Fight fire with fire? Have the Portuguese government's plans to use Beriev Be-200 amphibious aircraft for firefighting "back-fired"? According to the Portuguese newspaper Correio da Manh, a leased Be-200 was fighting fires and popped down to scoop up water from a nearby dam. Unfortunately the aircraft hit trees on the climb-out, damaging an engine and forcing the crew to dump fuel. Even more unfortunately the "release of the fuel started small wildfires across the area, reaching some houses". Budgie News local correspondent "El Tel" del Fuego cannot confirm reports that local authorities, which were previously all fired up about the aircraft, are now considering putting it on the backburner.
RAF display 1950 - but of what and why was it so dangerous? |
Alphonse Aurevior: "We need to come up with a new slogan - I don't think '4 engines 4 long haul' will do it anymore." Megaman: "Why not use ours… 2 good 2 need 4 engines?" Lighter Lightning Nephew Graham Speed thinks Lockmart Heedtin may be ignoring the lessons of the past when it comes to taking weight out of the Lightning II (or F-35/Joint Stress Fighter - take your pick). "I refer, of course, to their 'success' in resizing the vertical appendages of the F-35: 'Going to double doors reduced the sail area and we got 40lb [18kg] out of the vertical tail.' Had they, instead, revisited a 40-plus year-old Harrier design feature - namely closing the nosewheel door(s) after gear extension - they could have got 80lb out of the vertical tail, methinks! I tend to think that the boys from Kingston (aaaaaahhh Hawker!) were a lot smarter than they were ever given credit for, and not a Catia, computation fluid dynamics or a megacomputer anywhere in sight. In those days, of course, 'weight-attack' meant a sharpening of pencils, a sharp intake of breath, followed by a whittling-down of the 'reserve' factors. But all done by the Men who put the 'V' in 'STOVL' where it truly belongs: at the front! (aaaaaahhh Hawker!)." Meanwhile, nephew and ace artist Mike Badrocke thinks it is just as well the alternative name for the F-35 was not adopted. "I could well believe that should the aircraft ever reach squadron level with the name 'Spitfire II' it would soon become known as the 'Spitoon'." Farnsboro first news (Spotted by SBAC press release watchdog A H Hawker) "A very rare opportunity to hear leaders of the main space agencies speak at a British space event is promised with the news that the theme of the Space Day seminar on Wednesday July 19 in the International Space Pavilion at the Farnborough International Airshow is to be the 'International Future of Space'." Do you think there can be space for any more Space at the show? I think we should be told. |
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Source: Flight International
