Royal Aeronautical Society Podcast

The captain of the 1937 flying boat survey flight from Karachi to New Zealand explains how he became involved in the historic event and how they prepared for the flight, before retelling the story of the eventful trip. He also discusses the warm welcome they received in New Zealand and further afield.
Captain Burgess was interviewed by David Jones in around 1975. This recording is part of the AeroSociety Podcast series, Development of Civil Aviation from the UK to Australasia, it was digitised thanks to a grant from the RAeS Foundation and the podcast was edited by Eur Ing Mike Stanberry FRAeS.

In this podcast series from the Royal Aeronautical Society's monthly AEROSPACE magazine, Editor in Chief Tim Robinson and Deputy Editor Stephen Bridgewater analyse recent aviation, aerospace and space news - and preview the next (September 2023) edition of the magazine. Find out more at www.aerosociety.com

Captain Egglesfield commanded some of the earliest commercial flights over India and the Far East including the first scheduled service from Karachi to Calcutta in July 1933 in an Armstrong Whitworth AW.15 Atalanta, the first scheduled Karachi to Rangoon service, and the second survey flights on flying boats between Karachi and Singapore. In this interview he tells us about these pioneering flights, the aircraft he flew, the challenges he faced and gives us a flavour of what life was like flying the route.
Captain L. A. Egglesfield was interviewed by David Jones on 11 June 1975. This recording is part of the series Development of Civil Aviation to Australasia 1918-1978, it was digitised thanks to a grant from the RAeS Foundation and the podcast was edited by Eur Ing Mike Stanberry FRAeS.

In April 1931 Captain Alger was asked to fly the first experimental airmail flight between Karachi and Darwin in his de Havilland DH.66, the City of Cairo. In this interview Alger retells the story of this eventful flight.
Captain H. W. C. Alger was interviewed by David Jones on 8 June 1975. This recording is part of the AeroSociety Podcast series, Development of Civil Aviation from the UK to Australasia, it was digitised thanks to a grant from the RAeS Foundation and the podcast was edited by Eur Ing Mike Stanberry FRAeS.

In this podcast series from the Royal Aeronautical Society's monthly AEROSPACE magazine, Editor in Chief Tim Robinson and Deputy Editor Stephen Bridgewater analyse recent aviation, aerospace and space news - and preview the next (August 2023) edition of the magazine. Find out more at www.aerosociety.com

Was the incoming Labour Government right to cancel TSR-2? Was there a possibility of creating an Anglo-French military aircraft programme in the early 1960s? Who was the panellists’ favourite villain in the TSR-2 story? These and many other questions were posed to the conference speakers, and we hear their frank conclusions.

What lessons did the UK’s aerospace industry learn from TSR-2 and what key points can we take into today’s aerospace projects? As a student, Michael Pryce lived close to Ivan Yates, the man who Warton sent to liaise with Weybridge. In his retirement, Yates told Pryce about many of the mistakes that were made on the TSR-2 project and how he learnt from them on his later projects, most notably when he served as the UK’s man on the Jaguar, Tornado and Typhoon. Many of Yates’s observations are of key importance for today’s professionals, most notably for those working on collaborative projects today.

What would have happened if Britain decided to keep TSR-2? Benjamin Goodlad explores the possible strategic and tactical use of the aircraft, discusses the gaps it would have filled and considers which aircraft it could have replaced. He also asks how the RAF armed with an operational TSR-2 would have looked from a bomber and strike command perspective. He also speculates on the impact a successful TSR-2 would have had on its international competitors. This session is followed by a short question and answer session.

The cancellation of TSR-2 left a large gap in the RAF’s armoury, but how should the gap be filled? Samuel Hollins explores the immediate procurement dilemmas faced by Britain upon the death of TSR-2 and examines the viability of the procurement options that presented themselves prior to Tornado. He then goes onto suggest that the Europeanising turn in defence procurement that Britain took from the late-1960s onwards was a partial consequence of the opportunities that emerged in a world without TSR-2, and shaped Britain’s procurement policies for the remainder of the century.

How did those in the corridors of power see the development of the TSR-2 project once it had been awarded? Clive Richards explores the political and strategic debates that took place within Whitehall between 1957 and the cancellation of the project in 1965.