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Aviation History
1936
1936 - 0069.PDF
JANUARY 9, 1936. FLIGHT. 33 The Martin B - 10 bomber has met with extraordinary suc cess. With two Wright Cyclone en gines of over 700 h.p. a speed of 215 m.p.h. is attained. An improved type is at present the subject of Air Corps experi ments. -he Boeing bomber, built five or six years ago. With two Pratt and Whitney Hornets, of a type now obsolescent, this machine was capable of over 180 m.p.h., and could earn' a bomb load of 2,400 lb. Its two Hornets were mounted forward of the leading edge of its cantilever wing, its undercarriage was retractable (but bombs were carried externally), and its fuselage was characterised by almost constant depth from nose to tail. This type was never put into quantity production. Probably the most successful bomber so far produced in America is the Martin, the B-10 version of which is, per haps, the best known. A description of this type was given in Flight of September 19 last year. In everyday use with the U.S. Army Air Corps, a number of Martins are put ting up some brilliant performances, and not long ago a group of them distinguished itself by making a fast survey trip into Alaska. Without doubt the Martin has a higher performance than any machine of its type in service with any air force. A Neu> Martin The past few months have seen the appearance and initial tests of a new and much-improved Martin bomber —a development of the B-10—which is entered in the present U.S. bomber competition alongside a new Douglas. The Boeing entry, the four-engined 299, was destroyed in an accident. Like its forerunner, the Martin is a mid- wing a-11-metal monoplane carrying a normal crew of four or five. Three Browning guns are provided, and the bomb load is stowed internally, being released through trap doors in the "belly." The engines are of an improved Wright Cyclone type, giving over 800 h.p. each, and driving Hamilton constant-speed aircrews. The span is 76ft., the all-up weight about ten tons, and included in the equip ment are a radio compass, automatic pilot and two-way radio. Having regard to the cleaning-up (the three cock pit installations merge into the lines of the fuselage more efficiently than on the B-10) and the extra power, the maximum speed should be at least 235 m.p.h., for the B-10 does 215 m.p.h. at 6,500 feet. Some time ago, it is reported, the French Governmeut was considering ordering a number of Martins, but no contract was ever placed. One French manufacturer, who has lately produced a somewhat startling multiplace do combat monoplane comparable with the Martin, has taken the somewhat unethical course of publishing, in his house journal, a tabulated comparison between his product and the Martin B-10. He proceeds to show that the French machine stands head and shoulders above the American on almost every score. Certain discrepancies appear to have crept in, however, and as a document of extreme technical importance the table has not been received with acclamation. One of the greatest blows struck at American military aviation during recent years was the recent disaster to the Boeing 299 bomber. The story goes that the pilot took off for a test flight with locked controls, and that the machine crashed from 200 feet. Measuring about 100 feet in span (roughly equal to the Fairey Hendon, which is less than half as powerful) the 299 was fitted with four Pratt and Whitney Hornets mounted in line abreast along the leading edge of the cantilever wing. The undercarriage retracted into the nacelles of the inboard power units. Armament installations of a secret nature featured in the design, and an automatic pilot, two-way wireless and a radio compass were specified. Before it was destroyed the 299 distinguished itself by flying for 2,300 miles at an average speed of 232 m.p.h. There are indications that the four-engined bomber will soon assume a prominent place in the equipment of the major air services. The Boeing company is said to have up its sleeve another machine of this type, to be fitted, according to one report, with prestone-cooled Allison " X " engines of about 1,000 h.p. each, and in Europe the Farman pioneer type in the development of the modern long-range high-speed bombing monoplane, this Boeing, built five or six years ago, was capable of 180 m.p.h.
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