Wonwings Diary-a blog with a difference.

[Guest]

first of all i tried the sea-plane.....and wondered why it was not taking off.

woops lol. I cant seem to find anywhere where you can start from water???

the microlight is fun but i am finding it rubish at the moment as i dont have a joystick and the controls dont automatically centre themselves..which could be usefull for keyboard users.

the twin-engined one is quite fun!...it can actually pull off some pretty impressive stunts for a plane its size lol

[Guest]

Yes it took me half an hour to do the download,it is quite a generous piece of software,when it times out during use just go to your program and open it again,by the way you will not get the undercarriage up on the Beech Baron on the sample,but let me know how you get on with the little Microlight ? you can land and take off anywhere with that one.Yes Bunkers it would take up all of the ships bandwidth and everything would grind to an halt ! I think it is amazing that you can use the computer onboard anyway,how things have changed ? do you think that they will ever sort this little problem out for the future ?

Without a doubt Barry it will. Things are improving all the time as we continualy increase bandwidth and capacity of the servers. We already have a crew wireless network that will be upgraded again in the dry dock in October and we can access the Internet at arate unheard of only a couple of years ago.

The trouble is that file sizes grow at a rate faster than we are prepared to pay for additional bandwidth.

[wonwinglo]

RJ,if you cannot unstick the Seaplane from the water but want to see how she handles,then just hit the 'Y' slew button then F1 to get her into the air ( vertically !) and carry on flying,she will land hands off with a beautiful wake water effect.

Really to get the best you do need a joystick,the keyboard will make them fly a bit jerky and you do not have any real feel for the controls.

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-The Messerschmitt Bf.109E.

The Small Air Force



Messerschmitt Bf.109E

The Me 109 was one of the world's great fighter airplanes, and it enjoyed the distinction of having been built in greater numbers than any other; some 33,000 were built. It was mass-produced in Germany from 1936 through 1945, and it was built in other countries after the War, serving in Spain until 1967.

The Me 109 originated in 1934 in a four-way competition for a modern fighter design to be used by the brand-new Luftwaffe. Although it was intended to use the new 610hp Junkers Jumo inverted V-12 engine, when it flew in September 1935, the Me 109V-1 prototype had to use an upright 625hp British Rolls-Royce Kestrel engine. Though it differed little in outline from the new monoplane fighters that were being developed in other countries, the Me 109 was almost revolutionary in its use of a greatly simplified, all-metal structure for mass production and ease of maintenance in the field.

The design was also suitable for "stretch"-the use of higher power, heavier armament and other state-of-the art changes that kept it competitive with Allied fighters until the War's end. Almost its only serious deficiency was with its landing-gear design. The gear was on a narrow track, and the wheels weren't at 90 degrees to the ground. This often gave the pilots serious problems on landing.

Prototypes

In 1934, three Me 109 prototypes were ordered. Designated "Me 109V-1" through "V-3" (Versuchs, or "experimental"), these were followed by 10 more prototypes mixed with preproduction Me 109B models. Designated V models were made until late in the War (reaching V-55). Most were adapted from production models rather than built from scratch as experimental models.

Me 109B. This was the first production model; there was no Me 109A as such. It used the 635hp Jumo 210 engine and drove a fixed-pitch wooden propeller that was later replaced by a two-blade metal controllable-pitch type. Its initial armament was a pair of 7.9mm machine guns that fired through the propeller and a third gun that fired through the propeller's hollow shaft. Early combat experience was gained with 45 109Bs that were sent to the German Condor Legion, which was fighting in the Spanish Civil War. The Me 109B's gross weight was 4,740 pounds, and its top speed was 289mph at 13,120 feet (4,000 meters).

Me 109C. This model was outwardly similar to the B, but it had an improved Jumo 210C engine and two more guns in the wings. Some Cs were used to test a 20mm cannon that fired through the propeller shaft, but this wasn't yet standard equipment.

Me 109D. The Me 109D, which kept the Jumo engine and two-blade propeller, was the first true mass-produced model; several hundred were built. Although it was soon obsolete, some D models saw action during the German invasion of Poland in September 1939, after which they were "retired" to fighter-pilot schools.

Me 109E. A major change came with the Me 109E, which used the 960hp Daimler-Benz DB 600 engine (an inverted V-12 like the Jumo) but had a three-blade propeller and a markedly different radiator arrangement under the nose. Production Es with 1,100hp DB 600A engines entered service with the Luftwaffe early in 1939. During its production life, a wide variety of armament was incorporated in the E, and the nose-mounted cannon was standard equipment.

Certain other Es had cannon in their wings. Provision was also made for the installation of under-wing bomb racks, and a 300-liter drop tank or a 550-pound bomb could be carried under the fuselage.







Revell Bf.109E with toothbrush spatter into wet base coat type finish to represent Luftwaffe mottle effect

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-ILA2006 in Berlin Hosts the Messerschmitt Me.262 flying replica.

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=7620890100890480&hl=en

Just take a look at this,the replica Me.262 built in America that was shown at Berlin this week,with those modern reliable engines,and had they been available then,we would have been in serious trouble had these saw action.

What a wonderful piece of history has been created with this aircraft.

The other machines in the same batch are still awaiting buyers,once they are sold then those will be completed from the shells created by craftsmen.

[Guest]

http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...00890480&hl=enJust take a look at this,the replica Me.262 built in America that was shown at Berlin this week,with those modern reliable engines,and had they been available then,we would have been in serious trouble had these saw action.

What a wonderful piece of history has been created with this aircraft.

The other machines in the same batch are still awaiting buyers,once they are sold then those will be completed from the shells created by craftsmen.

I 've never really thought of the 262 as a gracefull aircraft until now. Didn't it look superb! Thanks Barry I enjoyed watching that.

Have you seen the footage of the Flying Styro one in the air? Also very impressive. Check it out on their site, two ducted fans, very nice model.

[wonwinglo]

Richard,I think functional beauty is the word for the Me.262.

The patterns for these replicas were cut from the original aircraft,they used a museum 262 to partially dismantle and measure up,then alloy metal panels were guillotined,I think the original plan was to make four sets and complete four airframes.

What surprises me is the lack of buyers for the others ? surely there must be people out there who want their very own Me.262,an airline pilot friend has been to the factory where they build them.

Did you notice the beautiful landing the pilot made on that stalky undercarriage.

Yes two electric ducted fans would fly one of these easily,I could do with one myself to cope with this windy weather we have had recently.

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-The Antonov AN.26 NATO code name 'Curl'

The Small Air Force



Antonov AN.26

The An-26 (NATO reporting name 'Curl') is a militarised development of the An-24 airliner, which first flew in April 1963. The pressurised An-26 (first flight in 1968) differs from the An-24 in featuring a rear loading freight ramp, more powerful lvchenko turboprops and a turbojet APU which can serve as an auxiliary engine for takeoff. More than 1400 An-26s and An-26Bs (with improved freight handling system) were built until the type was replaced in production by the improved An-32 (NATO reporting name 'Cline').

The An-32 first flew in the 1976 and features much more powerful engines for improved hot and high performance (the type finding favour with air forces which operate in such environments). The An-32 features improved systems and is visually identifiable by its above wing mounted engines, which give greater ground clearance for the increased diameter propellers.

Meanwhile Xian in China has developed the Y7 and the Y7H from the An-24, and some are in Chinese military service.

Performance: An-26B - Cruising speed 435km/h (235kt). Max initial rate of climb 1575ft/min. Takeoff run on sealed runway 870m (2855ft). Range with max payload and no reserves 1240km (670nm), range with max fuel and no reserves 2660km (1435nm). An-32 - Max cruising speed 530km/h (285kt), economical cruising speed 470km/h (254kt). Service ceiling 30,840ft. Takeoff run on sealed runway 760m (2495ft/min). Range with max payload 1200km (645nm), range with max fuel 2520km (1360nm).

Powerplants: An-26B -Two 2075kW (2780ehp) ZMKB Progress (formerly Ivchenko) Al-24VT turboprops driving four blade propellers, and one auxiliary 7.85kN (1765lb) Soyuz (formerly Tumansky) RU-19A300 turbojet. An-32 - Two 3760kW (5042ehp) ZMKB Progress Al-20D Series 5 turboprops.







Made from a VEB Plastikart kit.

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-The Avro Avian Monoplane.

The Small Air Force

Avro Avian Monoplane

Well there are no blue skies here today,so here is a studio re-take on my scratch built Avro Avian,well two of them were built as a matter of fact,this one in ipressment colours with the R.A.F and the other green example as flown from Elmdon aerodrome in 1940.

Both were a rush job in order to get them completed for the ATC 50th Anniversary event.

As I had no plans they had to be redrawn from some flying model drawings in my possession,scaling them down rather than up ! Hard balsa wood was chosen as a convenient material,both easy to work with and available,the final finish was red oxide car paint brushed on and sanded well down,this was followed with about three coats of matt white Humbrol and then the final finish.

Two propellers were carved up,then a plug made for the small shaped windscreen which is like nothing else that I have ever seen ?

The wing rigging wires are simply 22 swg piano wire ( unavailable these days ) from my wire box,these push into holes made with a large dressmakers pin.

A pound shop bamboo blind was ripped to pieces, and has provided me with a quantity of bamboo to make undercarriages and struts etc from for some years now,the pilots were carved from balsa and painted with Artists acrylic pant,this soaks into the wood nicely and gives a good sheen which is ideal for the pilots flying suite.

The under cutting on the engine cowl was done by scribing a line first,then with some masking tape placed onto the chisel to signify the correct depth to dig to I plouged into the balsa going carefully.

The wheels made from pre-war cloth buttons with the centre filled with Milliput,and the novel wing ribbing were adequetly covered last time.

The results of two weeks of labour working into the wee hours produced the two candidates displayed on the day at Tamworth.

And before I start getting swamped I no longer build models to order ! simply not enough time these days to fit everything in.

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-The Brewster Buffalo.

The Small Air Force



Brewster Buffalo

Recognizing in 1936 that the day of the biplane flying off carrier decks was ending, the US Navy sent a proposal to manufacturers specifying a monoplane configuration, wing flaps, arrester gear, retractable landing flaps and an enclosed cockpit. Brewster’s design, the F2A, featured all-metal construction except for fabric control surfaces, a Wright Cyclone piston engine (allowing the airplane to exceed 300 mph), four fixed machine guns and attachments for two 100 pound bombs. In June 1939 the first of 54 F2A-1 production planes was delivered, the first nine sent to equip VF-3 aboard USS Saratoga.

By late 1940 the Navy was receiving the F2A-2, an improved version with a more powerful engine, better propeller and built-in flotation gear. Unfortunately the airplane was overweight and unstable, especially compared to the Japanese Zero, and would soon be replaced by the Grumman Wildcat.

About 200 land-based versions were bought by the British, who called it the Brewster Buffalo; they were sent to the Far East in an attempt to free up Spitfires and Hurricanes in Europe. Used in the defense of Burma and Singapore, the Buffalo was overmatched by the Japanese and eventually withdrawn from service. In fact, the only successful combat enjoyed in the Far East was the 100 Buffaloes of the Netherlands East Indies Army fitted with a larger (1,200 hp) Wright engine. Only by maintaining a high altitude and diving suddenly out of the sun were the Dutch able to defeat the Zero in Java and Malaya.

A significant user of the Buffalo was the Finnish Air Force. Though unloved by the British, Australians, Americans, Belgians and Kiwis, 44 Buffaloes were flown by the Finnish LLv24 Squadron, and the aircraft was beloved and found to be very effective in the hands of its Finnish pilots. No fewer than 12 pilots became aces in Buffaloes, and the aircraft is remembered fondly by many.

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-The Canadair CT-114 Tutor.

The Small Air Force



Canadair CT-114 Tutor

Tutor, a Canadian-designed and -produced single-engine subsonic jet trainer that entered service in the mid-1960s, was used for basic and advanced pilot training until it was replaced by the CT-156 Harvard II and CT-155 Hawk in 2000.

Since it was retired from the training role in 2000, the two operators of the Tutor have been 431 Air Demonstration Squadron -

The Snowbirds and the Aerospace Engineering Test Establishment. Both units will continue to fly the nimble Tutors for the foreseeable future.

[Guest]

Great modelling skill mate....but the last two planes posted are amongst the pug ugliest designs i have ever seen.!!!

I guess beauty is in the eye of the beholder though.

[wonwinglo]

Well Tiger there used to be a well known saying in the aviation world 'If it looks right,then it should fly right' but looking at say the F.4 Phantom that theory seems to go out of the door !

As you say beauty is in the eye of the beholder,as my aims are to record aviation history in miniature,then the occasional ugly ducklings do surface.

There are some vehicles that I just could not own or live with no matter how good they are,one is made by Saab and the other looks akin to a pregnant frog ! it is a very personal thing,all to do with asthetics and shape and as we see things in our own minds.

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-The Douglas C-47 Dakota.

The Small Air Force



Douglas C-47 Dakota

The Douglas Dakota is without doubt one of the most famous and most successful designs of aircraft in history. It was originally known as the Douglas Sleeper Transport and has been known as DC-3 (civilian versions) C-47 Skytrain, AC-47 Gunship, C-53, R4D, C-1117 and Dakota (in UK and Commonwealth service). An amazing 70 years after the design's first flight on 17th December 1935 the aircraft is still in service throughout the world. It is a design which has truly changed history. The forerunner of the DC-3 flew in 1933 and a small number of orders for these forerunners were placed. This was to change in 1941. With the likelihood of the United States joining the Second World War increasing orders were placed for the C-47 Skytrain also known as model DC-3A-360 and the C-53 (R4D-4) Skytrooper.

Known as the Gooney bird the C-47 could transport 10,000 lbs of cargo or 27 passengers while the C-53 lacked the cargo door and could carry 28 paratroopers on permanent seats. Under the lend lease program large scale deliveries were made to the UK with nearly 2,000 being delivered by the end of the war, with another 600 bought after the war and 650 leased. Many of these were diverted around the world to Commonwealth air forces, which ensured many saw action in the post war colonial uprisings and wars of independence.

In the US deliveries started from Santa Monica in October 1941, while licensed production started in the USSR for military use. In all over 10,000 were produced in the US. The C-47 was a very advanced design for its time, a low winged cantilever monoplane with an all-metal stressed skin with fabric covered control services. Its smooth classic lines still don't look out of place 70 years later. Variants included a floatplane, a glider tug, and even a ski equipped version, which visited both north and south poles after the war, and the famous Gunship known as 'Puff the Magic Dragon', which saw service in Vietnam. The type became a standard military transport throughout the world, for example in Europe only Austrian, Irish and Swiss air forces didn't acquire the type. In the early 1990s it was estimated that the C-47 was in service in at least a third of the world's air forces with a likely 400 in service in 49 countries, an amazing achievement. Although no longer seeing frontline service the fact that spares are still cheap and plentiful means it can be hard to replace for many poor countries.



Empire Test Pilots School Dakota ZA947 climbs away on another positioning flight,this aircraft is now in service with the Battle of Britain Memorial flight based at Coningsby.



And on finals to West Freugh in Scotland.

The model is the Airfix Dakota painted with Tamiya acrylics and adorned with the Model Decal transfer sheet.

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-The De Havilland DH.82a Tiger Moth

The deHavilland D.H. 82 Tiger Moth was developed from the D.H. 60M Gipsy Moth. First flown in October of 1931, the D.H. 82 faced stiff competition to become the basic trainer for Britain's Royal Air Force (RAF). However, after the trials were held, the Tiger Moth emerged the clear winner, with 35 of the craft being ordered.

Given that the Tiger Moth had not been the easiest to fly among the competitors, with a degree of sloppiness and slowness in response to control inputs, one wonders whether the design succeeded despite or because of those factors. Some have argued that those factors highlight poor piloting technique without seriously endangering the student pilot, a process that would enable instructors to identify and correct the fledgling pilot's deficiencies early in a training program. In any case, the Tiger Moth to this day exhibits the same flight characteristics of its early period.

The first model, the D.H.82, was powered by a 120hp Gipsy III inverted inline engine, and was also sold to the air forces of Brazil, Denmark, Persia, Portugal and Sweden. An improved model, the D.H. 82A Tiger Moth II, was equipped with a Gipsy Major engine rated at 130hp, as well as structural changes that included the replacement of fabric with plywood for the rear fuselage decking, and the ability to shroud the rear cockpit for instrument flight training.

Prior to the outbreak of WWII, Tiger Moths were manufactured by deHavilland Aircraft of Canada, and under license in Norway, Portugal and Sweden. During the war, Tiger Moths were manufactured by deHavilland affiliates in Australia and New Zealand, while a winterized version, the D.H.82C was manufactured in Canada, with a 145hp Gipsy Major engine, revised cowling, enclosed, heated cockpits, wheel brakes and a tail wheel instead of a skid. Another interesting variant was the four-seat Thruxton Jackaroo, with two pairs of side-by-side seats in an enclosed cabin.

More than 8,700 Tiger Moths were eventually manufactured, with approximately 4200 going to the Royal Air Force, where it trained thousands of pilots for World War II service, and continued to serve the post-war RAF until 1951.

Now, long after its retirement from active service, the Tiger Moth is still actively delighting aircraft devotees in the UK, Canada, Australia and the US. Not very long ago, as D.H. 82 time is measured, one United States aviation magazine featured two articles, one about the Tiger Moth and its worldwide clubs, the other about an 80% scale reproduction version of the Tiger Moth in one issue. Whatever magic there is in having the wind whip by one's ears in an open cockpit, the deHavilland D.H. 82 Tiger Moth must have it in abundance, if one judges by the many aviation clubs around the world still dedicated to the aircraft.





This model of the Tiger Moth was made from a combination of parts,firstly the model started life as an Aurora 1=48th scale kit,this became badly damaged and some of the parts became lost,then I found my old Merit model which was also damaged at some stage,the parts from this were married to make one good model,as can be seen she now needs another rebuild,the rigging on one side is missing and the model needs a repaint and tidy up.