© Wonders of World Aviation 2015-
Part 13
Part 13 of Wonders of World Aviation was published on Tuesday 31st May 1938, price 7d.
This part included a colour plate showing Henson’s proposed aeroplane. It formed part of the article on The First Powered Aeroplane.
The Cover
This week’s cover picture, from a Flight photograph, shows a De Havilland Dragonfly aircraft during a test flight. The Dragonfly seats five, and at sea level has a maximum speed of about 145 miles an hour.
Contents of Part 13
Geoffrey de Havilland
(Part 2)
Progress to Solo Flying
Airscrews and Their Design
Air Transport in Canada
The London-Manchester Race
The First Powered Aeroplane
The First Powered Aeroplane
(colour plate)
The Aeroplane Proposed by Henson in 1842
THE AEROPLANE PROPOSED BY HENSON in his patent of 1842. Power was to be obtained from a light steam engine to drive paddle wheels or other propellers. The design was for a huge monoplane built of bamboo and hollow wooden spars braced with wires. This illustration shows the completed machine as seen from below, and the framework of the machine as seen from above. There are three spars running the whole length of the wings. The centre spar is of rectangular section; the outer two are of oval section and taper towards their ends. Sections at the centres and ends of the tapering spars are shown in the inset. This inset also shows plan and side views of a turnbuckle used to tighten the bracing wires.
