A Quantitative Study of Instrument Approach

Abstract

The 887th Lecture to be given before the Royal Aeronautical Society was held at the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, Storey's Gate, London, S.W.I, on 29th October 1953, and was presided over by Sir William Farren, C.B., M.B.E., M.A., F.R.S., F.R.Ae.S., President of the Society. Sir William said that this was the first main lecture of the session. In one paragraph of his paper Mr. Mercer said that those who were specialists in fields of a highly specialised kind should get together with their friends in other branches of aeronautics, otherwise they might all go on in ignorance of what was being done by others; he hoped therefore, that there were a number of specialists present who would join in the discussion.Introducing the Lecturer, Sir William said that he had known Mr. Mercer for many years; Mr. Mercer had joined the Blind Landing Experimental Unit at Martlesham Heath when it was formed and it was there that he had done the work described in the paper. The President said he had always felt that one of the things most needed for the real development of aviation was a means of landing in bad weather. He hoped that Mr. Mercer's paper was a contribution towards that end; it was concerned with one phase only of blind landing—approach—but he hoped there would be other papers on the subject. He now called on Mr. Mercer to give his paper.