Vampires.

Christopher Carnley · Posted: Thu Sep 08, 2016 4:35 pm Post subject: Vampires.

As 50% of TV these days is either about vampires or zombies, these flew over my plot last Friday, against a clear blue sky with the Frank Halford designed Goblin turbo jets whistling nicely.

Chris Card · Guest

The same pair, in their Norwegian markings, at Dunsfold "Wings and Wheels", 28th August - unfortunately, the weather was dismal.

Chris

Martin Webster · Posted: Fri Sep 09, 2016 2:46 pm Post subject:

Pretty remarkable machine really. Capable of 500 mph and in March 1948 John Cunningham managed to climb to nearly 59,500 feet in a variant fitted with extended wing tips and the DH Ghost engine which also powered the Comet 106.
Martin

Christopher Carnley · Posted: Fri Sep 09, 2016 6:28 pm Post subject:

Of mixed wood and metal construction taking advantage of the Mosquito experience.

The later larger H2 Ghost version of the Goblin,built by de Havilland was underpowered for the Comet project, and the insistence on its incorporation by Geoffrey De Havilland led to the dilution of the original rivet/and bond construction, to rivet only, in order to actually get the thing to fly.
This weakening of the airframe led in the most part to the resulting fuselage fractures, not solely because of the large square astrodome widows.

The reworked 3,s and 4s, had Rolls-Royce Avon engines, and really nice aircraft they were.

George Ealy · Joined: 14 Jun 2016 Posts: 82 Location: Jacksonville FL USA

What a cool view? Were you flying alongside? The countryside is simply gorgeous compared to the wastelands of Florida and the Zika Virus epidemic.

I want to move to the UK!

George

Christopher Carnley · Posted: Mon Sep 19, 2016 7:32 am Post subject:

George,

No I saw them fly over my property and wondered where they came from, notice that one is a two seat trainer.

The photo was taken by others.

The UK is OK if you live in the South of France, and visit your Sussex pile between April and September, after which it is bronchitis and depression time.
Smile

Chris

John Murch · Posted: Mon Sep 19, 2016 8:07 am Post subject:

i rarely seem to venture far north in the UK (my map says 'here be dragons' so I think it unwise), the winter climate in southern part of the country is not bad, my car is in full use all winter, but does seem to get a bit muddy.
Winter is the South of France, if you are very near the coast, can be lovely, but not far inland the cold and the wind can be off puting. Besides there is nothing like an English Pub as a desination and in France most small towns or villages no longer have a cafe and if they do, the food is disappointing.
John

Chris Card · Guest

Actually, it was the Venom development that was given the Ghost engine, replacing the less powerful Goblin, which replaced the Halford (another name with a motoring background) engine.
The Venom had double the rate of climb of the Vampire and a top sped of over 600mph.
To my eyes they look very much the same and I don't think that I could tell t'other from which.
During my National Service I had a memorable ride in a two seat Vampire which was acting as a camera gun target for my Bofors AA guns at the range on top of the cliffs near Bude in Cornwall. A low approach over the sea with a steep climb to pop up over the cliffs in front of the guns. Great stuff!

Chris

Christopher Carnley · Posted: Mon Sep 19, 2016 3:21 pm Post subject:

Both engines were designed by Frank Halford and his team. H1 became the Goblin at de Havilland,and H2 became the Ghost.
The principal application for the Ghost was ill fated Comet 1, then the Venom and Sea Venom.
Saab bought a licence to produce the engine.

Halford designed both the Napier Dagger and the flat 24 sleeve valve Napier Sabre, the Typhoon and early Tempest engine.

Halford and Fedden bought Triumph Ricardos, with the 4 valve engine that Halford had designed at Ricardo in 1922, they raced them but the advantage wore off.
Much later a friend of mine bought one in the late 60,s and found that the 4 valves were choking the air flow. He had a new head cast in bronze with 2 valves and the engine produced a lot more power, more freely.
What was not fully understood was that the multi valves mixed the petrol/air much better before detonation, but choked air flow.
So much for the 1914 Mercedes and all subsequent un-blown 4 valves, before the war time petrol improvements.

Two one inch valves have only half the area of a 2" valve, and that is why all modern 4 valve engines have a compressing blower.