Pyrian on 22/11/2017 at 19:35
"The general population" has very little comprehension of relative risk probabilities.
caffeinatedzombeh on 23/11/2017 at 21:27
Quote Posted by ffox
Yes, it would be a skewed perspective, but the general population didn't regard it as being an unacceptable risk. Many applicants were turned away.
You had awesome shiny things to fly back then and lots of them, if someone offered me the chance to fly those I wouldn't stop to ask how safe they aren't. (Though looking at your list a lot of those sound like the traditional "pilot did something stupid")
ffox on 24/11/2017 at 16:34
From the responses it seems that my younger relations are more risk-averse than most!
Back on topic (prompted by "awesome shiny things"), one of my first aircraft was the(
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/De_Havilland_Vampire) de Havilland Vampire Mk 5.
The canopy had a nasty habit of jiggling open by sliding back in mild turbulence, which was very noisy and uncomfortable. The engineers fitted a disc with holes drilled in it and welded a peg onto the end of the winding handle. Before getting airborne the pilot wound the canopy tight shut and pushed the peg into the nearest hole to stop the jiggle. This worked OK unless there was severe turbulence, which caused the peg to jump out of the hole! Undefeated, they then attached a length of bungee cord (strong elastic) to the instrument panel with a loop at the end which was stretched over the winding handle. Success at last!
Part of the engine fuel system was the barostat, which modified the fuel flow to cope with variations in altitude and airspeed. Unfortunately a valve occasionally got jammed by a bit of grit or similar; the result of this was a noticeable lack of power. The cure was a weight shaped like a hockey puck attached to a strong spring, bent back and latched in position. There was a button marked "barostat hammer" at the base of the instrument panel. When pushed, the latch was released and the hammer gave the barostat housing a hearty thump. This nearly always worked.
It may have appeared awesome and shiny from the outside, but was severely bodged on the inside. Things ain't what they used to be.
Kolya on 25/11/2017 at 10:56
Looks like a car engine mounted on top of something that Lawnchair Larry built in his backyard. :D
