Training test pilots on Concorde seemed to be lacking . . . Concordes
Psychophysiological entity
Thread Starter
Training test pilots on Concorde seemed to be lacking . . . Concordes
One of those Facebook things popped up with a picture of Concorde 001 and its test pilot. (no prizes) I shared a desk at 'Avigation' (school for getting civil licences) with Gordon Corpse and it took seconds to find him contained in this article which I found really quite astonishing. It compliments James Hamilton-Paterson's Empire of the Clouds in the way it describes the early days of test flying and folk getting the CAA licences etc.
The most incredible thing about that aircraft, is to me, that 70% IIRC of its thrust/quasi thrust, is from the engine intakes rather than the nozzles. For those with a special interest in Concorde - There's also mention of the delicate adjustments to the intakes where 1,400 needs to be reduced to .5Mach.
Funny how things stick in one's mind. 62 years. Gordon starts packing his books away early and wasn't coming back before the exams. 'That'll have to do. I'm test flying a Victor this afternoon.' (for the ARB) He was a teensy bit ahead of most of us. :-)
Paddy Cormican gets a mention. Another memory. He was later to fly it seems for BAC/CAA but a few years before he'd bid me do a bad weather circuit in a BAC 1-11 and this young sprog demonstrated to him that I thought it should be done on full noise with 60° of bank. The flight deck shook with his laughter.
https://www.key.aero/article/testing-concorde
The most incredible thing about that aircraft, is to me, that 70% IIRC of its thrust/quasi thrust, is from the engine intakes rather than the nozzles. For those with a special interest in Concorde - There's also mention of the delicate adjustments to the intakes where 1,400 needs to be reduced to .5Mach.
There was a range of flight-testing to do that year on ’DG, ’DN and now ’AC. Memorable missions included a trip to Beirut with Gordon Corps, the CAA’s Concorde project pilot, who was responsible for the certification of the aircraft.
Paddy Cormican gets a mention. Another memory. He was later to fly it seems for BAC/CAA but a few years before he'd bid me do a bad weather circuit in a BAC 1-11 and this young sprog demonstrated to him that I thought it should be done on full noise with 60° of bank. The flight deck shook with his laughter.
https://www.key.aero/article/testing-concorde
Psychophysiological entity
Thread Starter
Key Aero mention subscription but allow this read. They seem quite good despite the colours! It's 'by' Alan Smith but late last night it left me not quite sure who was that last remaining pilot. I looked a couple of times but wasn't quite sure. I'll look again tonight for remaining Concorde trainers.
I was with British Eagle when doing the training at T-Side. Fun days because SO much learning was going on despite who they were. Our BAC man used to appear in a 1-11 ready to train our senior staff. I begged the tiny seat behind the captain a few times and showed so keen that the 4,600 hour requirement for a FO was suddenly reduced to 1,400. They were FUN days. Oh, the training guy. We'd ask where his co pilot was. He was quite obviously invisible because he never showed his face. Fun job at BAC. Sports Jacket and ATC straight-lining the pilot and his invisible crew onto the nearest centreline of LHR. Only woosies worry about tailwinds.
In some bit of unused sky, somebody asked if one could reset the fire handle. "Of course". In out in out in out. Tail wagging like @$^6 Three jaws hanging open. I wondered who'd pay if bits sprayed out of the back of the engine, but I was there on the basis I kept my junior lip buttoned.
Cont.
I was with British Eagle when doing the training at T-Side. Fun days because SO much learning was going on despite who they were. Our BAC man used to appear in a 1-11 ready to train our senior staff. I begged the tiny seat behind the captain a few times and showed so keen that the 4,600 hour requirement for a FO was suddenly reduced to 1,400. They were FUN days. Oh, the training guy. We'd ask where his co pilot was. He was quite obviously invisible because he never showed his face. Fun job at BAC. Sports Jacket and ATC straight-lining the pilot and his invisible crew onto the nearest centreline of LHR. Only woosies worry about tailwinds.
In some bit of unused sky, somebody asked if one could reset the fire handle. "Of course". In out in out in out. Tail wagging like @$^6 Three jaws hanging open. I wondered who'd pay if bits sprayed out of the back of the engine, but I was there on the basis I kept my junior lip buttoned.
Cont.
I knew Gordon Corps when I was on DC8’s with IAS Cargo Airlines. I remember doing a C of A air test on a DC8 with him in 1976/7, when he insisted we reached the maximum speed for the type, which was just short of Mach one if I remember correctly. I was very sorry to hear he died of a heart attack in Nepal while investigating an Airbus crash.
The most incredible thing about that aircraft, is to me, that 70% IIRC of its thrust/quasi thrust, is from the engine intakes rather than the nozzles. For those with a special interest in Concorde - There's also mention of the delicate adjustments to the intakes where 1,400 needs to be reduced to .5Mach
Similar to the SR-71 LR, at Mach 3.2 cruise the inlet generated 54% of the thrust, the ejector 29%, leaving a paltry 17% by the engine itself.
As Ben Rich, designer of the SR-71 inlet, said "the engine is just an air pump to keep the inlet alive", ditto Concorde.
The intake geometry adjustment mechanism is shown in these Concorde tech diagrams.
