Korolyov RP-318

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Korolyov RP-318
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Type: Rocket plane
Design country:

Soviet Union 1923Soviet Union Soviet Union

Manufacturer:
First flight:

February 28, 1940

Number of pieces:

1 prototype

The glider Koroljow RP-318-I (also: Raketoplan or Bolchowitinow RP-318 ) was the first rocket aircraft with liquid propulsion in the history of Soviet aviation . The first flight took place seven months after that of the world's first liquid-powered rocket aircraft, the German Heinkel He 176 .

development

Sergej Koroljow designed the wooden SK-9 (for Sergei Koroljow) together with Alexei Shcherbakov at the Rocket Research Institute (RNII) in 1934 . He benefited from his experience as a designer of glider types, especially the SK-4. The SK-9 was to serve as a carrier aircraft for the ORM-65 rocket engine developed by Valentin Gluschko in 1936 . The liquid thruster operated with nitric acid and kerosene developed a thrust of 1717 N and a combustion chamber pressure of 2.5 MPa. In 1937/38 around thirty test runs were carried out. For the installation in the SK-9 it was modified by Leonid Duschkin to the RDA-1-150 with adjustable thrust in two stages. The resulting rocket glider received the designation RP-318-I ( Russian Ракетны Планёр , Raketny Planjor for rocket glider). It was designed as a middle-decker and had an open cockpit. A main runner under the fuselage and a tail spur served as landing gear. The wing span was 17 meters and the length was seven meters. The mass was 657 kg.

Before the glider could be completed, Korolev was denounced and arrested in June 1938. Viktor Bolchowitinow then continued the work.

First flight

On February 28, 1940, Vladimir Fyodorov took off with the RP-318-1 near Moscow for its maiden flight. The aircraft was towed into the air with a Polikarpow R-5 with observers on board. At an altitude of 2,800 meters it broke away from the tow plane and pilot Vladimir P. Fyodorov switched on the engine, which burned for 110 seconds. The aircraft accelerated from 80 to 140 km / h after five seconds. Eventually it reached a top speed of 160 km / h. A number of test flights were carried out. The attempts ultimately resulted in the 1941 BI-1 rocket fighter .

Technical specifications

Parameter Data
Years of construction 1936-1939
constructor Sergei Korolyov
Crew / passengers 1
span 17.00 m
length 7.90 m
Wing area 22.00 m²
Wing loading 29.9 kg / m²
Empty mass 580 kg
Takeoff mass 657 kg
Engines an RDA-1-150
thrust 1.4 kN
Engine burn time 110 s
Top speed 140 km / h
Rate of climb 3 m / s
Summit height 2900 m

literature

Web links