On the general topic of long range MPA aircraft for the Axis in WW2, I've recently become a fan of the Savoia Marchetti S55 twin hull flying boat.Would more twin hull designs have been posible, and/or pratical? I'm thinking of Dornier as possible producer, but a twin Catalina(for the Allies) would also have been interesting...
Twin hull flying boat designs
- Thread starter AdA
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Not such a rare bird
Here's alink for some great photos on a brasilian site. Note the air photo of a base full of S55 machines
http://jacasvoadoras.blogspot.pt/2010/06/savoia-marchetti-s-55.html
Here's alink for some great photos on a brasilian site. Note the air photo of a base full of S55 machines
http://jacasvoadoras.blogspot.pt/2010/06/savoia-marchetti-s-55.html
The Soviets built the ANT 22. The German maritime patrol development was the Blohm und Voss P.14, which remained a study. The Consolidated Vultee company also did a study. There were several other studies. There are pros and cons, and it's possible that there are too many cons. The biggest advantage is the lack of need for drag-producing sponsons or outrigger floats. The biggest disadvantage is the drag of two fuselages.
More space for more equipment, weapons or more passengers during search and rescue operations are probably ones.
The only problem I could see was that by making it larger/heavier you'd probably have to stick more engines on the thing, which in turn raises the weight even more, so past a certain point you lose more than you gain.
Well more engines would be must. And you are right that after certain point... Probably that's why it wasn't done too often. Also, maybe some structural problems in connecting 2 hulls. Take off and especially landing on the water would bring probably more stress on the material. On the other side, it was not done on the land based aircraft too often either.
Leave it to the Japanese to take an idea and run with it.
Do some of those engines have more blades (probably contrarotating props) than others? That'd be almost as weird as the twin hulls.
VLR Dornier
I was thinking more of something like a double hull Do26. Using six rather than three engines it could lift a lot of fuel, than shut down the rear engines (or one rear and two front, whatever) and cruise for a lot of time on just half the engines to save fuel. it would have huge range a be a great airborne spotter/shadower to lead submarines.
But I guess a twin Kawanishi H6K might have the range for VLR Pacific missions.
The twin H8K on that Japanese magazine does seem too monstrous....
And a double Z501 Gabbiano with three engines would be cool...
I was thinking more of something like a double hull Do26. Using six rather than three engines it could lift a lot of fuel, than shut down the rear engines (or one rear and two front, whatever) and cruise for a lot of time on just half the engines to save fuel. it would have huge range a be a great airborne spotter/shadower to lead submarines.
But I guess a twin Kawanishi H6K might have the range for VLR Pacific missions.
The twin H8K on that Japanese magazine does seem too monstrous....
And a double Z501 Gabbiano with three engines would be cool...
That would be cool. But without missiles they would be very vulnerable to AAA if used for antiship strike. Transports?
Italians bombing NY Italians who were bombing Italians? My mind reels.
The plan was for a CANT Z511 to take off from France, refuel from a UBoat, drop some teams of combat frogmen with manned torpedoes from X flotilla MAS and have them mine ships in New York.
That way the NY Italians would be safe and could cheer from the riversides.
Later there was a plan to use a mother submarine to carry Caproni CA minisubs for a similar attack.