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Aviation History
1931
1931 - 0005.PDF
FLIGHT, JANUARY 2, 1931 THE FOCKE-WULF " ENTE " : Note the pilot's cockpit, the cabin door,and the petrol tanks in the wing. Standing by the machine are Herr Focke and the firm's chief test pilot, Herr Edzard. something of a sensation. The internationally well-knownscientists of this institute, funds of which are anything but abundant, must have seen a very promising future for thistype of plane, or thev would not have dared to invest con- siderable sums in its development. In fact, the plans metwith the whole-hearted support, not only of this institute, but also of several technical colleges ; for instance, at Goettingen,where the responsible men allowed the wind tunnel to be used for months on end, to the exclusion of all other im-portant work, for investigations on the new canard plane. Also at Aachen (Aix-la-Chapelle) leading scientists offeredand gave their full assistance. This lengthy introduction, I feel, is justified, for thereare exceedingly few aircraft engineer* anywhere that have ever given the possibilities of the " canard " plane anythought. Before describing the new plane, which has put up a most creditable performance, it may, therefore, be worth while just to mention thepoints in favour of the " canard " type plane.There are several main advan- tages inherent in the " canard "wing arrangement as compared with the usual wing arrangementnow generally adopted. First of all, the " canard," plane cannot,under any circumstances, turn on its nose when landing, for thecentre of gravity lies far away from the front end. This means greatlvenhanced safety and fool-proofness, especially as it also admits of mak-ing full use of the wheel brakes when landing and thus cuttingshort considerably the landing run. Secondly, and much moreimportant, is the fact that it is impossible to stall a " canard,"plane, for the front wing of this has a considerably higher angle ofincidence than the main wing. This means that the small frontwing will reach the burbling point correspondingly sooner than themain wing. As then, however, the front part of the machine immedi-ately ceases to rise, owing to the front wing ceasing to support it,the rear wing can never reach the burbling point. Thus one gravecause of accidents is entirely eliminated, especially if, as is the case with the present Focke-Wulf " Ente "* a type of mainwing is used that anyhow positively precludes any possibiility of a spin developing, as has been definitely and conclusivelyproven. Thirdly, in the event of the machine hitting an obstacle on the ground, the passengers are comparatively safe from in-jury as the long fore-part of the machine protects them. This is all the more the case if, as in the present Focke-Wulf " Ente,"two engines are employed, which are located right and left of the fuselage under the main wing, for if these drop out oftheir mountings in a crash, they cannot crush the passen- gers. A peculiar advantage attaching to bi-motored " canard"planes is that some of the power lost by the formation of air eddies behind the front wing can be regained by letting thepropellers in front of the main wing turn in the opposite * " Ente " is the German word for duck or, in French, " Canard."—Ed. SPAN .. .32-10' . . LENGTH 34-6" MAIN WING AREA... 317-0 SQ.FT. FRONT WING AREA. . 64-6 SQ.FT. TOTAL AREAS... 381-6 SQ.FT. FOCKE.-WULF ENTE 2-HOW SIEMENS Sh-14 ENGINES THE FOCKE-WULF "ENTE " : General Arrangement Drawings. Note the peculiar plan form of the front plane. 5 c2 -•••--•;, •... - - • ".-... ./
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