Who Likes Aircraft ?

[Photon440]

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Nicknamed the 'Wooden Wonder' because the airframe was mostly constructed of wood, the Mosquito was still one of the fastest aircraft flying in 1941. To keep away from German air raids, over 1,000 Mosquitos were also built in Canada during the war. And half of the birch wood used in English production came from British Columbia, Canada.

 

[Photon440]

Douglas R5D-2, taken in 1955.

This was a flying laboratory for the Navy. Those four pods hold radar equipment, the vertical mast which could be raised and lowered why flying held meteorological instruments.

 

[Photon440]

 

[Richard Cranium]

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You would think that a streamlined design like that would be utilized more rather than engine pods hanging below the wings. But, I'm not an aircraft engineer, so what do I know.

 

[Geff McCarthy]

Guns in front of pilot? The Warthog gun is most of the airplane, under the pilot, and would be really LOUD except for the cockpit damping and tight helmet. Once, shooting at a almost level attitude, a 30mm rounds skipped at least a mile down range!

 

[Photon440]

You would think that a streamlined design like that would be utilized more rather than engine pods hanging below the wings. But, I'm not an aircraft engineer, so what do I know.

When designing the Comet, de Havilland chose the enclosed engines for streamlining purposes, and to keep them higher from the ground to avoid ingesting debris. Also, close to the fuselage meant less asymmetrical thrust if an engine stopped.

But it's more common to use under-slung engine pods for several reasons. First, maintenance is much easier, both in access to the engine, and because it's closer to the ground. Also, in case of a destructive engine failure there is less of a chance of damage to the wing. But also, suspending the engine below and forward of the wing acts as a damper against wing flutter, so the entire wing structure can be built lighter as a result.

Placing the engines farther outboard, as opposed to the Comet, also provides bending relief for the wings; the weight of the engines pulling down counteracts the upward lift of the wings in flight and so less structure has to be built in to offset the bend.

These days, the above advantages are usually dispensed with only in cases of stealth aircraft where hiding the engines is needed to prevent radar detection.

 

[DeltaV]

 

[Photon440]

The 33 foot long bomb bay on an Avro Lancaster.

The usual maximum bomb load was 14,000 pounds, but there were some exceptions. The Lancaster was the only aircraft in the Allied inventory that was able to carry the 22,000 pound Grand Slam bomb, after some special modifications, including up-rated Merlin engines, a stronger landing gear undercarriage, no bomb bay doors and removal of certain armor and guns to reduce weight.

A 26 1/2 foot long Grand Slam. 42 of these were used in WWII.

 

[polywideblock]

 

[polywideblock]

 

[polywideblock]

 

[Photon440]

David Rose, aiming to dominate the Reno Air Races unlimited class, constructed this cute little racer, the RP-4.

With two 600 c.i. V8 engines and custom props, it was estimated to be a 600 mph. aircraft. However rule changes made it ineligible so work was stopped in 2012 and it wasn't completed and never flew.

 

[Floyd]

First reaction, that’s a death trap right there

 

[Dave6T4]

A lot of $$$$ sitting there. And we thougt our old car hobby was expensive!

 

[Dave6T4]

First reaction, that’s a death trap right there

Yeah: relying on big block Chevvies, with no gravel shoulder to pull over on!

 

[AR67GTX]

Yeah: relying on big block Chevvies, with no gravel shoulder to pull over on!

 

[Photon440]

Yeah: relying on big block Chevvies, with no gravel shoulder to pull over on!

Yep, they're 2,400 hp. engines that have been derated to 1,200 hp. each, intended to last for 8 minutes flat out for the trials.

 

[Photon440]

Narrowly missing out in the USAF competition for a 5th Generation fighter, the Northrop YF-23 was beat by the F-22 Raptor. While the YF-23 was more stealthy, and was faster and had a +2400 mile range, the Raptor had an edge in maneuverability. Some people claim that the much more expensive F-22 was given the contract to make sure Lockheed would survive. Chuck Yeager, who liked and promoted the YF-23, made the remark “No one test pilot was allowed to fly both the F-22 and the F-23 for real comparisons at the critical time.”

These two prototypes are still in museums.

 

[polywideblock]

 

[AR67GTX]

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Surely that first one made a dead stick landing. I don’t see how that prop could generate much speed or make much distance.