Undercarriage for the Avro Arrow CF-100

_{Article from the Flight Journal – 23 August 1957}

Dowty Equipment of Canada, Ltd., Ajax, Ontario.

Originally established in Montreal in 1946, Dowty Canada had as its first major assignment, the project design of the undercarriage for the Avro CF-100. Prototype work was done by Dowty Equipment, Ltd., at Cheltenham, and the Dowty gear was fitted to the first CF-100 in 1949.

In the same year the company moved to new premises at Ajax and this plant has since delivered more than 600 sets of CF-100 undercarriages, with further deliveries extending well into next year.

By far the largest engineering programme yet handled by the company is the design and manufacture of the main undercarriage for the Avro CF-105 Arrow supersonic fighter. The geometry of this aircraft is such that the main legs are exceedingly lengthy and the weight of the aircraft is so great that, taken in conjunction with the severely limited volume available for the retracted gear, the structure of the legs is in extremely high-strength steel of a character previously quite unknown in Canada. The leg houses a Liquid Spring shock-absorber and has dual wheels arranged in tandem. This very advanced unit has been fully tested on the company’s considerably expanded test rigs and is now fully developed.

Dowty are also in production on nose undercarriages for the CS2F (licence-produced to Bendix design) and manufacture of the shock-absorber for the Beaver tailwheel.

They are the principal sub-contractor to de Havilland on the C.4 Caribou hydraulic system, and may obtain business with the hydraulics for the CL-44 transport. The company also manufacture, sell and service certain products by Dunlop’s Aviation Division (over 4,500 wheels, brakes, valves and Maxaret units have been delivered for CF-lOOs) and also expect to provide service and spares-backing for undercarriages of Fairchild-built Friendships, and Viscounts and Vanguards of T.C.A.

It would be logical for the products of Dowty Fuel Systems to find Canadian applications.

At the company’s South Plant at Ajax both main and guillotine drop-test rigs are in full operation, and recent additions include new research equipment for low-temperature hydraulics and metallurgy.

The trend, first noticed in 1956, of increased technical staff and fewer on the production floor continues; total personnel have stabilized at the slightly reduced level of 350, but floor-area has remained almost constant at 75,000 sq. ft.

The president of the company is Mr. R. F. Hunt.