1953-02-13 — Page 9

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?