What it feels like when you know you're going
to crash
I
The tussle we had
to 'lay on' the
́Möhne dam
raid....
N the last few years the sound barrier has become for the youth of today what Everest was to their fathers, Test pilota like young Geoffrey de Havilland, killed over the Thames within an ace of conquest; John Derry, the first Englishman to go through it and killed at Farnborough; and Nevillo Duke, who went up immediately after Derry and swept through it, are the modern breed of hero explorera.
I have never been through it myself, In a way, of course, I regret it. It would have been a pleasant finishing touch to a career. Though they tell me life is not changed all that much by going a bit higher and faster.
'GETTING OLD'
BY
Y the time supersonic flying was possible - stilt only three years or so ago — I was getting a bit old: 45.
But I
阻
REAL LIFE
THE CHINA
I break the Paris record in our first jet
liner
MAIL, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY: 13,′′ 1958.
"The Viscount—I
always knew she was a
winner'
LL'S ANGEL
The memoirs of ‘MUTT'' SUMMERS
right into the centre, of the railway track in Weybridge. Longbottom. Squadron Leader Inevitably known as "Shorty" one of my assistant test pilots and a very good one, did not have my luck. He was dead.
A
Two weeks Jater, Flight- Lieutenant Tommy Luck hud to bale out of "another. few days after that my brother Maurice, a wing commender and testing for us, baled out, of a fourth. He landed on a road, broke his bock and frac- tured his skult.
לים
Maurice had tested for Hawk- before the war, then Joined up, and had been in don't think that would have America, He had had one or stopped me.
two nasty accidents; one crash nearly tore his leg off, and wo had to have it put back before he was a complete enough mon first Liberator to bring the over to Britain.
What really did was a nasty argument I had with a War wick bomber in 1945. The Warwick was a twin-engined bomber of the Wellington type, which was put out malady to Coastal Cominond squadrons,
I had tested the prototype before the war even, and it had been in production for n couple of years. But this was # new batchi with a new modification.
One morning I took one of the line to test-testing goes on throughout production-be- fore I went to the RAF,
She was 'all right, but just before I brought her in, the back end tweaked at me. Im- pertinent, and a bit uncomfori- able. I told them to leave her out and I would try her again ufter lunch..
RUDDER JAM
I
LUNCHED with Rex Pear- son, who had designed the Warwick,
told him and thought there was something funny about the rudder. Then
went back.
They had taken the plaue away and were preparing her for delivery, I made them get her out again and went up. Suddenly she gave
The Warwick finished him, however, and after the war he went back to the wife he had married In America and set- led down in Wall Street as a stockbroker.
The Warwick had given us a nasty month at Vickers. But it had made the point yet
the 1cst again about
plier's work. There was Baw in a fine machine which turned it Into a killer. But it had been found at the works end.
One man had been killed, but if the planes had got 10 the RAF like that, a whole crew of eight, may be several crews, might have got
il.
even
It was the banging about I got that time that finished me for very high altitude flying. Anti supersonle flying takes place or should-very high in-
deed.
FINE CHAPS
22 years Chief Test Pilot at Vickers
PUNCTURE! But it does not mar, 'Mull' Summers' joy after his record
flight to Paris and back.
made, and we adapted a Wel- were burst, Wallis was trium- two piston engines and Afted lington to carry It
phant. His bomb had worked; two, Rolls-Royce Nene jets. his years of obstinale effort The Viscount, on the other I flew the Wellington, plus were vindlented. It took him a hand, was built from scratch bomb, down to Chesil beach long time, a painful time, be, as a jet airliner. It is a 48- for testing. Wallis flew with fore he made himself realise seater, gleaming beauty, me, lying down in the nose to the cost.
driven by four prop.-jet en- gines.
be his own bomb aimer,
60 FT. TEST
They
When at last I said: "That's oll. There's no point in wait- ing." he went very quiet; his reserve broke down. He said; "If I'd known it would be like have started this, I'd never the beastly thing."
George Edwardes designed her, not as a high-speed plano the Viscount has a comfort- able 835 miles an hour, much less than the Comet-but as on economical job for operating on the world's airways.
GOT THE FEEL
PART of the trick was that
the bomb had to be drop ped from a height of exactly
After the war Wallis was 00 ft. above the water, and
given an inventors' award of test, think that
in peaceful
Wallis £10,000. Typically, he handed daylight, helped both
It straight over to fund 10 und myself to reailse what skill educate the children of G17 THE war did not change life the pilots and bomb imerson Squadron. Wallis is one of the SEE that Trans-Canada Air-
so much. I was not al- the real job required.
lines have ordered 15 Vis- full lowed to make any operational had to fly heavy "Lanes", at 60 Great men of his age.
counla a dollar order amounting rudder-jammed and there fights myself, so I went on feet, in the dark, through flak.
The wor hit Vickers
20 to over £4,000,000. And the was nothing I could do about testing.
Chancellor of the Exchequer It.
The model worked. The next everywhere else.
has congratulated Vickers We were bombed and dive their drive and initiative. bombed.
I remember well enough were testing the prototype Viscount, It was on occasion shrouded
choose.
or
sistant pilots at most, I hud "Bomber" Ilaria was the man Even so, our risks
Like a Wellington
plano
•
with
on
Before I took that arst one up, we had been told that no one wanted the Viscount. The Ministry was no longer in- terested, and it was said no one eise would be.
What happens is that onc As the years went G . 1 thing was to get some Lan. wing goca down. the plane found that, instead of being casters, the only planes big sideslips, and unless you are alone or with_a_couple of as-
enough to carry the real thing. quick and lucky she acts in to a epin, and it's all over.
with the "Lancs." And 30
were also mainly of the kind wo collected a staff of about Bale out
crash? There test pilots. 1.
of use to-testing, testing, testing in gloom. picked them the last man to 'give' any
of them up to what he called some again. until suddenly a generally is not much time to myself—RAF bors, many
This time there
was whom had learned the hardest crack-pot inventor who ought did misbehave. no alternative. We were over
way about planes and all about to be doing proper work. Weybridge, bullt-up area; Bo what it was like to light them.
Luckily I had known the new madification, in the mid- baling out.
terrifying air marshal for years dle of the war, I went out to long enough even to call him the squadron which, had it and a had become suspicious about it. Bert to his face, which is very long time. So I offered I put the thing into a
dive.
I took her upstairs and got to take Wallis along to meet and as I tried to pull out the the feel of her. I brought her George bim in an attempt cut across horns which balance the cleva- down and sought out those interminable official tors came away,
Edwardes, He thought then that this was the only Viscount managed to bring it out on he would ever peo flying. the trimmers, and got back told him: "This is a wonderful
with
a rellot the aeroplane. I bet you anything squadron pilots rather joyous you like it won't be allowed ly shared that it had hap to die." pened to me. They got their planes remodified all right.
pilot's
They were fine chaps. And down we started a little sideline too -flying patched-up planes out of impossibly small Beds In
erash which they had been
then bringing
Anyway, it is a test job to bring the thing Intact If he can.
That afternoon I had a pas- tenger with me-Jimmy Green, the foreman on the airfield, Janded who had wanted a trip round. I told him to go and le down
by the spar, the strongest part
of a plane, and hope.
He did not seem to
und
home to be put right again. channels,
But the one man who stands
from out most vividly
iny. memories of the war years worry wasn't a pilot at all. Barnes much. I had a reputation for Wallis B. N. Wallis, CBE, good luck by then. I don't
FRS, to get him right-19 a white-haired scleatist
think he
moment.
realised just
how mild,
much luck we needed at that who sul works at Vickers.
He has been designing since
He de before the first war, signed the famous R100 air
form of aircraft construction,
DECEPTIVE
home DAMS RAID
was
LANDING JETS.
British
I
European Airways have since ordered 20; in all 70 are on order. No wonder the Chancellor Bent' a congratula- tory telegram.
SAW a nice bit of wood-near ship, and went on to invent And "Bomber" Harris, reluc- changing over to jets. I cord there and back.
where I live today on St.
called the geodetic method, George's Hill. Soft tree-tops which made the Wellesley and with plough-land beyond.
Wellingtol superlatively strong.
1 gave the bottom full throttle, trying to keep
out of that fatal spln
engine and
roared down in a sideslip on
top of those trees.
The Inst
'GRAND SLAM'
test the bomb.
talo.
second with flaps up and BUT Wallis also knew about raid was on.
Y kicking Wallls оп the
shins whenever he insulted, and placidly reiterat- ing to Harris that this was no ardiary inventor, I managed but more or less level to keep the two on a shaky
keel. DEOPLE ask if it's difficult over to Paris to break the re- But It was the Viking I took
antly, but, considering every have down nearly everything, thing, generously, gave us from first-war fighter biplanes solitary "Lane" with which to to Lancasters and Liberater, MME, BLERIOT
and I don't think a stago fur- After Harris had seen the ther makes much odds. So test, however, he did not hesi- long as every time you try
mer Vay. Thirty-nine Wallis, got his squadron new plane you frst make sure THAT was a beautiful sum of Lancasters, and the dare you know the thing and under- years before, exactly. Louis stand properly what makes It Blariot had down the Channel tick, everything should be all for the first time at a speed of * One evening I was sent to right. man in 1989 who did. And he Weybridge station to meet the
about 44 miles an hour. Now, at about wanted to build a ten-tonner Arst
going beautifully commander of
The only big difference with 12.000 017
was doing an "Grand Slam" and get a plane Squadron. It was Guy Gibson Jets is in landing them. With day of to carry it to the Nazis.
VC, DSO and Bar, DTC and the old planes, as you come in,asy 415 miles an hour. Everyono, nently, thought ho Bar before he was killed. Gib the props slow you down con- Bleriot took 87 minutes from Catal to Dover--27 · miles. The was mad, but six years later son, who had come to me years mathing of that, and normally cover the 217 miles
siderably. With a fe: there le Vildag took 844 minutes to before mad keen to be a test
from you land much faster. It feels Heath Row to The Warwick elid off them Before then, however, he had pilot.
something Ilke the difference Madame on to the plough-land. I produced his famous "Tallboy" crawled out, and a couple of bomb which so infuriated our farm handa Cente up. They Admiralty by sinking their looked at me in horror, and I pliz as though she was noth- told them where to find Jiming more linn a rowing boat, my Green. They pulled kirs out no fames started licking along the wings.
wheels up pulled her back and knocked the switches.
Trees are deceptive. From upstairs they look like a fea ther mattress. On them, they're like a bed of thorns. They hurt.
bombs about the only
he was allowed to make it.
scientile genius
Junch
Round
the world
with
Francis Drake?