Vertol VZ-2
| Vertol VZ-2 | |
|---|---|
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|
|
| Type: | Experimental VTOL aircraft |
| Design country: | |
| Manufacturer: | |
| First flight: |
August 13, 1957 |
| Commissioning: |
- |
| Production time: |
- |
| Number of pieces: |
1 |
The Vertol VZ-2 (Manufacturer description: Model 76) was an experimental VTOL - convertible aircraft of the US manufacturer Vertol Aircraft Corporation in the late 1950s. Only one example was built with the USAF / Army serial number 56-6943. The VZ-2 was the first tilt-wing aircraft ever.
history
The development of the VZ-2 goes back to an order of the US Army and the Office of Naval Research from April 15, 1956. A tilt-wing aircraft was to be developed for the investigation of fundamental problems of VTOL aircraft with this structural design. After the first take-off in hover flight on August 13, 1957, the first transition from hovering to level flight (transition) followed on July 23, 1958. After extensive testing by the Army and Navy, the machine was handed over to NASA in 1960 , which it continued to operate until 1965 . During this time, NASA redesigned the wing to increase stability when descending and strengthened the drive transmission system.
Overall, the VZ-2 carried out 450 flights with a total flight time of over 50 hours, of which 273 were flights with changes in flight status including 34 complete transitions.
construction
The fuselage was constructed as a tubular grid fuselage and was initially unclad. The heavily glazed bow pulpit, which was equipped with double controls, was rebuilt several times during the trial period. Two small ducted propellers were built into the base of the T-tail , which supported steering around the vertical and transverse axes at low speeds . The control around the longitudinal axis took place in hovering flight by a differential adjustment of the propeller blades.
The Lycoming YT-53 shaft turbine sat on the fuselage and propelled two large propellers arranged in front of the leading edge of the wing via a reduction gear and long-distance shafts. The all-metal rectangular wing including the propeller could be tilted between 0 ° and 90 °, but a start could also be made in any intermediate position.
Whereabouts
The aircraft is owned by the National Air and Space Museum but is currently (2010) not on display.
Technical specifications
| Parameter | Data |
|---|---|
| crew | 2 (side by side) |
| length | 8.05 m |
| span | 7.59 m |
| height | 4.57 m |
| Propeller / rotor diameter | 2.90 m |
| Empty mass | 1678 kg |
| Top speed | 340 km / h |
| Service ceiling | 4200 m |
| Engines | 1 × Lycoming YT53-L-1 shaft turbine with 522 kW (700 WPS) |
See also
literature
- Karlheinz Kens: Airplane types - type book of international aviation . 4th edition. Carl Lange Verlag, Duisburg, 1963.
Web links
- Data and photos on aviastar.org (accessed October 24, 2016)