Aramco's 3 DC-4s -- What happened to them?
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WHBM --
I am very glad I was a kid and not an adult back then, and did not know the frightening facts about how dangerous flying was back then. I only learned that fairly recently. Heck, I remember seeing flames coming out of the back of one of the engines at night, every once in a while, and thinking noting of it because it seemed so normal! No big deal -- or so I thought back then. That makes Aramco's perfect record with their aircraft all the more astounding. Finicky and picky to the N th degree -- and that worked! (Boy, am I glad it did!)
Cubs2jets --
Thank you very much for the definition of what an aircraft's Service Ceiling is. I knew it was not anywhere close to the normal cruise altitude, but I didn't know the definition, nor did I know the DC-4's normal cruise altitude.
Love this discussion and these threads on aviation history!
I am very glad I was a kid and not an adult back then, and did not know the frightening facts about how dangerous flying was back then. I only learned that fairly recently. Heck, I remember seeing flames coming out of the back of one of the engines at night, every once in a while, and thinking noting of it because it seemed so normal! No big deal -- or so I thought back then. That makes Aramco's perfect record with their aircraft all the more astounding. Finicky and picky to the N th degree -- and that worked! (Boy, am I glad it did!)
Cubs2jets --
Thank you very much for the definition of what an aircraft's Service Ceiling is. I knew it was not anywhere close to the normal cruise altitude, but I didn't know the definition, nor did I know the DC-4's normal cruise altitude.
Love this discussion and these threads on aviation history!
WHBM --
I am very glad I was a kid and not an adult back then, and did not know the frightening facts about how dangerous flying was back then. I only learned that fairly recently. Heck, I remember seeing flames coming out of the back of one of the engines at night, every once in a while, and thinking noting of it because it seemed so normal! No big deal -- or so I thought back then. That makes Aramco's perfect record with their aircraft all the more astounding. Finicky and picky to the N th degree -- and that worked! (Boy, am I glad it did!)
I am very glad I was a kid and not an adult back then, and did not know the frightening facts about how dangerous flying was back then. I only learned that fairly recently. Heck, I remember seeing flames coming out of the back of one of the engines at night, every once in a while, and thinking noting of it because it seemed so normal! No big deal -- or so I thought back then. That makes Aramco's perfect record with their aircraft all the more astounding. Finicky and picky to the N th degree -- and that worked! (Boy, am I glad it did!)
From the US, their handful of major international carriers (bearing in mind that the vast majority of US aviation is domestic within the country) do seem to have had a worse record than average. Pan Am in particular; the number of their aircraft that crashed into the Pacific Ocean alone, let alone all their other serious events worldwide, must have caused concerns.
The Wright 3350 TC18 engines on the DC-7 and L-1049 had the most impressive exhaust flames as the Power Recovery Turbines introduced some fresh air (cooling the disk) right inside the flight hood. My company maintained some US Navy R7V Super Connies along with the radar Connies. One of R7V was the first to be fitted with the TC (Turbo Compound) engine. The nacelle had the usual flame shields aft of the exhaust of the flight hood. On this one aircraft the flame shields for the top PRT extended past the QEC parting line where they normally terminated. Instead, they went all the way back to the wing leading edge and wrapped around it for a distance aft. Apparently it had been used in flight testing the TC installation. I was told Wright had quite a time reducing the exhaust flame particularly at take-off where the mixture was in full rich. It was the only Connie I saw with the extra flame shields.
