The invention of carefully designed aircraft to travel through the Earth's atmosphere is one of the greatest innovations of mankind. The fate of aviation is determined by engineers who defy limits and come up with bold new ideas (like the "Caspian monster"), but these planes simply defy all concepts of normalcy.
How did the Sea Needle come about?
The Sea Needle flying hoverbike was designed in 1948 by the US Navy as a supersonic aircraft interceptor. At the time, there was a lot of skepticism about the operation of supersonic aircraft. Therefore, to solve this problem, the US Navy ordered many subsonic interceptors. There was some basis for concern, as many of the supersonic designs of the time required huge runways to be built, had high climb rates, and were not very stable or easy to control, all factors that were particularly frustrating for an interceptor. Ernest Stout's team at the Convair Hydrodynamic Research Laboratory proposed to supplydagger delta projected aircraft for water skiing. Proposal Convair received an order for two prototypes in late 1951. Twelve production aircraft were ordered before the first prototype was developed.
No weaponry has ever been fitted to any Sea Dart aircraft, but the plan was to arm the production aircraft with four 20mm Colt Mk12 cannons and a battery of convertible rockets. Four of these orders were redesignated service test vehicles and eight more production aircraft were soon ordered. The aircraft was to be a delta-winged fighter with a watertight hull and two retractable hydroskis for takeoff and landing. The prototype was fitted with an experimental single ski, which proved to be more successful than the twin ski design of the second service test aircraft. Testing with several other experimental ski configurations continued with the prototype until 1957, after which it was placed in storage.
The US was not the only country to consider jet skis as an alternative to seaplanes. Saunders-Roe of the United Kingdom, which had already built an experimental airship jet fighter, applied to develop a "ski fighter" but little came of it. In the 1950s, the US Navy considered designs for a submarine aircraft carrier that could carry three of these aircraft. Stored in pressure chambers that would not protrude from the hull, they would be raised by a tethered lift at the stern of the sailand should have taken off on their own on smooth seas, but would have catapulted astern on higher seas. The program has only just reached the "writing on a napkin" stage as two problems have not been solved: the elevator hole would severely weaken the hull, and the load of a loaded elevator would also be difficult to transfer into the hull structure.
Goodyear Inflatoplane
When a tire company tries to enter the aircraft market, you can expect strange results. In 1956, Goodyear Tire responded to market demands for a comfortable aircraft. The open cockpit of the Inflatoplane was made entirely of rubber, except for the motors and control cables. The aircraft fit into a meter long box and could be fully inflated with a bicycle pump in just 15 minutes. The car was an aerodynamic success, as it flew into the air with ease. However, Goodyear had some trouble persuading the military to buy the plane when they pointed out that the plane could be brought down by a single bullet or even a well-aimed slingshot.
History
The original concept of the all-powerful inflatable aircraft was based on Taylor McDaniel's 1931 inflatable fancy flying craft. Designed and built in just 12 weeks, the Goodyear Inflatoplane was built in 1956 with the idea that it could be used by the military as a rescue aircraft. 44 cu.m. container ft (1.25 cu m) could also be transported by truck, jeep trailer, or aircraft. The inflatable surface of thisThe plane was actually a sandwich of two rubber materials connected by a mesh of nylon threads to form an I-beam. When exposed to air, the nylon absorbs and repels water as it cures, giving the aircraft its shape and rigidity. Structural integrity was maintained in flight with air constantly circulated by the aircraft's engine.
Different versions
There were at least two versions of the aircraft: for example, the GA-468 was a single seater. It took about five minutes for it to inflate to about 25 pounds per square inch (170 kPa). The pilot would then begin a two-stroke cycle, starting the 40 hp engine. with. (30 kW) and taking off in an unusual aircraft with a maximum payload of 240 pounds (110 kg). On 20 US gallons (76 L) of fuel, the aircraft could fly 390 miles (630 km) with a sustain of 6.5 hours. Top speed was 72 mph (116 km/h) with a cruising speed of 60 mph. Later, the machine used a 42 horsepower (31 kW) engine.
GA-466 was a two-seat variant, 51 mm shorter but with a longer wingspan (6 ft (1.8 m) difference) than the GA-468. The more powerful (45 kW) McCulloch 4318 engine can propel a 340-kilogram aircraft with a passenger, accelerating it to 70 miles per hour (110 km/h), although the aircraft's range was limited to 275 miles (443 km).
NASA AD1 Pivot-Wing
AD-1 NASA has taken weird plane design standards to a whole new level. Developed in the early 1980s,to test the concept of the oblique wing aircraft, it was an innovation for its time. The idea of this unorthodox and completely new device was to compensate for the disruption of the airflow and increase rationalization. The odd plane flew several missions and did surprisingly well, but the results weren't convincing enough to justify mass production. However, modern drones based on this aircraft design are currently still being developed.
Vought V-173
The Vought V-173 was developed in 1942 as a prototype VTOL aircraft capable of intercepting enemy fighters from aircraft carriers. It was nicknamed the "flying pancake" for its quirky design. The cockpit of the test pilots of this marvel of engineering consisted of an almost perfectly round fuselage, which was also the wing of the machine. Two large engines were supported by huge propellers that could rake the ground with them as they took off. Using exaggerated landing gear, the power system of this unusual aircraft was located on the wings, unlike any other aircraft ever created, both in the past and in our time. Limited demand and an imminent collapse did not prevent the project from going down in history, because it was he who started the line that eventually led to the famous Harridge-Jets aircraft.
Bell P-39 Airacobra
Sometimes it's better for experts to stick to whatthey are capable. During World War II, Bell Helicopters produced a powerful, highly maneuverable fighter aircraft with superior strike and air combat skills. Most planes have their engines in the front, but Bell, being a helicopter company, created a glider with the engine located behind the cockpit. A long shaft turned the propeller at the front, and the craft's design gave it great speed, while propellers around the helicopter-style power source provided an unusual center of gravity. It is said that more planes were shot down by this unusual aircraft in World War II than by any other. True or not, let the reader decide.
SR 71 Blackbird
Even before universal satellite technology reached design specification, a first-class spy plane with unparalleled speed, endurance and ability to reach the edge of outer space, the SR 71 Blackbird, was developed. A fearsome, almost alien ship, the SR 71 had diabolical powers. It was a kind of "flying saucer on Earth." As it soared over six miles, it exceeded 3,000 miles per hour, causing the surface to glow bright red. The hellish scene outside was not comfortable for the pilot, encased in an insulated asbestos cockpit, who had to wait up to half an hour to land to avoid burning his limbs on the hot hull as he exited.
Convair Pogo
Grumman X23, orPogo represents a radical departure from the aviation design norm, transcending all forms of normality and outright absurdity. The body of the Pogo was similar to a conventional aircraft, except for the rotor attached to the nose cone, which lifted it into the air by vertical takeoff. It was a strange flying bath, the effectiveness of which immediately raised doubts among representatives of the American General Staff. Unlike most "normal" aircraft, the Pogo took off nose-up like a rocket with wheels attached to the tails. The canopy retracted 90 degrees outward, forcing the pilot to lie at right angles to the ground as the car was raised. The Pogo was supposed to fly forward, cutting through the air and leveling its body, assuming the pose of a conventional aircraft. Several successful test flights were made, but like many aerial mishaps, the project never got far from the ground.
McDonnell Douglas X-15
The X-15 (aka "Douglas Aircraft") is not the oldest project, but it was such a significant and anomalous leap forward that it remains unrivaled in the aircraft arena. The X-15 rocket was first introduced in 1959, measuring 51 feet, with two tiny 9-foot wings on each side. It was a sensation. A series of tests showed that the Douglas aircraft reached an altitude of 100,000 feet, with two missions qualifying as space flights. During the passage of the aircraft through the atmosphere, a small jetthe rocket reached speeds six times the speed of sound. X-15 was coated with a special nickel alloy similar to that found in natural meteorites. The X-15 foreshadowed the extreme performance series with its heavy weight, high power and low lift. In a way, it was a monoplane aircraft.
Blohm und Voss BV 141
In the natural world, symmetry is the rule for everything from eyes to wings. In reverse engineering principles, nature inspires aircraft designers - this rule holds true for engines, fins and tails. But during World War II, in a clear departure from the norm, German aircraft builders in Dornier conceived a reconnaissance aircraft and light bomber with a single wing and an engine on one side. Although this arrangement looked unbalanced, placing the engine on the right side of the propeller boom counteracted the spin and helped the aircraft fly straight. Thus, this bizarre aircraft not only amazed the people of that time, but also inspired the engineers to create a modern sports aircraft with a similar design.
Caproni Ca.60
Consider a house-boat crossed with an airplane. This was the idea facing the engineer Caproni. This 1920 machine raised the standard for fancy multi-blade aircraft to such a high level that even the Redtoken Red Fokker and the Caspian Monster looked quite ordinary by comparison. Being 70 feet long and weighing up to 55 tons, the giantThe floating aircraft Caproni was built as the first transatlantic airliner in the history of aviation. Based on the theory that enough wings would make even the Titanic fly, the ship-like fuselage was fitted with a stack of three wings in the front, three in the middle, and a third set of three wings in the back instead of a tail. This miracle machine could only be called a triple triplane, and nothing like it was built either before or after it. And even more so, the replicated Super Guppy aircraft, which was not included in this list due to its triviality, cannot be compared with the amazing Caproni apparatus.
Conclusion
Throughout the history of aircraft design, many ambitious, bizarre and extraordinary aircraft have been built by desperate engineers. Many of them ended up in the dustbin of history due to their unsuitability for real use. Some, despite their lack of demand, have become a kind of raw material for more successful projects. And only a select few of these projects were eventually adopted, which makes you wonder.
