British Aeronautics¹

Abstract

THE Report of the Advisory Committee for Aeronautics for the year 1918–19 is an interesting record of work achieved, which acquires additional interest by including a general review of progress made since the beginning of the war. More than ever, after reading it, one is impressed by the range and extent of the demands which this new industry has made upon existing knowledge; of the structural engineer it requires that its stress calculations and the testing of its materials shall be conducted with an accuracy never contemplated before; of the mechanical engineer, that its engines shall be economical both of material and of fuel to a degree which until very recently would have seemed almost fantastic; and, above all, of its pilots, that with the skill and technique peculiar to tneir craft they shall combine a practical working knowledge of structure and of machinery, of instruments and “wireless,” of meteorology and of navigation, which in other professions would be the province of different specialists. And this universality, as might be expected, is no less characteristic of the appeal which aeronautics has made to the man of science, who provides it with fresh data; so that it is not surprising to find that the single committee of pre-war days has been compelled to adopt a policy of devolution, and that special subcommittees have been formed to deal with problems of such different scope as “scale effect,” the investigation of accidents, internal-combustion engines, light alloys, meteorology, atmospheric electricity, and new inventions.