FlightGlobal.com
Home
Premium
Archive
Video
Images
Forum
Atlas
Blogs
Jobs
Shop
RSS
Email Newsletters
You are in:
Home
Aviation History
1920
1920 - 1187.PDF
NOVEMBER 18, 1920 THE F.I.A.T. TWELVE-SEATER BIPLANE UP to now large machines carrying passengers to the numberof ten or more have generally been of one type, in which multiple-engines are mounted on the wings, either in separatenacelles, or in auxiliary fuselages as in the Caproni. The single tractor-screw fuselage type of machine is practicallyunknown in the " larger sizes." No doubt the principal reason against the use of this type for large machines is thequestion of obtaining single engines of sufficiently high power, or the difficulty of gearing satisfactorily more than one engineto a single screw. « The well-known House of Fiat, however, have recentlydesigned a large tractor biplane, which, apart from the question of type, possesses several interesting features, andwe give herewith a description, together with scale drawings, of this machine.The principal feature of' this machine consists of the arrangement of the power plant. This is the patent Fiattriple-engine unit, which is mounted in the nose of the fuselage as in an ordinary single-engine tractor machine.It consists of three vertical engines grouped side by side, each driving a single tractor screw through a gear-box.Should any one of the three engines develop trouble, it is automatically cut out from engagement. Means is alsoprovided whereby any of the engines may be disengaged by the pilot or mechanic, as required, thus enabling certainrepairs or adjustments being made whilst in the air. As the maximum combined horse-power developed by the threeengines (900 h.p.) is well above that required for normal flight, the cutting-out of one engine—whether by accidentor design—-results only in a decreased r.p.m. of the tractor screw, with a corresponding decrease in the speed of theaeroplane, which is, however, quite sufficient for safe flying. It is claimed for this arrangement that it possesses theadvantages of the single-engined tractor type, combined with those of the multiple-engined systems. The maximumhorse-power of 900 (1,850 r.p.m.) is only occasionally used, the normal power developed being 700 h.p. (1,600 r.p.m.),when the speed of the machine is in the neighbourhood of 115 m.p.h.—the maximum speed is 125 m.p.h., whilst it isclaimed that the landing speed is as low as 50 m.p.h. The arrangement of the fuselage also has several pointsof interest. The fuselage is exceptionally deep overall, being only a little less in depth than the gap of the planes, themeasurements being 8 ft. 3 ins., and 8 ft. 6 ins. respectively. The main structure of the fuselage, carrying the principalweights—power-plant, tanks, cabin, etc.—forms the lower half, the upper half being, to all intents and purposes, acowling or turtle deck. The main structure is a combina- tion of girder and 3-ply construction, rectangular in cross-section and tapering to a vertical knife-edge at the rear. The middle portion of the fuselage constitutes the passengers'cabin and lavatory. The main cabin is 10 ft. 6 ins. in length, and has an average height and width of 6 ft. and 5 ft. respec-tively. There are two rows of five comfortably-upholstered seats, with a central gangway between them, from which twoflights of steps—one coming from the pilot's cockpit in front —lead to a trap-door in the bottom of the fuselage, the floorof the cabin being about two feet above the latter. In the sides of the cabin above the top longitudinal of the main fuselage structure are sliding windows, extending from end to end, and providing a fairly good view below.At the rear of the cabin is a small compartment fitted as a lavatory. The pilot's and mechanic's cockpit is locatedimmediately in front of the cabin, high up in the fuselage, beneath the front main spar of the top plane. In thisposition the pilot has an excellent view forward and down- ward, although somewhat restricted in an upward direction.If necessary, the mechanic can take control of the machine by means of a dual-control system. The pilot's cockpitis separated from the engine compartment immediately in front by a partition in which is a sliding door giving accessto the engines. A certain amount of warm air, from the radiator, is allowed to enter the pilot's cockpit.The fuel tanks, which have a total capacity sufficient for a flight of 6 hours or 600-750 miles, are located below thefloor of the cockpit and stairway leading from the latter to the cabin.The main planes have neither sweep-back nor stagger, but the lower plane, which is of shorter span than the upperone, is set at a dihedral angle of about 2 degs. Except for the incidence wires there is no external wire bracing, owingto the employment of the Warren type of interplane-strut bracing.Ailerons are fitted to the top plane only, and these are balanced by means of a small horizontal surface mounted in The F . I. A . T . Twelve - S e a t e r Biplane : A cross- section through the fuselage (cabin portion) front of and above the aileron. The rudder and elevatorsare balanced in the usual way, by means of forward projecting surfaces.The angle of incidence of the tail plane can be adjusted from the pilot's cockpit whilst ihe machine is inflight. A strong four-wheeled undercarriage is fitted, one pair ofwheels, carried by a V-type chassis, being situated below the THE F.I.A.T. TWELVE-SEATER BIPLANE : Sectional sideshowing cabin arrangement, etc. elevation of the fustlage,
Sign up to
Flight Digital Magazine
Flight Print Magazine
Airline Business Magazine
E-newsletters
RSS
Events
