Airspeed Oxford documents (1 Viewer)

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MiTasol

2nd Lieutenant
5,739
9,362
Sep 19, 2012
Aw flaming stralia
I am starting to scan my Airspeed Oxford document collection starting with the RAAF Instructors training notes.

MIflyer has previously posted a copy of AP 1596, the RAF Pilots notes, at Airspeed Oxford Pilot's Notes so I will not duplicate that.

As always I have watermarked to reduce the number of unscrupulous people selling copies. As always you are free to pass the copies on to anyone else at no charge. The original was just under A5 size so I have printed it A5 and OCR'd it.

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  • Oxford RAAF instructors notes ww2.pdf
    11.6 MB · Views: 95
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EDIT File replaced as I got a much better copy of the diagram on page 4

Next is the factory pilots handbook - 3rd edition. OCR'd

I have located a second edition and have asked the owner if they can provide a better copy of the cockpit photo if both editions use the same photo. I will update when I know more.

Next will be the RAAF Oxford Instructions - the originals were brown paper and I am working with a photocopy so some of the pages will not be great.
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  • Oxford Pilots Hbk (factory) 3rd Ed 1941.pdf
    4 MB · Views: 93
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No problems Jim and thanks for the link. I have seven documents to post including a sales brochure that includes variable pitch propellers as standard - as far as I can tell all RAF and RAAF Oxfords had fixed pitch wood props.

I also have this photo which appears to be from the factory but unfortunately it is a scan of a photocopy.

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RAAF Oxford Instructions.

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The contents list stops and #30 but there are 36. Sorry they are dirty but removing any more spots using software made them worse and I have too much on my plate at present to hand clean them (except for scribbles). Here is an example of what many started like.

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  • RAAF Oxford Instructions AL-10 ww2c.pdf
    26.7 MB · Views: 70
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An Airspeed sales brochure. OCR'd. From a "pretty ordinary" photocopy.
This one has an interesting history. A friend was senior person in the Regulators office at Tullamarine and I was using an Oxford main gear and tail leg on a movie project so he got their librarian to copy the original. Unfortunately she had no interest so did not scale the pages to fit, lighten dark pages, and did not fold out the last page.

I have put in some pages twice. Once copied normal and the second a bleached copy in an effort to make the text more readable. Did not really help but some photo details are better.

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  • Airspeed Oxford brochure ww2.pdf
    17.3 MB · Views: 77
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The Anson was a military derivative of the 1935 Avro 652 that carried 4 pax at a cruise of 165mph. Only two Avro 652's were built
The Oxford was a military derivative of the 1934 Envoy that carried 6 pax at a cruise of 192mph. 52 Envoys were built
Both used Cheetah engines though different sub-models.
Despite carrying only four pax the 652/Anson was a much bigger aircraft and had a far larger cabin. The Anson had a crew of four. Post war Ansons carried more pax but I do not know how many.
Both were used as trainers for the same sort of aircrews so I guess you could say they were competitors.

EDITED for clarity
 
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Seriously? Only 52 Airspeed Ox-boxes were built?

Jim
 
RAAF Oxford Orders
Missing pages and errors in originals
If any one has any of the missing pages, or purchases them from the Aus Archives, please PM them to me and I will add to this file
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As far as I can see this is my last Oxford file.

EDIT
Forgot about the big one
Just starting on this one
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Attachments

  • RAAF Oxford Orders AL-34ww2c.pdf
    59.1 MB · Views: 73
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I should have noted earlier that the RAAF Instructions and Orders have a number of files that are not included in the Index/Contents list in the front of the document.

My apologies.
 
The Oxford Vol 1 (maintenance manual in the real world) is going to take a few days or end up with missing pages. The photocopy I have is missing several pages and other pages are distorted - not held flat on the photocopier etc. I may have to provide the manual with missing pages - worst case I will copy the missing pages from a low quality online digital copy that is worse and missing part of at least one of the missing pages from my photocopy.

While searching on line for another copy so I could get the missing pages I found this that some will find interesting.


As above - one web company had a digital copy but that was worse and a waste of money according to a freind with a copy.

One thing I found most interesting was in the flap and landing gear control system. Until the late 60s there were a lot of accidents caused by pilots retracting landing gear instead of flap so the certification standards were changed to require the control handles to have a wheel shaped knob for wheels and airfoil shape for flaps.

The Envoy/Oxford is a 1934 design and has both those features.
 
Both were used as trainers for the same sort of aircrews so I guess you could say they were competitors.

Pretty much, but the Oxbox was designed for the training role, while the Anson was designed as a maritime patrol bomber adapted for training and transport duties.

Great to see these manuals and data, The NACA document is very complimentary. The flap/U/C lever confusion certainly looks to be a problem; a picture of the RAF Museum's Oxbox cockpit with flap and u/c levers next to each other on the lower centre console - the u/c lever the big red handle to the left.

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Oxford flight deck

This was not an issue in the Anson of course as the u/c was raised and lowered by a wheel next to the pilot's seat that required 160 turns to retract or lower (!), with the flap lever to the left of the centre console next to the pilot's right knee.
 
You will note however that the gear handle has a wheel shaped knob and the flap has an airfoil shaped knob - not both identical or similar shaped knobs - so still nearly forty years ahead of some manufacturers.
 
You will note however that the gear handle has a wheel shaped knob and the flap has an airfoil shaped knob - not both identical or similar shaped knobs - so still nearly forty years ahead of some manufacturers.

Yup, which is why I posted it. The NACA report comments generally favourably about the instruments and flight deck, although comments about the different levers on the centre console "bristle from a sort-of toothbrush rack in the middle", which differs slightly from the RAFM example.
 

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