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Aviation History
1952
1952 - 1378.PDF
598 FLIGHT COMMERCIAL AIRCRAFT TODAY . . . The Boeing Stratocruiser (above), heaviest trans port aircraft in service, bears a close relationship to the B-50 bomber; the Douglas DC-4 (below, left) is a straightforward adaptation of the wartime Skymaster transport. surized fuselage is at present usually fitted to seat either 84 or 107 in commendable comfort; performance, however, is insuffi cient to enable this fine aircraft to meet impending competition on anything like an equal footing. Span, 160ft 7in; length, 129ft "in. wing area, 2>542 sqft; weight empty, 83,190 lb; gross weight, 165,000 lb; typical performance: 3,730 miles at 280 m.p.h. (50 per cent power) at 20,000ft. Breda-Zappata Bz.308. Unpressurized but otherwise com parable in size, appearance and capacity with better-known large airliners, the Italian Bz.308 is powered by four Bristol Centaurus 568 engines, each delivering 2,506 h.p. and driving five-blade air screws. Commercial application of this version is not foreseen, but the manufacturers have announced a plan for fitting the Bz.308 with more powerful engines (compounded Wright Cyclone of 3,250 h.p.) and a pressurized cabin. In present form the aircraft can carry 54 passengers in two separate compartments or 31 passengers and some 8,000 lb of freight. Span, 138ft 2in; length, iioft; wing area, 2,240 sqft; weight empty, 60,600 lb; gross weight, 102,500 lb; cruising speed at 11,500ft, 267 m.p.h.; normal range, 3,730-3,975 miles. Boeing Stratocruiser. Six versions of America's famous Stratocruiser, the heaviest civil airliner in service in the world, are in service with four separate airlines; they differ only in passenger accommodation. Normally about 60 passengers are carried— sometimes, on luxury services, even fewer—but with galley re moved and extra seats installed the aircraft would be capable of Recently introduced into service on the North Atlantic route, the Douglas DC-6B (right) is a "stretched" version of the post-war DC-6 pictured below. Deliveries of and orders for these two designs total approximately 250. carrying 104 passengers on high-density services; as yet, however, no operator has modified Stratocruisers for such work. A typical example is B.O.A.C.'s Model 377-10-32, which has seats for 12 in the lounge on the lower of the two decks and for 60 on the upper; when sleeping accommodation is provided for 24 on the upper deck seats remain for 28. The "double-bubble" fuselage is fully pressurized to give sea-level cabin pressure at 15,000ft and an atmosphere equivalent to 5,500ft at 25,000ft. The upper deck accommodates the control cabin and the main passenger compartment, while on the lower are two cargo holds of 845 cu.ft. capacity, in addition to the lounge. The power units, quickly interchangeable, are four P. and W. Wasp Majors, each rated at 2,800 h.p. (3,500 h.p. with water- injection at take-off). Other notable features of the Stratocruiser are its thermal de-icing equipment on all leading edges, horizontal- folding fin and rudder and power-boosted rudder control. Span, 141ft 3in; length, iioft 4m; wing area, 1,769 sqft; weight empty, 83,5001b; gross weight, 145,8001b; max. cruising speed on 1,900 h.p. per engine, 340 m.p.h. at 25,000ft; range, 3,550 miles with 20,000 lb payload. Douglas DC-4. Only 79 genuine post-war Douglas DC-4S were produced, but the designation is also applied to converted C-54 Skymasters, of which over 1,160 were constructed for the U.S. Armed Forces during the war. In commercial form the aircraft is normally equipped to carry 22-44 passengers. The power units are four P. and W. Twin Wasps, each delivering 1,450 h.p. for take-off. Span, 117ft 6in; length, 93ft nin; wing area, 1,457 sq ft; gross weight, 63,500 lb; max. cruising speed at 20,800ft, 227 m.p.h.; absolute range, 3,200 miles. ^^i^<^N«fl JULUi^^aBnianO^ Douglas DC-6. One of the most successful large airliners in the world (175 were delivered), the DC-6 is a larger and more powerful version of the DC-4. The cabin, which is pressurized to an equivalent atmosphere of 8,000ft at a height of 20,000ft, can be fitted to carry from 26 passengers (sleeper version) to 70 (coach layout). The engines are P. and W. R.2800-CA 15s rated at 2,400 h.p. for take-off with water injection. Reversible airscrews are fitted. Span, 117ft 6in; length, 100ft 7in; wing area, 1,457 sqft; weight empty, 51,495 lb; gross weight, 97,2001b; cruising speed, 313 m.p.h. at 20,400ft; normal range, 3,820 miles. Douglas DC-6A Liftmaster. The Liftmaster is a freight-carrying version of the DC-6, having an entirely new fuselage five feet longer than that of the DC-6. It is powered by four P. and W. R.2800-CB17 engines, each delivering 2,500 h.p. at take-off. The main cabin, which is pressurized to permit carriage of perishable goods at high altitude, is of constant cross-section and offers a total cargo-space of 5,000 cu ft. Large upward-
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