FlightGlobal.com
Home
Premium
Archive
Video
Images
Forum
Atlas
Blogs
Jobs
Shop
RSS
Email Newsletters
You are in:
Home
Aviation History
1963
1963 - 2311.PDF
Air-fashion Vehicles FLIGHT International supplement, 24 October 1%$ LETTERS TO THE EDITOR... Over-land Operation SIR,—It seems from Mr Phillips' reply in your July issue to my letter in the May issue that I did not make clear the point I had in mind. It is simply that in any vehicle depending upon soil-thrust for propulsion, the maximum thrust obtainable, H = AC 4- W tan #. By applying ground effect to such a vehicle A will usually be reduced and W will always be reduced. It will also reduce the tractive resistance. As Mr Phillips says, the target is the maximum value of the difference between the soil thrust and the tractive resistance. There are, however, many soils one has to contend with abroad which have low values of both C and 0, and both A and W have to be kept to the maximum if sufficient soil thrust is to be obtained for any forward motion. In these cases ground effect and the removal of the thrust from the soil may be one solution, while no ground effect and appropriate contact area and weight on the soil may be another. Oxted, Surrey ROGER M. BUSSY [Mr Phillips writes: "The only matter on which Mr Bussy and I differ is his suggestion of an air-propelled wheeled vehicle. It seems to me that if the vehicle moves sufficiently slowly for wheel drag to be acceptable then the tractive effort available from the wheels will be much greater than that from air propulsion for the same power. If the vehicle moves fast enough for air propulsion to be efficient then the wheel drag will be of an unacceptable order. I can visualize no conditions in which a combin ation of wheel steering with air propulsion would constitute the best operating con dition."] Dream Cars and Cherry Blossom SIR,—I am taking in your magazine and I have felt like writing to you from Japan. In our country there is no constitutional army; so the research of "air-cushion vehicles" deserving the name has not been performed, except by some small laboratories. Still, now the ACVs are in general called "dream cars" or "the future cars." As Japan is an insular country, like your country, ACVs will be used to a great extent. I am interested in ACVs (otherwise I might not read this maga zine). I have already designed and built a 62 number of models. The first is a very simple one but efficiency and stabiliza tion proved very bad. The second uses a 0.99cm3 glow-engine but is so light that I have equipped it with a wing and a jet nozzle as a stabilizer. This model hovered over the water. The third uses an electric motor and its body is made of foam plastic. The motor is remotely controlled. I am now working on a fourth model, to be radio-controlled and having a 1.5cm3 engine. Osaka, Japan KITSUO YOSHIOKA Mr Yoshioka and his latest project (letter above) Civil and Military Uses SIR,—From a number of articles on air- cushion vehicles I have noticed that on the civil side there is a slackening of progress from slowness of orders, while on the military side the thinking appears to be that we must produce a vehicle to do only one job. The reason for this on the civil side is that there is insufficient capital to pro duce a variety of types in quantity with out firm orders; and on the military side because the planners are trying to make a vehicle with its own plane run along the paths of other vehicles, in a similar way to that in which the Army over looked opportunities with the first aircraft. By using a standard frame and vari ations in quantity of engines and fuel capacity, hovercraft could be produced in numbers and fitted out for particular civil land transport or coastal transport jobs. Cost of production, being reduced because of the basic design's having military or civil possibilities, would attract military orders, allowing a production line to be started which could continue building civil variants as required—each one bearing lower tool ing costs than "one off" craft do. Thus, by exploiting the hovercraft's special plane, greater exploitation and sale of it would be possible. For example: large Atlantic liners which are turning to long cruises in search of the sun and profits could, by civil application of the military ideas mentioned below, pick up passengers from many ports without docking; so more people, with less distance to travel to meet the ship, would be encouraged to go. To evolve a standard frame having acceptable mili tary capability and civilian mass pro duction potential, here is one answer. Today's emphasis on bush-fire wars and the need for rapid attendance of troops has given us the commando carriers, through which the chance for the hovercraft lies, because of these tactical requirements which one craft can fulfil;— (a) initial assault from the sea requires that the landing craft should be safe from air attack, the infantry given covering fire to the last possible moment and sufficient armour to open the bridge head; (b) there should be rapid re-supply to the bridgehead from the sea up to reserve formations; (c) ships engaged in re-supply should be guarded against air and surface attack. To fulfil (a) the craft must have a capacity of approximately 110 tons and carry this load 150 miles at 12kt. It must have the added ability of travelling at will at an over-water speed of 30kt. With the bow ramp raised the foremost of two Chieftain tanks should be able to fire over it as the vehicle approaches the shore at 30kt, this extra burst of power coming from light turbojet packs which with fuel tanks could be attached or detached by the parent ship as required. Such a vehicle would cruise from the parent ship, then accelerate for its run-in to the shore under fire. Its essential armament would be nests of Seacat missiles of the motor-torpedo- boat type with their potential against ground targets, light shipping and aircraft. By removing the turbojet packs and armour plating the range could be extended, permitting the vehicle to do tank transporting or trucking while providing constant AA defence (require ment b); to fulfil (c) the craft must have a lengthened range for which the secondary compartments are used. These, situated one in each side of the craft, would carry thirty troops into action or, with seats folded, leave a space for fuel tanks, fitted by the parent ship when, with the increased range, the craft becomes a mobile missile battery. Armoured plating would consist oi removable standard side-plates giving a variable e.g. by stacking as required. As to the parent-ship requirements, existing ships of the new Fearless class, without the expense of buoyancy tanK for changing their draught, would ue suitable with certain internal alterations to take the necessary armoured vehicles. Portsmouth, Hants M.J.WW I
Sign up to
Flight Digital Magazine
Flight Print Magazine
Airline Business Magazine
E-newsletters
RSS
Events
