Does anyone know what's written on this instruction plate?

• Oct 6, 2024

• #1

P

pogotc

Airman

31

10

Jul 30, 2023

HI everyone,

I have another question about the Fairey Swordfish, this time I'm trying to work out what it says behind the yellow air intake shutter knob in the right hand set of instructions, here's a photo that shows what I'm looking at:



The instructions for "closed" are nice and clear, but the instructions for "open" are obscured.

I also have this photo from another angle:


so it's obviously something something "damp / cold conditions", but I can't figure out what the two lines above it say, it looks like the word above "cold" ends with "---ding"? The only other photo I can find is this one:



which reveals a little bit more of the line above but it's really blurry.

In the manual all I can find is this sentence:

The knob is inscribed "Air intake shutter - To open pull and turn", and the conditions under which the control should be operated are engraved on the panel.

Click to expand...

which isn't as helpful as I'd like.

I'm really struggling to find any other photos of this that might reveal what it says underneath, so I'm hoping someone here might be able to help.

 

• Oct 6, 2024

• #2

E

Engineman

Staff Sergeant

1,038

933

Dec 26, 2021

It is a guess but,
OPEN
Idling
or Gliding
Damp/Cold
Conditions

It will be interesting to see the exact words. You could try AI to fill in the missing words!

Eng

 

• Oct 6, 2024

• #3

GrauGeist

Generalfeldmarschall zur Luftschiff Abteilung

28,657

23,344

Aug 29, 2008

Redding, California

www.netallurgy.com

Air intake shutters would typically be opened when idling to prevent the system from overheating.

 

• Oct 6, 2024

• Thread starter
• #4

P

pogotc

Airman

31

10

Jul 30, 2023

Engineman said:

It is a guess but,
OPEN
Idling
or Gliding
Damp/Cold
Conditions

It will be interesting to see the exact words. You could try AI to fill in the missing words!

Eng

Click to expand...

That's a really good guess, I did think it was "or -dling" but couldn't think of a word that would fit but this seems very plausible!

 

• Oct 7, 2024

• #5

Crimea_River

Marshal

45,989

14,017

Nov 16, 2008

Calgary

Maybe "Descending". I don't see an "L" before the "ing"

 

• Tuesday at 12:26 PM

• #6

Simon Thomas

Senior Airman

424

518

Jan 16, 2017

Sarnia, ON

Possibly 'cruising'. Spacing seems to fit.

Alternatively, put in something which is totally out of left field as noone will ever figure it out. Maybe "supersonic" or "low earth orbit" or similar.

 

• Tuesday at 1:00 PM

• #7

Snautzer01

Honourably banned

41,796

53,616

Mar 26, 2007

Simon Thomas said:

Possibly 'cruising'. Spacing seems to fit.

Alternatively, put in something which is totally out of left field as noone will ever figure it out. Maybe "supersonic" or "low earth orbit" or similar.

Click to expand...

It will be found. Trust that. Because it will.

 

• Tuesday at 2:46 PM

• #8

M

MIflyer

1st Lieutenant

6,915

14,034

May 30, 2011

Cape Canaveral

It very clearly says, "Too Much Sex is Bad For Your Eyes."

 

• Tuesday at 6:47 PM

• #9

EAIAnalog

Airman

65

81

Sep 1, 2009

Lake Stevens, WA

There is a pic on reddit of a Swordfish cockpit being restored at navywings in the UK. You might contact them to fill in the missing text.

 

• Saturday at 1:10 PM

• #10

C

Currell

Airman

18

14

Oct 13, 2006

My guess, agreeing with others, is "gliding". The first letter is extremely obscured, but there is a roundness to the very bottom portion. It may be a "G".

The second letter appears to be the bottom of an "L", but I would like to see a sharper right angle for the "L". Maybe it is the blurriness of the shot.

Interesting that, in the second picture, the "D" is quite clear, but in the third picture, you could easily mistake it for an "O". And the "I" in front of it basically disappears.

Currell

 

Last edited: Saturday at 6:22 PM