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See link showing that engines can be controlled to play
music, in this case it's playing My Country Tis Of Thee.
NOTE: This is the world's most horribly edited video, fast
forward through the annoying 55 second of the car just
randomly revving to see it play the song.
Computers control the
beautiful sounding engines of the
aircraft involved. 4 engine bombers would be able to
play
cords, the inline Merlins of the P-51s and Spitfires would
play the melody.
There is no sound more beautiful than a massive rotary
engine, except perhaps the majestic thrum of the mighty
RR. The last time these beautiful masterpieces of human
ingenuity worked in concert together it was to free the
world from a horrible tyranny. Now they would sing
together in a beautiful tribute to the brotherhood that
created them.
They would play a blend of the two national anthems, fly
in beautiful formation and be announced like this. "Now
please stand in reverence for a time when America and
the
UK loved each other and put your hands over your hearts
as
the Air Power Ballet performs The Star Spangled Banner
and God Save The Queen."
Inspired by 8's idea to have a concert with these aircraft.
This is how to make them play actual music.
Computer controlled engines.
https://www.youtube...watch?v=1JPBdBIFGNQ
Please fast forward to :55, I have no idea why they didn't edit this video themselves. [doctorremulac3, Nov 05 2019]
A study in design aesthetics.
https://i.stack.imgur.com/0FzKw.jpg
Though it's not a coincidence that prettier planes usually outperform uglier ones. [doctorremulac3, Nov 05 2019]
I don't know, I think they're both beautiful.
https://www.alamy.c...-west-74156712.html
[doctorremulac3, Nov 05 2019]
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Annotation:
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By the way, I could create simulations of this in about an
hour with programs currently on my computer. |
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Cease all other activity. This must be implemented IMMEDIATELY. |
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I think it's going to need some very special pilots to do this.
From what I've seen, you need at least a little training* even
to fly in formation, without having your engine speed
dictated by a musical score. Plus, the conductor on the
ground is going to need a really, really big baton. |
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You'll also have to worry about Doppler shifts, unless each
aircraft is confined to a sort of hemispherical shell relative
to the audience. |
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[*not that much, obviously, since even pilots sometimes
manage it; but some]. |
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//Cease all other activity. This must be implemented
IMMEDIATELY.// |
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//I think it's going to need some very special pilots to do
this.// |
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A combination of changing engine speed, varying propeller-
blade pitch, and USING the Doppler shift would give great
range and control of "note". |
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//inline Merlins of the P-51s // whoa - P-51s had Merlins? |
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Designed around an Allison originally but lacked high
altitude performance. The inclusion of the mighty Marlin
made it the best prop fighter plane of the war. |
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I've stood next to these as they start up. If the
experience
doesn't make your spine tingle you haven't got one. |
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Gotta be said, the cooperation of our cultures created
the
most beautiful thing to ever take to the skies. |
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Now in the discussion of which fighter played the most
important roll in winning the war, there are arguments
for the Hurricane, Spitfire and Mustang. (each had their
roll) but they all shared one thing: the magnificent,
mighty Merlin. |
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<Coughing & spluttering, slosh of spilt pint of beer/> |
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Pardon us, but we are not aware that the U.S. had any significant rôle in the design of the Supermarine Spitfire. |
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The P-51 is indeed a superlative fighter, but beautiful it is not. It is a crop-winged battleaxe compared to the supremely elegant, rapier-like profile of R. V. Mitchell's astonishing elliptical wing. |
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You can't pull tbe wings off a Mustang in a dive. It has a wide undercarriage track, making it forgiving to land. It has slightly better forward visibility when taxiing. It's fast, rugged, agile, and has astonishing range. |
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But on purity of line and aesthetics, it's an Ugly Sister compared to the eye-watering beauty of the Spit ... |
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Well, I would have to say that the Spitfire was the more
beautiful plane. But then that's just me. |
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I'd best shut up now, because [8th] will be wanting to quote
numbers built, total kills, kills per plane, range versus
agility (backed up by numbers, obvs), operational ceilings
and climb rates. No doubt he will also point out that the
valve timing on the Merlin had its roots in the Gumbolten
"Big Furze" reciprocating steam engine as modified by
Sethwick & Sethwick for superior performance on the East
Anglian mountain railways. (Personally I doubt that, but
there are arguments on both sides.) |
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Also, what damned fool gave [8th] a full pint? You know
what happens. |
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//supremely elegant, rapier-like profile of R. V.
Mitchell's astonishing elliptical wing// |
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The Spitfire might do better on the fashion runways of
Paris but it was the Mustang that owned the skies
over that city when the Nazis needed an ass whippin'. As
Goring
said "Mustangs overhead, Nazi party's dead." (Or words
to that effect) Spitfires are great if they bring the war
to you, but
when you need to bring the war to them... well. |
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While we're at it, might mention the plane that really
won the Battle Of Britain. I'll give you a hint: nobody's
calling this thing pretty. Especially the Luftwaffe pilots
who retired after meeting one of these. I shouldn't need
to mention the name, but it might have
been the main thing that saved England from invasion. |
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But the Spitfire was prettier so it gets to be prom
queen. Prettiest plane? Maybe. Most beautiful? Mustang. |
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Takes more than a pretty cowling to earn my heart. |
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// the plane that really won the Battle Of Britain // |
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Ah yes, the Cierva Autogyro ... |
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Mmm, did Super Hitler crash in one making way for the
backup Hitler we beat? |
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You have two guesses remaining. |
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Did one crash INTO Super Hitler? |
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My third guess is one rolled over his toe so if that's not it I
give up. |
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Meanwhile, see link. This should be a study for design
students in pretty vs ugly. Very similar, but a bump here, a
different line
there. One is a classic, one is the ugly sister. (link) |
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// Cierva Autogyro//... carried some kind of
important cryptanalysis information to Bletchley
from the Polish? |
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In the run-up to war, Fighter Command needed to test and exercise its new RDF (Radar) network. Although squadron-sized units of both fighters and bombers were available, there were problems of precision, and precision was vital. |
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But what was possible was to send out a ship to a very precise point, determined by both celestial navigation and reference to fixed buoys and landmarks. An aircraft could fly over such a vessel, but what was needed was a reference that could be maintained for a sustained interval. |
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Enter, stage left, clad in RAF livery, a Cierva/de Havilland autogyro. With its large rotor, it presented a magnificent target for the RDF stations, and it could orbit, almost hover, right over a fixed point for long periods, changing its altitude on request. As a result, operators could be trained against a small, highly predictable but real target in an accurately known position. What's more, an odd little light aircraft, apparently on some sort of navigation training mission, didn't look like a threat to anyone and dudn't attract unwanted attention. |
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When cameth the massed ranks of Reichsmarschall G's Luftflotten, the boys and girls in light blue, hunched over their basic but thankfully well-calibrated CRTs, did a first class job of passing raid information back to the control centres. Backed up by the foolproof and accurate - but short range - network of the Observer Corps, there was normally enough timely and accurate information to allow the fighters to be placed in the best positions for devastating attacks. |
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Ladies and Gentlemen, we give you the de Cierva Autogyro, the unsung and almost unknown hero that made the Battle of Britain winnable. |
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We'll move the Hurricane to #2. |
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Very good! Something to do with Chain Home
would have been my next guess, but I couldn’t
think what. |
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<Applies drop of oil to trapdoor hinges/> |
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Boys, would you care to step through here into our Little-Known Facts About WW2 Gallery ? It's not open to the public, you know ... |
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<Smiles, nods, surreptitiously grasps trapdoor release lever/> |
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//Enter, stage left, clad in RAF livery, a Cierva/de Havilland
autogyro// Could they not afford a balloon? |
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//can't pull tbe wings off//... I thought that was a
problem for the 109, not the Spitfire. |
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IIRC, the Merlin had a problem with negative g’s,
solved by “Miss Shilling’s Orifice”. But the airframe
was good for near-supersonic dives. |
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