Aerospace Projects Review Blog – Page 23 – Unbuilt aircraft and Spacecraft Projects

“Intercity Transport” art

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May 142021

Another strange piece of 1970’s/early 1980’s Boeing art, this time depicting an “Intercity Transport.” What’s going on with that circular “inlet” on the rear upper fuselage? Damnfino. Just visible under the wing root is a low-set inlet, so that would seem to provide what’s needed for the propulsion system. If there was a vertical thrust system in the nose, and good low-speed control systems on the outer wings, then that circular inlet would be fore a VTOL system. But on its own? Hmmm.

The full rez scan of the artwork has been made available at 300 DPI to all $4/month patrons/subscribers in the 2021-05 APR Extras folder at Dropbox. If you would like to help fund the acquisition and preservation of such things, along with getting high quality scans for yourself, please consider signing on either for the APR Patreon or the APR Monthly Historical Documents Program.

“Electric Commuter Jet” concept art

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May 082021

The art below is a Boeing concept from the late 70s or early 80’s depicting an almost certainly wholly conceptual “electric commuter jet” based on a rather dubious propulsion system: the ring-shaped aircraft would be equipped with massive counter-rotating flywheels which would be spun up to high speed on the ground (presumably with fixed electric motors). To fly, the flywheels would engage a compressor which would provide the jet thrust to fly. I haven’t done the math on this, but unless those flywheels are made of an adamantium-vibranium-uru alloy spun up to a few hundred thousand RPM, it seems unlikely to me that the wheels would store enough energy to provide for a meaningful flight. I doubt that this existed beyond the artists imagination… but if anyone has evidence to the contrary, I’d love to see it.

Kaman K-16 Artwork

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May 032021

A piece of artwork (almost certainly a negative, based on the shading and the national insignia) depicting the Kaman K-16 deflected slipstream tiltwing VTOL flying boat project. The K-16 was actually built in 1959, but never flew and was cancelled in 1962.

The airframe somehow managed to survive and is on display at the New England Air Museum in Windsor Locks, Connecticut. I visited there a couple times years ago and took a number of photos, posted HERE (2001 visit) and HERE (2007 visit). The full rez scan of the artwork has been made available at 300 DPI to all $4/month patrons/subscribers in the 2021-05 APR Extras folder at Dropbox. If you would like to help fund the acquisition and preservation of such things, along with getting high quality scans for yourself, please consider signing on either for the APR Patreon or the APR Monthly Historical Documents Program.

A little Preview of “B-47/B-52”

B-47 and B-52 Origins and Evolution, bomber, Dyna Soar, jetliner, launch vehicles, nukes, Recon, research, rockets, spacecraft, spaceplane, transports, VTOL No Responses »

Apr 302021

Here is an incomplete look at the diagrams created for my first book, “Boeing B-47 Stratojet and B-52 Stratofortress; Origins & Evolution.” It can be pre-ordered either directly from the publisher (with publication expected in late September) or through Amazon (looks like they’ll have it two months later). It is also expected to be on certain store shelves… more on that when it’s confirmed.

A few of these diagrams will be compressed to several-per-page; a few of them here are already shown in multiple optional layouts. But there are also a dozen-ish diagrams *not* shown because they are incomplete as yet. This gives an indication of the size and scope of the project…

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Apr 282021

Behold, Book One: Boeing B-47 Stratojet and B-52 Stratofortress; Origins & Evolution

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Apr 272021

My publisher has gone public with Book One, entitled

Boeing B-47 Stratojet and B-52 Stratofortress; Origins & Evolution

Woo!

It is being published by Mortons out of Britain, is scheduled for release at the end of September, and is going to be around 250 to 280 pages (I’m still furiously working away at it). As those who have seen my work may assume, it will be loaded to the gills with diagrams, in this case covering the competitors to the B-47 and B-52, the original concepts, how the designs evolved and many of the proposed and built derivatives. You can pre-order at the link above. I’m getting confirmation on availability in the States… Amazon and Barnes & Noble and other sources. Will report back on that, but it does look like both outlets will carry it.

I will post more details – including glimpses of diagrams and some of the color art created for the book by Rob Parthoens – in the coming days. Feel free to ask questions.

Note: Book Two has not yet gone public. But Book Two should be published *first* since it is finished and edited; I’ve seen and approved the layout. All it’s missing right now is cover art, which is in process.

S-IC stage recovery

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Apr 202021

Another Boeing concept for the recovery of an S-IC stage. This used large fins with deployable drag brakes to stabilize the stage nose-down, parachutes to slow descent and sizable rocket motors for terminal braking just before splashdown. Additional rockets arrest the stages “collapse” to the side.

Would a Falcon 9-style landing have been better? Sure. But that wasn’t going to happen with 1960’s technology. A splashdown, recovery and refurbishment would have been expensive, but likely not as expensive as a brand new stage, and as has been the case with Falcon 9, as time goes by and experience grows, everything would get better and cheaper.

Future wing structures could be pretty strange

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Apr 152021

… but manufacturing them will be a challenge. Modern computerized design processes can produce wings with rather organic internal structures that would be meaningfully lighter while being just as strong, but they could not be manufactured today. But one day it will likely become possible to 3D print large sections of wings directly out of, say, titanium or carbon fiber with the fibers built-in, oriented correctly. And then the structures aeronautical engineers have used for more than a century of ribs and spars will be replaced with something that looks like the interior of a birds bones.

PDF Review: Ring Airfoil Grenade

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Apr 132021

An interesting presentation on the “Ring Airfoil Grenade” concept from some decades ago. This was a “fat” ring-wing that would spin in flight; the result was a flatter trajectory than you’d get with a traditional bullet-shaped grenade. The presentation includes a large number of diagrams and photos of various types of grenades and launchers. Some were made from steel, pre-scored and filled with high explosives; others were made of softer materials and filled with CS capsules. Upon impact, the high spin rate would cause the projectile to split open and spew out the tear gas; and all that would be left is a rubber ring of no particular tactical value to the rioters. The M234 RAG launcher was actually used in the late 70’s into the 80’s, though it seems pretty much forgotten now.

The aerodynamics of the RAG seem interesting. Difficult to envision what the technology could be used for apart from various types of grenades, though. The “cookie cutter” armor piercing system certainly seems interesting.

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/275521155_IFO’s_Identified_Flying_Objects_-_Ring_Airfoil_Grenade_RAG

Sukhoi/Gulfstream supersonic business jet

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Apr 132021

A while beck someone sold a brochure about the Sukhoi-Gulfstrem supersonic business jet, the S-21. This concept, dating from the early 90’s, was a failed attempt to build a corporate-jet sized SST. While Gulfstream eventually dropped out, Sukhoi kept going until around 2012. The design changed substantially as time went by, but the realities of the economics of supersonic small aircraft around the turn of the century doomed the idea.

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