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Aviation History
1936
1936 - 2330.PDF
AUGUST 27, 193&.- FLIGHT. 223 The general arrangement of the Koolhoven F.K.50 B bomber. VI.S. engines it is claimed to be capable of 248 m.p.h. As the structure is generally similar to that of the F.K.50 the following description will deal mainly with the military features. The fuselage is arranged to accommodate a crew of four. In the nose is a transparent turret for a single machine gun, the angles of fire being 70 degrees to port and starboard and 50 degrees upward and downward. The bomb aimer, who also operates the wireless, is located behind the turret and is able to communicate directly with other members of the crew. The fuselage has been specially reinforced in order to avoid vibration of the bomb sight. If necessary the bomb-aimer can easily replace the pilot, whose enclosed cockpit is situated directly in front of the wing. The pilot has blind-flying instruments and emergency bomb releases. Aft of the wing are two further gun positions. The upper one has a collapsible top, which, when open, shelters the gunner against the pressures of the airstream, and the lower one can be operated by the same gunner, as the floor be tween the two posts does not cover the entire width of the fuselage. The lower gun can fire 90 degrees to the right and left and 90 degrees downwards. The bomb racks are located on the C.G. Unlike the commercial machine, the bomber incorporates a retractable undercarriage. This is fitted with Koolhoven oleo shock absorbers, low-pressure tyres and hydraulic brakes, and can be retracted by a single movement on the part of the pilot. A signal gives warning of the exact posi tion. When raised the wheels are housed in the engine nacelles. The machine will take engines of about 700 h.p. the following performance figures relating to it as fitted with two 605/645 h.p. Mercury VISs, which are rated at 12,500 ft. Controllable pitch airscrews are specified. The main data are : Weight empty 7,165 lb., gross weight 12,787 lb., bomb load 2,200 lb., cruising speed at 15,580 ft. 223 m.p.h., landing speed with flaps and without bomb load 62 m.p.h., climb to 19,680 ft. 18 min., absolute ceiling 28,215 ft., range at cruising speed 710 miles. Vought Scout Bomber Monoplane A naval air service cannot afford to disregard progress made in the design of military aircraft intended only for land operation. Due to special requirements in the matters of design and equipment ship-planes are usually slightly inferior in all-round performance as compared with corres ponding landplanes, but with the adoption of the mono plane the margin is being kept small. The U.S. Navy has been experimenting with a number of scout bombers, dive bombers and fighters—all monoplanes—and has ordered large batches for service equipment. The Vought XSB2U-1 is an experimental scout bomber monoplane of metal construction with fabric covering. Its engine is a fourteen-cylinder, two-row Pratt and Whitney Twin Wasp Junior of about 700 h.p., and the airscrew is one of the new constant-speed Hamiltons. The cowling has flaps for controllable cooling. One of the most interesting features is the retractable undercarriage, each half of which is arranged to twist dur ing retraction so that the wheel lies flat within a recess in the wing. This arrangement saves structural complication as compared with the more usual laterally retracting gear. Pilot and observer are carried in a transparent enclosure. A Browning gun is fitted to a track-type mounting at the rear, and the pilot has a similar weapon. Night flying equipment and arrester gear to engage with the transverse cables on the deck of an aircraft carrier are carried. An enlightening view of the new Vought scout bomber with Pratt and Whitney Twin Wasp Junior engine and constant-speed airscrew.
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