New Life For Coltishall?

[99 Change Hands]

New £1.6m scheme to build and fly aircraft from former RAF Coltishall could create more than 100 jobs - Latest Norfolk and Suffolk News - Eastern Daily Press (http://www.edp24.co.uk/news/new-1-6m-scheme-to-build-and-fly-aircraft-from-former-raf-coltishall-could-create-more-than-100-jobs-1-5240020)

[Flap62]

And it sounds like the new aircraft will have quite a lot more power and performance than the Jag too. Happy days.

[PDR1]

No longer will the site's fleet be so dependant on the curvature of the earth as a prerequisite to committing aviation...

Mind you, there is currently an RC model-flying club using the site who may not be so pleased at the news.

PDR

[NutLoose]

Swift Aircraft Features


The Swift is an all composite low wing, single piston engine, two seat side by side seated aircraft, which promises high performance together with the ability to carry a full payload – full fuel, crew and baggage.

The Swift is fully aerobatic (+6/-6 g), is CS-23 compliant, meets EFTS requirements and has had safety of operation as a fundamental design constraint.

The Swift will prove to be one of the most versatile designs of its time, designed with one airframe to house a range of engines from 100 HP through to 200 HP, including AVGAS and AVTUR variants, with initial certification to CS-23. Instrumentation installations can range from standard “old school” dials to the most advanced EFIS or any combination of these.

It will boast a high design temperature of 108°C meaning that it will be the only composite aircraft in the GA arena to be able to be finished in an all black scheme and be operated in the desert. The ability to be painted black will mean that it can be made “easy to see” and can accommodate any conspicuity guise. Other features will include a Ballistic Recovery Parachute (BRS) and in-flight emergency canopy release for extra safety. The spacious cockpit boasts 1.24m of width with plenty of headroom and will include ergonomic seating for unrivalled support and comfort. With a high capacity luggage area, interior design standards never before seen in this class of aircraft, custom colour schemes and an in-house custom decal design service, it will be an aircraft with eye-catching accents and high quality details. Moreover, it will be the first aircraft to be designed, manufactured and certified in the UK for over two decades.


Unparalleled Comfort

One of the unique aspects of the Swift is the high level of ergonomic design in the canopy including a wide sliding cockpit, which can be slightly open when taxiing, plenty of baggage space, useful additions such as power sockets for your GPS and other electronic devices, cup holders for your water bottles and car style air vents for temperature control.
Finely Honed Controls

The control linkages are via pushrods as opposed to cables for enhanced durability. For ground steering, the Swift has a steerable nose wheel instead of reliance purely on differential braking. However this functionality is also present with toe brakes on the rudder pedals.
Composite Construction

The Swift is predominantly of glass fibre construction with carbon fibre wing and empennage spars. This enables the use of compound curves that are beneficial for both aerodynamics and aesthetics.
Elliptical Profile

The wing and tail have a distinctive elliptical profile. The wing section on the Swift has a laminar flow section that is tolerant of bug deposition

http://www.swiftaircraft.com/SwiftAircraft/media/Downloads/SwiftVLA-Leaflet-GB201611b.pdf

It would be nice to see, the place has never been the same since they moved one bunch of perverts out and another bunch in. ;)

[sharpend]

Brilliant if true.

[PDR1]

For ground steering, the Swift has a steerable nose wheel instead of reliance purely on differential braking.

I do hope this steering either has a separate tiller or can be disengaged from the rudder, otherwise every crosswind landing will be another replacement noseleg sale (and prop sale, and engine shock inspection) as the off-axis load snaps it like a "ruddy carrot" (as Sir Sydney would have put it).

PDR

[Floppy Link]

Not many light aircraft about with separate tillers PRD1...and not many snapped nosewheel legs from “every” crosswind landing.

[MPN11]

Is it me, or is the wing a little bit "Spitfire"?

[STENDEC North]

No longer will the site's fleet be so dependant on the curvature of the earth as a prerequisite to committing aviation...

Mind you, there is currently an RC model-flying club using the site who may not be so pleased at the news.

PDR

The only aircraft fitted (to my knowledge) with RTR (redacted thrust reheat) so the poor thing could fly with one engine.

[Rosevidney1]

An expensively produced brochure but lacking certain details. The target price should be interesting.

[Wander00]

Having been stationed twice in Norfolk (Watton and Neatishead) and worked for the County Council I wish them well. That would make two light aircraft manufacturers in Norfolk, the other at Little Snoring

[PDR1]

Not many light aircraft about with separate tillers PRD1...and not many snapped nosewheel legs from “every” crosswind landing.

How many of them have steerable (rather than castoring) nosewheels Lfoppy Kiln?

If you land with a bootfull of rudder to kick the drift what's going to happen as soon as you lower the nosewheel? On "bigger" aircraft the nodewheel steering is disconnected from the rudder pedals in flight, and the nosewheel is either locked fore/aft or castoring. In either condition it must be physically disconnected from the rudder pedals. That's a complex kind of linkage to implement in a non-powered mechanical link - especially for a safety-critical item.

PDR

[BlackadderIA]

Don't the two most popular GA aircraft in the world (C172 and PA28) have nose wheel steering?

[Wander00]

How long will it take to get certified, and then actually producing revenue. Start-up costs will be significant. Hope financing is secure. Wish them well, but challenging market to get into, IMHO

[NutLoose]

How many of them have steerable (rather than castoring) nosewheels Lfoppy Kiln?

If you land with a bootfull of rudder to kick the drift what's going to happen as soon as you lower the nosewheel? On "bigger" aircraft the nodewheel steering is disconnected from the rudder pedals in flight, and the nosewheel is either locked fore/aft or castoring. In either condition it must be physically disconnected from the rudder pedals. That's a complex kind of linkage to implement in a non-powered mechanical link - especially for a safety-critical item.

PDR Most Cessna aircraft are nose wheel steered, the upper torque link when the nose leg is extended has a plate that sits against a flat on the nose leg strut locking it fore and aft, the nose steering rods have built in springs internally like a shocker strut, that allows the rudder pedal movement to collapse the nosewheel steering struts allowing for full rudder movement, when on the ground and the torque link / leg extension starts to collapse as weight comes on it comes off the leg stop, the forces required to steer the nose are less than those required to collapse the spring, so you have in effect solid steering rods and full steering and rudder movement..

Pipers such as the PA-28 have solid rods and the nose wheel turns with the rudder input if I remember correctly.


..

[VX275]

Interesting design feature not seen for some years - exhaust pipes within the fuselage (and passing under the seats) and exiting behind the cockpit. I do hope the owners have a nice stock of (in date) CO detectors.

[Abbey Road]

Is it me, or is the wing a little bit "Spitfire"?
No, it isn't just you! That certainly looks very elliptical. Which makes no sense, because the Spitfire's elliptical wing was intended to allow (relatively) high Mach numbers, something this aircraft will have no need of. Additionally, an elliptical wing is difficult and expensive to produce - all those curves require lots of compound curves in the surfaces.

Puzzling!

[VX275]

No, it isn't just you! That certainly looks very elliptical. Which makes no sense, because the Spitfire's elliptical wing was intended to allow (relatively) high Mach numbers, something this aircraft will have no need of. Additionally, an elliptical wing is difficult and expensive to produce - all those curves require lots of compound curves in the surfaces.

Puzzling!
Its going to be a plastic airframe so all those curves will be relatively easy to produce.
As to the elliptical planform, I wonder what the stall behaviour will be like?

[Wander00]

Sadly Green Marine at and formerly Lymington went out of business recently. There will be redundant staff with high tech lay up experience hope they can get after- hope they can get after them

[Abbey Road]

Its going to be a plastic airframe so all those curves will be relatively easy to produce.
As to the elliptical planform, I wonder what the stall behaviour will be like?
Okay. I reckon the stall speed will be relatively high for an aircraft of this size and weight ...... unless they do something remarkable with the wing profile.

[MPN11]

Okay. I reckon the stall speed will be relatively high for an aircraft of this size and weight ...... unless they do something remarkable with the wing profile.Their website says "Flaps down stall speed = 45 kts" ... so they're confident it's a pussy-cat.

I'm sure we have some Spitfire expertise here, such as Danny42C, who could comment on stall characteritics with an elliptical wing.

[Mogwi]

B/A ratio guesses anyone?

[BEagle]

From what I recall, an elliptical wing gives optimum lift distribution with significant benefits with regard to lift dependent drag. Also the effective AoA is constant across the span.

A bit of a bugger to construct though. The efficiency of the Spitfire wing was all very fine, but it meant that the tapered wing Bf 109, though marginally less efficient, could be built far more quickly.

Swift? Not a very happy name for a military aeroplane in its earlier incarnation!

[NutLoose]

I wouldn't of thought so as it's plastic.

[Wrathmonk]

Drag an old-ish thread back to life....

Latest plans for what is left of the Coltishall domestic site

Former RAF Coltishall officers? mess to go under the hammer Latest Norfolk and Suffolk News - Eastern Daily Press (http://www.edp24.co.uk/news/former-raf-coltishall-officers-mess-to-go-under-the-hammer-1-5561998)

[EESDL]

Flew an ex-employer (property/carehome developer) into this very site over 10-years ago. Wasn’t viable then so interesting to see it back on the market. Whilst we concentrated in ‘The North’ (eg RAF Middleton St George Officers’ Mess is now an award-winning carehome )
Maybe it could double as the Solar Panel Controller’s house?

[Fareastdriver]

RAF Middleton St George Officers’ Mess is now an award-winning carehome

It used to be a very good hotel especially after you had told the Air UK hostesses on a night stop about the ghost who flew his Meteor into the side of it.

[dook]

….because the Spitfire's elliptical wing was intended to allow (relatively) high Mach numbers

No it wasn't ! High speed (in terms of dynamic pressure as opposed to Mach number) was because the wing had a low thickness/chord ratio.

Elliptical lift distribution offers constant downwash across the span and hence low induced drag.

BEagle is correct
.
...with RTR (redacted thrust reheat)

I know not where you found that strange terminology. The Jaguar had part-throttle reheat (PTR) whereby afterburner would remain lit when the engine was throttled back as far as about 90% rpm. It was selectable by switches just below the canopy rails on the left hand side.

I have 1850 hours on the aeroplane.

[Heathrow Harry]

Mitchell wanted a fast aeroplane but I dont think he ever thought about Mach numbers

[A and C]

If I was to offer an educated guess I would say the project is funded by govenment research grants and may get as far as flying but will fail to make it into production............ regrettably.