Airy was consulted about wind speeds and pressures likely to be encountered on the proposed Forth suspension bridge being designed by Thomas Bouch for the North British Railway in the late 1870s.
He thought that pressures no greater than about 10 pounds per square foot (500 pascals) could be expected, a comment Bouch took to mean also applied to the first Tay railway bridge then being built.
Much greater pressures, however, can be expected in severe storms.
Airy was called to give evidence before the Official Inquiry into the Tay Bridge disaster, and was criticised for his advice.
However, little was known about the problems of wind resistance of large structures, and a Royal Commission on Wind Pressure was asked to conduct research into the problem.
Airy was consulted about wind speeds and pressures likely to be encountered on the proposed Forth suspension bridge being designed by Thomas Bouch for the North British Railway in the late 1870s. He thought that pressures no greater than about 10 pounds per square foot (500 pascals) could be expected, a comment Bouch took to mean also applied to the first Tay railway bridge then being built. Much greater pressures, however, can be expected in severe storms. Airy was called to give evidence before the Official Inquiry into the Tay Bridge disaster, and was criticised for his advice. However, little was known about the problems of wind resistance of large structures, and a Royal Commission on Wind Pressure was asked to conduct research into the problem.
George Biddell Airy