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Aviation History
1939
1939 - 0920.PDF
MARCH 30, 1939 FLIGHT. c BOMBER SHAPES AND SIZES Japanese light bomber. lkarus Orkan (Yugoslavia). Block 174 (France). Avia B.158 (Czechoslovakia). Standard Russian bomber. That the design of bombing aircraft is as yet far from finality may be deduced from the above Flight sketches. Nevertheless, in certain categories there are machines which bear a marked resemblance to other types, either as a result of deliberate copying or through coincidence of thought in the design office. This is exemplified by the similarity between the Breda 88, a standard fighter-bomber —said to do well over 300 m.p.h.—of the Italian Air Force, and the Yugoslav Ikarus Orkan. The Dewoitine 770 is an interesting projected type, which may or may not be built, incorporating a lower gun posi tion not unlike that of the Handley Page Hampden. Another projected design, the NC no B5, is a nve-seater bomber fitted with four Hispano-Suiza engines, each pair driving concentric airscrews. It will be seen that this is an extremely clean design, and should show a superior performance to corresponding four-engined types having radial engines in line abreast ahead of the wing. The Douglas (Northrop) is believed to be the type ordered in quantity by France. It is also believed to have two Twin Wasps or the new 1,500 h.p. two-row Wright Cyclones and certainly has a tricycle undercarriage. The top speed is probably rather more than 300 m.p.h. The Japanese bomber, the Russian, and the German Junkers Ju.86 are included because they are well-established standard types. The Russian has obviously been developed from the American Martin, but instead of radials it has water-cooled engines with nose radiators. Fitted with two Gnome-Rhone 14N engines of over 1,000 h.p. each, the Bloch 174 is a fast light bomber or attack machine, built for the French Air Force. The Czech Avia B.158 is in the same category. The little Henschel Hs.123 biplane in the centre is used in the German Air Force as a light dive bomber, though it makes quite a good single-seater fighter when shorn of its bomb-dropping gear. It is fitted with a B.M.W. 132 engine and carries four bombs of no lb. each in racks beneath the wings.
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