This page is intended to explain the coverage & classification of the Aircraft included in this web site.
Coverage
This site
focuses on powered, heavier than air, both Aeroplanes & Helicopters. The
almost impossible aim that has been set is eventually to include a photo of
every UK based civil type currently flying. This includes light aircraft, micro
lights, both flex wing & three axis, ex-military
types, helicopters, vintage aircraft of all types still flying in various collections
or in private hands. Currently, my collection of photo’s stands at just over
400 different types. These will slowly be added to the site over time, so keep
checking back. In addition the collection will be expanded as more types are
photographed. So keep checking back on the site On the other hand if you
are looking for balloons, gliders, airships then these will not be found here
although these are great ways of flying too, (you never know you might just
get an event write up & some photos from time to time).
Most people who visit airports
to watch the aircraft would imagine that there are not so many types flying
in this country. Perhaps they would think, a few types
of airliners, Jumbo’s, Concorde of course, some few other smaller jets, then
the ever present Cessna’s & Pipers of the schools, but not much else. How
wrong they would be. In fact there are hundreds, perhaps a thousand different
types flying in the UK
Classification
What could be hard about this? Well, there are many aircraft types
that have evolved over time, these types sometimes evolve into types that are
obviously different aircraft, either in terms of flight characteristics, or
appearance, or both. But in the development process various intermediate aircraft
exist which are not necessarily a new type, perhaps they are just a variation
on the original theme. Now some of this may seem like nit picking, but when
coming up with a list of types it is a real issue that must be dealt with.
The development of the de Havilland Moth series from the DH60 to the DH82a Tiger Moth
is a good example. This started with the DH60 of which various types were built,
which flew and looked pretty similar. Then came the
DH60GIII. This was fitted with the same engine was later used in the Tiger
Moth and hence the front of the DH60GIII looks exactly like a Tiger and nothing
like a DH60. In fact the major change that converted this aircraft into the
Tiger Moth was changes to the positioning and sweep of the wings. So which
of these do we call a separate type? There is no question that the Tiger Moth
was given a new designation and regarded as a different type, but it was really
just the next step in the DH60 series. Equally the DH60GIII looks dissimilar
to either of the types, so what about that one, should it be thought of as a
variation, or a different type. A somewhat different example is the Piper PA28
series. In the previous example the maker changed the designation as he made
design changes, but with PA28 the situation is far more complex. There are
many variations of the PA28 with different designations, but where there is
little or no visible difference externally or in terms of performance, the differences
are mainly internal trim. Yet some authorities will classify together aircraft
significant differences
such as changing to a T tail or adding retractable undercarriage. Another real
issue that cannot be ignored is that the same type of aircraft may have been
produced by many different firms. An example might be the Sikorsky S61 helicopter
(Sea King, to most of us) which was also produced by Westland in the UK and
others, another example would be the Druine D62 Condor (often called the Rollason
Condor) which was originally produced by various homebuilders and then factory
built by Rollasons.
So how has UK SKIES tackled this? Essentially if from a distance it looks different then it is different. For example I have included 2 shots of the Zenair 601 Zodiac, one a tail dragger the other with a nose wheel. Also if it flies or handles differently then I regard it as different (which also applies to the tail dragger / nose wheel case). On the other hand if the same aircraft is produced by multiple firms then it just gets one entry and I have tried to put this under the original design authority name. No doubt many people will disagree with the views I have taken, after all there are various leading books which take differing classifications. Still this is my way. I would be interested in any views on this, comments are definitely welcome. Send them to mailto:admin@ukskies.co.uk