Airscrew

Description	This short nonfiction film depicts the intensive testing that goes into developing and producing new military equipment, here the propeller engine of a fighting plane. It opens with the whirring or propeller blades. Animated diagrams show how the bite of the propeller moves it through the air and how the pitch determines the size of the bite. A trip through an airplane factory shows the manufacture of a satisfactory alloy. The rest of the process is painstaking hand work interspersed with dozens of careful inspections. The operation of the variable pitch mechanism and its use in taking off and cruising is shown. Then the propeller is assembled the complete job is tested for balance. The film ends with the engine placed onto a new plane followed by the bomber taking off.
Creator	Grahame Tharp: director Arthur Elton: producer Great Britain. Ministry of Information
Contributor	Sidney Beadle: photography Francis Rodker: diagrams Norman Leevers: location, sound
Date Issued	1940
Original Format	16mm print
Duration	21:07
Color/Black & White	B&W
Sound/Silent	Sound
Nation of Origin	U.K.