Jump to content

Wonderful Westland Wasp Weapons works wanted


perdu

Recommended Posts

As I'm deep into my 'make a Wasp from a Scout' opus I'm finding it increasingly difficult to find information about any of the underpinnings below the fuselage.


Not only is it impossible to make out any of the normal in-flight bottom of the 'copter it is also similarly hard to make out how the weapons carriers look too

 

Most pictures showing Wasp carrying stores, even the big noisy one that would give any submariners a proper nasty time hide details of the stores carriers/ejectors

 

Does anyone have a link to some magical place where I can get the answers without having to wait until Yeovilton open their secret store cupboard again, probably next year I suspect

 

Thanks in anticipation...

Edited by perdu
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Have you tried Flight Global ? All the Flight mags since it started ? I know there was a Wasp (and Scout) Cutaway. You'll need to trawl around the first flight date. Takes time but its worth it. IRC the drg is viewed from slightly underneath (I might be wrong though) What about the BM  walkround section too ?

Flight Global Link below.. hit the year you want on that year box. To save any page,its a PDF. (sorry bout the egg sucking lesson!) Hit save as in the file droppdown at the top bar of YOUR SCREEN, stick it in your Wasp "box" ! Hope you find it.

 

https://www.flightglobal.com/pdfarchive/search.aspx?ArchiveSearchForm:search=flight international &page=5&ArchiveSearchForm:fromYear=1962&ArchiveSearchForm:toYear=1962

Edited by bzn20
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

25 minutes ago, perdu said:

Thanks, that's one I've never tried

 

I'll give it some time and have a good rummage

 

;)

 

Worth its weight in bites ! Aviation history in one hit as its happening . I mean happened!

Edited by bzn20
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I do have that one but even if I lighten and alter the contrast I dont get much definition of the vital underneathy organs

 

But this and the others are all going into the drawings

 

I hope to have a reasonable if not nearly as good as Crisp's drawings which I will bung here for posterity if they are any good

 

 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

After more meandering round the web I must say I have not found any resources as good as our own BM  Walkarounds

 

I have much of what I want (that Flightglobal link is a fabulous place to trawl) now, does anyone know the function of that large rounded corners box under the nose?  I see what seems to be a pivoted lamp hanging underneath it is there anything else there I need to capture in styrene too?

 

And is that possible intake down there actually on the box or is it another thing I cant make out from the pictures

 

w%2011.jpg

 

Thanks to Richellis, Nigel Heath and Julien for those pictures

 

Id still like to see any weapons carrying sytems though

 

Cheers all

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Could it be a camera ? Quick release latches so it looks like that's the only way in.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

perdu. I've been through 1962 and 1963 looking for something else, no Wasp or Scout drgs. A Wessex,Trident,727 and BAC1-11 in 1963 though.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

16 minutes ago, bzn20 said:

Cancel the Camera guess. I think its the ship deck grabber/Tie down .

Don't think the Wasp had a grabber as such did it?,I thought that came in with the Lynx.

 

IIRC,"deck grabbing" was done by a mob of handlers scurrying out with four ratchet straps that attached to the tops

of the legs and tie down rings on/in the helicopter deck.

Sure I heard something about "negative pitch" being applied(is that possible Crisp?)too so as to force

the a/c down onto the deck and compress the suspension(once landing on had taken place of course).

 

Here's another one,what about that 70's BBC series "Warship"?,sure that was done on a Leander and they flew

their Wasp frequently.

 

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=warship+bbc+tv+series

Edited by Miggers
Link to comment
Share on other sites

http://www.militaryplanes.co.uk/wasp.html

15 minutes ago, Miggers said:

Don't think the Wasp had a grabber as such did it?,I thought that came in with the Lynx.

 

IIRC,"deck grabbing" was done by a mob of handlers scurrying out with four ratchet straps that attached to the tops

of the legs and tie down rings on/in the helicopter deck.

Sure I heard something about "negative pitch" being applied(is that possible Crisp?)too so as to force

the a/c down onto the deck and compress the suspension(once landing on had taken place of course).

 

Here's another one,what about that 70's BBC series "Warship"?,sure that was done on a Leander and they flew

their Wasp frequently.

 

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=warship+bbc+tv+series

 

I amended my post. That box has two lights in it.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

11 hours ago, Miggers said:

Sure I heard something about "negative pitch" being applied(is that possible Crisp?)too so as to force

the a/c down onto the deck and compress the suspension(once landing on had taken place of course).


To the best of my (admittedly limited, and from a rather long way away) knowledge, negative pitch came in with the Lynx. Which is what allows it to loop and roll and all that aerobatic wossery. Quite an amazing thing to see, an upside-down herriclopter, especially in formation.

 

I digress. According to the Lynx fixing chappie that I spoke to at RAF Fairford (RIAT 2007), full negative pitch is sufficient to reduce the pressure under the disk enough to make your ears pop. He may have been trying it on, but the Lynx isn't short on power, and the neg pitch was designed to make the thing stick to the ship's deck.

AFAIK.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Not sure if your on Facebook but the Guy who runs the RN Wasp has a page, the aircraft is down on maintenance so he may take some pictures for you? He will undoubtably have the AP's (technical aircraft publications)

 

Only a thought and a possible route, good luck

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

'Flight' did do a Wasp cutaway in July 1964, along with a technical description.  It was an upper/side view so not sure it shows much of the weapon points.

 

According to an ex Wasp pilot I know, the box under the front fuselage houses a hinged landing light, an identification light, and an inlet for the cabin heating system.

 

edit, reasonable looking plans here, not much use for undersides though, http://drawingdatabase.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/WASP.gif

Edited by 71chally
added 'hinged' & 'light'
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

21 minutes ago, 71chally said:

'Flight' did do a Wasp cutaway in July 1964, along with a technical description.  It was an upper/side view so not sure it shows much of the weapon points.

 

According to an ex Wasp pilot I know, the box under the front fuselage houses a landing, an identification light, and an inlet for the cabin heating system.

 

edit, reasonable looking plans here, not much use for undersides though, http://drawingdatabase.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/WASP.gif

 

Well caught chally. I found that cutaway on a pintrest page but couldn't get the date clear enough. Just July !

They are lights BTW

http://www.militaryplanes.co.uk/wasp.html

 

Edited by bzn20
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

31 minutes ago, 71chally said:

'Flight' did do a Wasp cutaway in July 1964, along with a technical description.  It was an upper/side view so not sure it shows much of the weapon points.

 

According to an ex Wasp pilot I know, the box under the front fuselage houses a landing, an identification light, and an inlet for the cabin heating system.

 

edit, reasonable looking plans here, not much use for undersides though, http://drawingdatabase.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/WASP.gif

 

I'm pretty sure those are the drawings that accompanied Alan W. Hall's Wasp conversion article in the early years of SAM, Volume 1 No 4 I think, the Dassault Mirage F1 was on the cover as the 'Aircraft in Detail' feature.

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yes they're the plans I'm using now, I can see what looks like a hinged flood/landing lamp that drops out of the rear spot and no doubt the fixed nav lamp at the front

 

Thanks for yours Hendie, I've only seen a couple of those before and they're very good

 

Especially the torpedo ones which I haven't seen before

Link to comment
Share on other sites

9 minutes ago, 71chally said:

It is an amazing resource, and top marks for whoever is behind it at Flight for providing all that invaluable data for free

 

David Learmont editor of Flight (and all round top man) did it or decided to get someone to do it, I think he bought the archive. You can't get later than 2004. There some mistakes like duplicated pages etc. But I'm not complaining. I'm on there a few times a week. You can download every page too.

History as it was written about on the day/week it happened !

 

You need  Adobe PDF reader

...Click on the page you want to look at.

Go to FILE on the menu bar drop down

and hit SAVE AS .

Its a PDF

and then save it where you want.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...