M.Goodall, A.Tagg British Aircraft before the Great War (Schiffer)
Deleted by request of (c)Schiffer Publishing
HALL biplanes (Hall Aviation Co., London Aerodrome, Hendon)
J.L. Hall operated a flying school at Hendon from 1913, using a variety of machines, Avro, Bleriot, Deperdussin and Caudron. In 1914 the company began the manufacture of Caudron machines, of both single and two-seater types, the latter with dual control. These were powered by 35hp and 45hp Anzani engines.
One machine used Caudron wings, but with a fuselage, instead of a nacelle and was powered by a 50hp Gnome. It was commenced in 1914 and eventually flew in June 1915 and continued in use as No.6 of a large fleet of training machines of Caudron type, operated until 1918. It was assembled in Hall's shed, but was built by another company, possibly Ruffy-Baumann.
J.Bruce British Aeroplanes 1914-1918 (Putnam)
Hall School Biplane
J.L. HALL was one of the pre-war British exhibition pilots: he took his R.Ae.C. aviator’s certificate .(No. 291) at Hendon on September 17th, 1912, flying a Bleriot monoplane. In the summer of the following year he opened a flying school at Hendon.
His school had at least one Caudron biplane up to the outbreak of war, but on November 7th, 1914, there occurs the first mention of the Hall Biplane: on that aircraft J. H. Rose “took his ticket” at Hendon on that date.
The Hall Biplane consisted of the wing structure and undercarriage of a Caudron G.II married to a new fuselage and tail-unit: there may have been some direct connexion with the school’s original Caudron. The mainplanes were quite unchanged in any way, and retained the characteristic covering which gave a double-surface wing only between the spars. Lateral control was by wing-warping. The lower booms of the original Caudron were cut off where the first inter-boom struts were situated, and provided a useful pair of skids in the undercarriage.
Power was provided by an 80 h.p. Gnome rotary motor, and the simple fuselage carried an equally simple tail-unit and tail-skid.
The Hall Biplane was still in use at the end of 1915, by which time thirty-five pilots had qualified for their R.Ae.C. certificates on it.
SPECIFICATION
Constructors: The Hall Aviation Co., London Aerodrome, Hendon.
Power: 80 h.p. Gnome.
Dimensions: Span: 38 ft 9 in.
Areas: Wings: 300 sq ft.
Журнал Flight
Flight, June 18, 1915.
EDDIES.
AFTER numerous delays caused by the various repair jobs that are inevitable at a flying school, the Hall fuselage biplane has at last been completed and put through her paces. During the very first flight the new biplane was found to handle remarkably well, being very fast, about 62 m.p.h., I understand, and climbing splendidly. Since then Mr. Hall has been for a number of jaunts to make sure that the machine is in absolutely perfect trim before turning her over to the more or less tender mercy of the pupils. On one occasion last week he put her climbing capabilities to the test, and came down from a good altitude in a series of beautiful spirals, mainly to see if there should, by any chance, be a tendency to spin. This was conspicuous by its absence, and about the only objection that could possibly be raised is that the machine is somewhat sensitive on the elevators. This is hardly to be wondered at when it is remembered that instead of the large flexible tail plane fitted previously, there is now only a small fixed stabilising plane and two large elevator flaps. In the hands of so experienced a pilot as Mr. Hall this sensitiveness is, of course, no drawback, rather the reverse, and should pupils prefer a little less of it, it would be quite a simple matter to fit a slightly larger tail plane. The Hall equipment now includes machines ranging in power from 35 to 50 h.p., and pupils will be able to proceed by progressive stages from the smaller, lower powered biplanes to the higher powered and fast ones. A good idea of the new mount may be gained from the accompanying photographs.
