On 01/05/2016 17:44, Byker wrote:
> The British aircraft manufacturing industry of the postwar era was a mess.
> There were petty disputes among companies, redundant research because no
> one
> wanted to share anything, lack of public funding (this one is
> understandable), and failure to adapt to the new era of air travel.
>
> "We have handed to the Americans, without a struggle, the entire world
> market for big jet airliners." — George Edwards, Vickers managing director
So the de Havilland Comet, albeit flawed (from which much was learnt by
the world aviation industry) never led the way? As we know "the pioneer
doesn't always get the best land, sometimes he ends up dead in a ditch
with arrows in his back."
As for "no one wanted to share anything", and supposed "redundant
research", we did share a great deal but, unfortunately, it seems it was
with the wrong people.
http://www.aviastar.org/air/england/miles_m-52.php
"At the time of the M-52's development, there was a so-called
bi-lateral "agreement" between the UK and the US to share all knowledge
and research data into supersonic flight. Reps from Bell and the USAF
visited Woodley (home of the MIles Aircraft company) where they were
shown everything and given all the data they wanted. Away they went with
all of Miles data and experience but it was then discovered that an Act
of Congress forbade giving away sensitive data to another country!
Surprise, surprise! Shortly afterwards the Bell X-1 flew super-sonically
for the first time and one only needs to look at it to see its heritage.
The M-52 and Winkle Brown could have done this is if our then government
had not been so wimpish or was it put under unknown pressure as a later
one was with TSR-2?"
I could also mention the McMahon Act and the sharing of nuclear
information...
Ri©ardo
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Moving Things In Still Pictures
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