 ).

August 14
The Hawker Henley Mk II entered service today with 20 Sqn. Armstrong Whitworth is building these dive-bombers under contract from Hawker and the Mk II is fitted Hurricane Mk III wings and is armed with four 20mm Oerlikon FFB cannon to give it greater strafing power. The engine is unchanged and 200 production machines are to be built.

August 19
The Light Tank Mk VI Tetrarch I CS (A14) has entered service. Almost identical to the Tetrarch I the I CA is armed with a 3.7in howitzer for support duties. Fifty have been ordered by the War Office.

August 20
Today Sir Fedden of Bristol Engines refused to comment on whether György Jendrassik, who has been snatched from Persia by intelligence operatives of a European nation, had in fact entered the employ of the firm. Rumours persist of sightings around Filton and also that he recently met Frank Whittle. An insider source from Bristol Aero Engines claims that a nameplate “Mr G. Jendrassik” has appeared on an office door in the research laboratory.

August 22
The Karrier Armoured Car has begun to enter Army service. The Karrier Armoured Car is the Guy Wheeled Tank built by Karrier Ltd. Due to other commitments Guy could not build more than the first 100 ordered and so the Rootes Group was given the production rights. Guy builds the bodies and supplies them to Karrier who mounts them on their Karrier KT4 artillery tractor chassis. The turret is unchanged. The armour has been improved to 30-4mm thickness and the engine is a 90hp Rootes petrol engine for a speed of 45mph and a range of 250 miles. Weight has increased to 6.85 tons. Earlier this year the War Office ordered 250.

August 23
English cricketer Len Hutton today scored a record Test score of 364 runs against Australia.

Rolls Royce Merlin V is the historical XX but currently with 87 oct fuel and 9lb boost?

Quoted

Today Sir Fedden of Bristol Engines refused to comment on whether György Jendrassik, who has been snatched from Persia by intelligence operatives of a European nation, had in fact entered the employ of the firm. Rumours persist of sightings around Filton and also that he recently met Frank Whittle. An insider source from Bristol Aero Engines claims that a nameplate “Mr G. Jendrassik” has appeared on an office door in the research laboratory.

I've really got to wonder why about this. There doesn't seem to be much point in it. Bristol historically made the world's first certified turboprop which was only slightly later than Jendrassik's design, but better. It wouldn't hurt having him around but isn't going to change a great deal.

increase protection of Russian aircraft and radar designers, as well as Comrade Kurchatov and his associates.

OOC: It does help reduce the competition...

Jendrassik will ultimatey end up at NTGE when it's formed. Then perhaps to Canada. It seems he was an inventor with a big mind, I haven't just got him for turboprops he is there to lend a hand on other projects (like the steam-turbine and experiments with HTP driven turbines) Bristol is looking into.

Yes the Merlin V is the historical XX.

The only legendary cricketers of old I know of are Dr William Gilbert Grace and Sir Donald George Bradman. Hutton obviously did not do enough for English cricket for me to know him.

Hutton is fortunate that he did not have to face a certain Fat Bus Conductor.

Quoted

Originally posted by Hood
August 23
English cricketer Len Hutton today scored a record Test score of 364 runs against Australia.

The current Canadian champion promptly challenges this "Len Hutton" to a game of Calvinball.

This is the BBC Home Service...

September 9
After a lengthy test and development phase the radical Blackburn B.20 Boston flying boat has begun to enter Coastal Command service. Developed to meet Spec R.1/35 this all-metal six-seat reconnaissance flying boat has an all-up weight of around 35,000lb and is armed with a twin .303in MG nose and a quad .303in MG tail turret and is capable of carrying 6,000lbs of bombs or depth charges. The main innovative feature is the hydraulically retractable planing bottom which offers optimum take-off characteristics and also cuts drag in flight and the wing floats retract to form the wingtips. Problems are still being experienced with the powerful Rolls-Royce Vulture engines but Rolls-Royce insists that these problems will be rectified by a series of changes during routine maintenance inspections in RAF service. 220 Squadron has received its first four aircraft and a total of fifty are on order for the RAF.
Dimensions; 82/ 69.8/ 25.2-11.8/ 1,066 sq ft; 2x 1,720hp Rolls-Royce Vulture I; max speed 306mph; range 1,500 miles and service ceiling 31,500ft.

September 16
The D.H.95A Hertfordshire has offically entered RAF service. The D.H.95A Hertfordshire is based on the D.H.95 Flamingo airliner with space for eighteen troops. Thirty were ordered to re-equip 31 and 70 Squadrons which have relocated to the UK from the Middle East.

September 22
After the Cadman Report the Air Ministry proposed to make both Imperial Airways and British Allied Airways public corporations and this bill was today passed in the House of Commons after a short debate. On November 1 this year Imperial Airways will become the British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC) and British Allied Airways will become a state owned airline, British European Airways (BEA). A package of compensation measures for shareholders has been arranged but for now it seems the management staff of both airlines will be largely unchanged and both airlines will have a strong and dominant market position across the world and in Europe. Smaller private firms can still operate within the British Isles but all foreign airport traffic will be handled for the time being by the two public corporations. Also the creation of these two corporations will ensure further orders from British manufacturers.

September 28
The Shorts C-Class flying boat Caribou today crashed during air-refuelling trials over the Bristol Channel. Observers on the shore said that during the refuelling procedure as the refuelling drogue was being streamed towards the receiver aircraft, the Caribou, the pilot could not clearly see where the drogue was and got too close to the tanker aircraft. The nose of the Caribou hit the tanker’s port elevator and as the pilot of Caribou suddenly raised the nose to avoid a collision the Shorts flying boat reared up out of control and stalled. Being too low for a full recovery the Caribou hit the water hard and broke up. Ruptured fuel tanks soon caught fire and although two engineers escaped the four flight crew were sadly killed. The other aircraft reached Bristol airport without further incident. A full investigation is now under-way.

September 30
After a series of delays the Avro Canada (Gloster) SS.42 Skipper Mk II has entered FAA service. Gloster from 1937 has developed this strike version of the Skipper Mk I by fitting eight .303in Browning machine guns and a ventral recess for one 18in torpedo or two 500lb bomb racks underwing. Two Napier-Paxman Pilates I diesel engines are fitted for greater range and 100 will be built to supplement the Barracuda. As yet no frontline squadrons have received any aircraft but a trials squadron is now conducting a series of carrier compatibility trials and armament trials.
Dimensions; 23/ 8/ 7.5/ 427 sq ft; 2x 1,150hp Napier-Paxman Pilates II; max speed 355mph at 15,000 feet; range 650 miles fully loaded and service ceiling 21,000ft.

Quoted

Originally posted by Hood
This is the BBC Home Service...

September 9
After a lengthy test and development phase the radical Blackburn B.20 Boston flying boat has begun to enter Coastal Command service.

YES!!!
The "Nutcracker" takes flight!!
Well Done Hood, I'd hoped you'd go for it......

Quoted

Problems are still being experienced with the powerful Rolls-Royce Vulture engines but Rolls-Royce insists that these problems will be rectified by a series of changes during routine maintenance inspections in RAF service.

Historical problems were more design based than maintenance. Lots of stress in the crankshaft and poor lubrication. Problems were solved but it was decided to concentrate on the Merlin.

Interesting about the C-Class crash. I was up in the cockpit of a Sunderland before christmas and was surprised just how poor the visibility was. The view from the astrodome is much better.

The RAF will replace the Vulture Is with IIs or IIIs as the aircraft come into repairs. New-build Bostons will have the newer engines.


Except from Viscount Halifax's leaving speech at Carlton House, London before he headed to take up his new post as Ambassador to Atlantis.

“It is with some sadness that I leave the foreign office and yet as a look back I remember making a silent prayer to God to give me the strength and luck when I first came through those doors as the Foreign Secretary for the first time. Since then many achievements across the world have I think stemmed not only from the esteem Britain is held in, the grace of God and my own small talents as a negotiator but also because naturally right is might in the world. If nothing else the basic goodness in mankind can be harnessed. Certainly hostility sometimes has to be overcome but Britain has strived to keep the peace in a sometimes turbulent world. When Britain signed a non-aggression pact with Germany and Nordmark it was not only healing the old wounds of the Great War but also making sure that a conflict if its like was never again seen in Europe. The popular press has been hostile towards Germany and yet has been proved wrong time and time again. Although the events of 1914-18 run deep we must remember that we share a much closer cultural background with our Germanic cousins than many other European nations. We are therefore firm allies. Likewise the Commonwealth ties of blood, faith and language has spread across the world bringing civilisation, religion, freedom and stability to many. Historically it is the Royal Navy that has built and maintained the Empire and allowed our nation’s trade to go unhindered and our explorers to cover the world. It is the Navy that continues to hold the Empire together and offers the best deterrence against an aggressor. And yet my diplomacy has never been about brute force but about co-operation. The European created Empires offer greater opportunities and stability across the world and has broadened the links between different cultures immeasurably. The Asiatic nations behind Satsuma would have us believe their crusade against the European empires is abut freedom for the Asians but is in fact a desire to build their own empires. The creation of SEAR was purely self-defensive, strong to show them the West was not decadent, nor content to see its Empires stripped away and threatening terrible consequences should they attempt to take what they deem as theirs without right. Right is might as I have said already. Satsuma offers nothing to replace the advantages of western-style administration and security and prosperity. It is largely self-destructive desire for power. India found herself stuck in a region wracked by instability and war, greed for power and misery of Great Power rivalries. So it was that I led the way in handing out an olive branch to India. As the two strongest powers in the Middle East India decided her fate was better with co-operation from the West. We could offer a stable Middle East and together we could police the region. India withdrew from Satsuma and together we have solved differences over former Pakistan and although the civil war in Persia rumbles on it is clear with the recent Treaties signed with Azerbaijan and Armenia and other Gulf Treaties that at last greater understanding and peace has finally taken root thanks to Anglo-Bharat co-operation. The world is never the same, it forever changes and policy must evolve but if the recent record with India shows great success for both nations there is no doubt it will lay the groundwork for other more far reaching accommodations and agreements. My time at the Foreign Office has been hectic and often stressful but with the sure guidance of a solid cabinet and the Lord I have brought stability and accommodation with dignity and I hope my successor, Mr Eden who sits here tonight, all the best of luck and the best of judgement in continuing to make sure Britain as an honest nation is the nation of international peace and understanding.”