VC-10 Aerobatic Certification

[vololiberista]

You may be quite right about it being subject to manouvres as such (Dizzy Addicot's name appears here and there), but I doubt they would get the certification and clearance in the release to service/airworthiness certificates...

You can doubt as much as you like but the fact is the VC10 does have a Utility certification. Obviously there

[Hagar]

[quote]You can doubt as much as you like but the fact is the VC10 does have a Utility certification. Obviously there

[vololiberista]

I'm not in a position to argue as you obviously know more about the VC10 than me. Give me a quote from a reliable source & I will believe you. I have no idea what a Utility certification means in this sense but this doesn't sound like ARB (Air Registration Board) terminology to me. The CAA was not formed until 1972.

I have no doubt that modern arliners are tested just as stringently if not more so before being certified to carry passengers.

Modern a/c are tested of course!! In order to define their flight envelope.  In the case of the VC10 it was specifically designed as a high performance a/c and thus it's flight envelope is considerable compared to ordinary jets!!

If my memory serves The actual certification was "unrestricted" which equates to "utility". The certification nowadays is "normal" "utility" and "special"   "Special" is full aerobatic capability. In otherwords one can chuck it about the sky and nothing will happen to the airframe.
"Normal" is granted to a/c that can safely recover from +3.5 g and -1.5g manoeuvres. (all modern jet transports) "Utility" falls between the two.  I stand corrected but I believe the Vc10 is rated as +5g and -3.5g.

[Hagar]

If my memory serves The actual certification was "unrestricted" which equates to "utility". The certification nowadays is "normal" "utility" and "special"

An "Unrestricted" Certificate of Airworthiness is normal for all commercial passenger carrying aircraft. On 7th June 1946, Bristol 170 Freighter G-AGVB was granted the first unrestricted Certificate of Airworthiness for a new (British built) post war aircraft. The Bristol Freighter is hardly an aerobatic type. http://glostransporthistory.softdata.co.uk/JetAgeRMC_Bristol170.htm

PS. The DH.106 Comet was granted an Unrestricted passenger-carrying Certificate of Airworthiness in early 1952.

[C]

Mmmm...

Inverted spinning. It's bad enough trying to get a high performance training aircraft in to one of them...

[Hagar]

While researching this I found a very interesting obituary to the late David Davies who was the chief test pilot of the ARB/CAA flight department for 33 years until his retirement in 1982. He was directly responsible for checking the handling of all new aircraft types on the British civil register, from the first jet airliner, the Comet, to the supersonic Concorde & including the VC10. In fact he wrote the book Handling the Big Jets which is still regarded as the jet pilot's bible. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/newspaper/0,,173-948284,00.html

I rather like a couple of quotes in the obituary. [quote]He had his share of hairy moments, especially when evaluating stalls. During a Britannia stalling test in the 1950s, the big four-engined transport suddenly flick-rolled and went into a spin. He recalled: