AVIATION SPECIAL FLASHBACK : GANNETS/ RABAUL/ QANTAS /FLYING SAUCERS

With growing signs that   Santa and his reindeers  will  be  grounded  this  Christmas, it was decided to launch  a  premature  happy new year  with  stampeding , frequent flyer  jumbos, above, from the  front cover of  the January 1,l953 edition of  Flight , the  world's first aeronautical magazine .

Christmas birds bring joy 

A short  item in a festive mood  said the Fairey Aviation Company  recent annual Christmas party was brighter than usual because it coincided with the synchronised announcement  in England and Australia that the Royal Australian Navy  had placed an order for 40 Gannet planes at a cost of  3,200,000 pounds. Most would be used for anti-submarine work, three for training. It pointed out Australia had experience  with Fireflies,some of which had been on HMAS Sydney in Korean waters. 

Japanese  wartime  film footage  

 Captured Japanese film footage  was  mentioned in a review of  an episode in the  BBC television  series, Victory at Sea,  which showed how  Rabaul  was  first encircled and then neutralized . Some of the footage included close ups of twin-engine Mitsubishi Nell bombers taking off from Rabaul for a heavy attack on Allied shipping.

 Other impressive footage included  a fly over for   the Japanese  emperor of about 20 Kawanishi Mavis  naval flying boats  and a much larger formation of unidentified   fighters.

American aircraft were shown softening up Munda, Rendova and  Bougainville.It went on to say Australian advances in New Guinea  and the occupation of several atolls in the  Admiralty  and Mathias groups of islands to the north then completed the Allied ring around Rabaul. 

QANTAS interested in Comets?

In a gesture of friendship, BOAC offered to let the Australian airline  take delivery of six of its 26 Britannias, provided it placed a firm order with the  Bristol Aeroplane Company.

Qantas acceptance, it was stated, would  speed the start of British trans-world services by turbo-prop aircraft and also prime pump export sales of the Britannia. 

Australia's reaction to the proposal  was not known. During a recent visit the Qantas chairman,Mr Hudson Fysh, gave the impression that he was more likely to order Comet 3s than  Britannias

Atomic powered Flying Saucers?

The possibiity of developing a flying saucer was  raised in correspondence ,saying it would have the ability to hover, move forward,sideways or vertically upwards.

There was only one type of aerodynamic design which possessed these characteristics -the helicopter/Autogiro.To overcome the limitations of a helicopter, a flying saucer type could have an atomic energy power plant .

The magazine carried a photo with caption  of a  four engined  D.H.Heron ,the first to be delivered to Butler Air Transport ,at Sydney, the centre of the company's 3000 mile network of domestic routes.