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Bristol Freighter on 'finals' to Filton

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Bristol Freighter on 'finals' to Filton

Old 30th Dec 2017, 16:01
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Bristol Freighter on 'finals' to Filton

Congratulations to all involved in getting this piece of Bristol history back home.

M5 to close so giant Bristol-built aircraft can make final part of 11,000-mile journey home - Bristol Post
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Old 30th Dec 2017, 16:39
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Now would be a good time to find out what became of the tail and engines from the Enstone Freighter.
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Old 30th Dec 2017, 16:39
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Great news last saw one in instone colours around 85/86 at Luton what a sight great noise
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Old 30th Dec 2017, 16:53
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Why are aircraft always described as ‘giant’?
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Old 30th Dec 2017, 17:04
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RNZAF Frightener reporting base at Butterworth in the 70s. "Roger, report ops normal on the hour."
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Old 30th Dec 2017, 21:07
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"Why are aircraft always described as ‘giant’?"

Because lazy journos think they need to fill the page.
'Why use one word when you can add one or more useless adjectives'?

Rant over
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Old 30th Dec 2017, 21:15
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Originally Posted by G-ARZG
"Why are aircraft always described as ‘giant’?"

Because lazy journos think they need to fill the page.
'Why use one word when you can add one or more useless adjectives'?

Rant over
Agreed, it was a giant rhetorical question
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Old 30th Dec 2017, 23:31
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Originally Posted by button push ignored
The last Bristol Freighter I saw was EI-APC flying from Heathrow with Aer Turas. I was working abroad when the Enstone plane was flying. I understand it pranked. How badly was it damaged? Where is it now?
To be pedantic, the Aer Turas one was a 'Superfreighter' (different nose design) not a 'Freighter'.
There was a Freighter at the PFA Rally at Cranfield in '96 (I think) which may have been the Instone (not Enstone) one.
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Old 31st Dec 2017, 00:36
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The Aer Turas aircraft was a mark 31 with standard nose length, not the lengthened Superfreighter mark 32.

The aircraft that crashed at Enstone was a former Instone Air Line aircraft. It had been sold in Canada but returned to the UK for the 1996 display season so this was the one at the Cranfield PFA rally about a month before its accident.
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Old 31st Dec 2017, 08:20
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Do y'all realise that the RAF had a single Britol Freighter?

Boscombe Down trialed it, and advised the RAF not to buy anymore.

It was used by Boscombe to ferry engines around the world.
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Old 31st Dec 2017, 08:32
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Originally Posted by button push ignored
I was working abroad when the Enstone plane was flying. I understand it pranked. How badly was it damaged?
Plenty of photos on the 'Net of it in the aftermath of the crash

Originally Posted by button push ignored
Where is it now?
That's what I asked in my previous post.

A bit more research in the meantime suggests that the wings, tail feathers and engines may in fact still be at Enstone.

If that's the case, there are now enough bits in the UK to rebuild a substantially complete and representative Mk.31M. Let's hope that happens - it would fill an important gap in our heritage.
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Old 31st Dec 2017, 08:51
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Intersting and worthy project!
I always wondered why the windows of the Freighter were tilted a few degrees from the vertical, so that the row of windows looked as if they were dancing. How did they construct the fuselage formers and longerons with these angel differences?
Any-one an idea?
And off course, all the best for the New Year to everybody on this wonderful forum!!
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Old 31st Dec 2017, 11:31
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I think the 'super-freighter' was called The Wayfairyer or some such spelling certainly not right.

O-D
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Old 31st Dec 2017, 12:19
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Wayfarer.

Remember the first time I saw one, G-BISU overflying Biggin in '83 I guess. Wonderful sight and sound.
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Old 31st Dec 2017, 12:32
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Originally Posted by Old-Duffer
I think the 'super-freighter' was called The Wayfairyer or some such spelling certainly not right.
Not quite.

The Wayfarer was a variant of the original Freighter, built as a passenger aircraft without the nose doors and with extra windows.

The "SuperWayfarer" was the unofficial name for a retrospective conversion of the prototype Superfreighter to carry 60 passengers for Silver City.
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Old 31st Dec 2017, 13:43
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I read somewhere that the Wayfarer had a kind of combi-convertible mode where seats could be swapped for cargo space. I tried to find photos of this on the web but without luck.

If by chance a pruner has photos/drawings of this arrangement I would be intrigued to see how it was done.
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Old 31st Dec 2017, 20:33
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One of my earliest vague memories and surely the first aeroplane I ever saw was a West African Airways Corporation Bristol Freighter at Kumasi, Gold Coast, as it was then, in 1949. My father must've been sufficiently interested to take me up to the airport to look at it. I remember being suitably impressed by this chugging great thing with a tailwheel.
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Old 31st Dec 2017, 20:38
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I spent a week at school summer camp (old army camp I think; not there now) at St Marys Bay, Romney Marsh back in '59 and it seemed every 20 min day and night a 'Freighter would depart from Lydd.
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Old 31st Dec 2017, 20:40
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Only flew on the ‘Frightener’ once.
I once bummed a ride from Butterworth to Changi with Kiwi 41 Sqn.
It was only slightly faster than catching the train (in the seventies), but, having been on Beverleys, I was somewhat used to the speed and the noise !
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Old 1st Jan 2018, 12:02
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"Now I want to know exactly how a sleeve valve engine works, other than not very well."

OK, where shall we begin?

Go to Brooklands, where you will find a Bristol Hercules sleeve valve engine cut-away to reveal the inside. If you press the button by the exhibit the full cycle of a sleeve valve engine is revealed.

I will look at Wikipedia, if the explanation seems convincing I will post a link.

Kieron.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sleeve_valve
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