Now that we're sharpened up ---

[Britbrat]

More trivia--

1. What large German WWII period transport featured multi-wheeled landing gear that permitted the AC to kneel down (like a C5A) for loading?

2. In 1947, the sole example of a US weather research AC was scrapped. What was the former bomber?

3. What was the last twin-engined prop-driven bomber tested by the USAAF?

4. What was the ultimate destiny of the design in question 3?

5. Prior to the Bristol Brabazon of 1949, what was the largest land aircraft built in the UK?

6. What US prop-driven bomber featured six engines, a 10-wheeled main landing gear & provision for 7 defensive guns?

7. What is a Ching-Kuo?

8. What East European business twin unexpectedly captured the Norton Griffiths Trophy at the National Air Races of 1949?

9. The P-35 had two lineal descendents -- one was decidedly unsuccessful & one was highly successful -- what were they?

10. In 1941, what US aircraft was fitted with British electronics, & pressed into service as a stop-gap night fighter?

Bonus -- What famous aircraft was fuelled with insecticide?

[Wayne]

#9 the successful one was the P-47.....both the Severski XP-41, and the Republic p-43 were unsucessful offspring.



,,,good questions !!!!!

[Elwyn]

On #3 was it possible a pusher?

On # 10 I'm guessing Db-7.

[JimCasey]

1. Messerschmidt Gigant. Converted glider originally pulled into the air by 3 MRE-110s or 3 HE-111s. With engines on the wings it was a fabric-covered overcast and the biggest sitting duck ever. Nose-loaded, it could bow down to ease the trip up the ramps.

[jetmex]

#10 would be the Douglas A-20, which in the night fighter configuration was known as the P-70.

[Britbrat]

Progress to date:

Wayne has #9 -- I actually forgot about the Severski XP-41, so there were three descendents from the P-35.

Jamie got #10 -- the A-20/P70 is the machine. Elwyn gets a share -- the USAAF A-20 Havoc had a deeper fuselage than the DB-7 Boston, which was in service with the Brits & French (despite the same factory DB-7 designation).

#3 Nope

#1 Nope -- The AC in question had adjustable landing gear to permit lowering for loading.

Galvin is lurking somewhere, but seems curiously silent. ;D

[jetmex]

#6 would be the Witteman-Lewis XNBL-1, otherwise known as the Barling Bomber, after its designer:

www.wpafb.af.mil/museum/research/bombers/b1-10.htm

#7 The Ching-Kuo is an indigenous Taiwanese multi role fighter design that sort of looks like a mutated F-16:

www.globalaircraft.org/planes/ching-kuo.pl

[Wayne]

Wow...looks like the offspring from an F-16 and F-18 encounter......

[jetmex]

Could #3 be the Douglas XB-42 Mixmaster? If it is, the sole survivor of the two built is said to be at the Garber restoration facility of the NASM.

The basic design was later modified into the USAF's first jet bomber, the XB-43.

[Britbrat]

Nice going Jamie.

You got 3,4,6 & 7 ;D

[jetmex]

#1 -- Arado AR-232 "Tausenfussler" had telescoping main landing gear that would lower it onto a series of smaller wheels on the belly for easier cargo loading. Some good pics here:

www.studenten.net/customasp/axl/plane.asp?cat_id=10&ple_id=451&page=0

Could #8 be the Miles Gemini? Just a WAG on this one......

[jetmex]

#5--Avro Lincoln?

[Britbrat]

Jamie -- ya got #1

#5 nope -- it was a bit further back in aviation history, but it was a big mother.

[Galvin]

the USAAF A-20 Havoc had a deeper fuselage than the DB-7 Boston, which was in service with the Brits & French (despite the same factory DB-7 designation).

Not quite so fast there, mate. ;D

The original model 7 was a Bill Northrup design that would have featured two early 450 HP R-1830 radials if it had been built, which, thankfully, it wasn't. It was then redesigned a couple of times by Douglas after Northrup left to start his own company and the DB-7B prototype resulted, its first flight being in 1938. It crashed early in flight test but not before the french purchasing commission saw its promise and ordered a bunch.

However, the french and the USAAC wanted a more decent bombload so the fuselage was deepened to accomodate this need. The ill-fated DB-7B prototype therefore became the only airplane of the series built with the shallow fuselage. All subsequent aircraft of the design series were essentially structurally and dimensionally the same. Some early DB-7s were built with twin vertical tails but not delivered that way, the size of the vertical fin being increased after the first french order.

Later mods were many, including larger engines, a powered dorsal turret, and just about the most varied number of gun pack and glass nose options added to any airplane design.

Here is the prototype:



And here is the first of many production aircraft:


(The fact that the post-war Aero Commander series light twins looked a lot like A-20s had a lot to do with the same design team coming up with it. I also used to work across the runway from where most of the DB-7s, Bostons, and A-20s were built at Santa Monica Airport.)

[Galvin]

The bonus is the YF-12/SR-71 series. One of the principal components of the high-flashpoint, non-foaming, high altitude JP-7 fuel is also used in several forms of insecticide and its initial production actually caused a temporary shortage of bug killer.

www.centennialofflight.gov/essay/Evolution_of_Technology/fuel/Tech21.htm

My very first flying student got me a job in the standards lab at Lockheed in 1971 doing calibration work I had previously done for Rocketdyne. In the course of talking with him at work I found out that he had previously been one of the crew that had daily commuted to Groom Lake (Area 51) on Lockheed's 1649 Connie shuttle during the later development of the SR-71. One of the odd things he let slip was that the fuel for the Blackbird was supposedly nicknamed "RLF" because it was said to be very close in formulation to Ronson Lighter Fluid.

5.) If "land aircraft" is the only criterion, then the British airship R-101 has to be the hands-down winner. Here is a little weirdness associated with its crash.www.euro-tongil.org/swedish/english/er101.htm

[Galvin]

8.) What East European business twin unexpectedly captured the Norton Griffiths Trophy at the National Air Races of 1949?

Given the fact that the previous three Norton-Griffiths trophy races were won by a Mr. Bowles in a Miles Gemini, Hawk, or Messenger (My info doesn't say which) I'll take a wild guess. There was a very efficiently performing twin-engined aircraft (that would have competed in the same class as the British Gemini) being built for export in Czechoslovakia at that time. It was called the Aero 45. So that is my guess

[Galvin]

A Boeing B-29-100BW S/N 21847 that was being used as a dedicated weather research aircraft crashed into Lake Mead in Nevada on July 21, 1948. The crew was able to get clear and the airplane sank. It wasn't exactly "scrapped" as much as "wrecked" and has been located sitting on the bottom in 250' of water. It is pretty beat up and is missing three engines, which were ripped off in the crash. www.indepthconsulting.com/B29/B29Lost.htm

[Britbrat]

Well done Galvin, the Aero is it.

Nope on the B-29 -- this one was scrapped -- & the sole example

[Galvin]

How about the "largest land aircraft built in Great Britain" and the aircraft that runs on bug juice? I took a shot at those earlier.

[Britbrat]

The YF-12/SR-71 is correct.

The R101 is not what I had in mind, although an interesting argument -- I'm referring to a conventional aircraft.