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tyro major multi task combat wing
When these arrived on the scene, they were quite amazing.
We had flown control line combat wings with a very similar layout, but that was
very 2 dimensional.
There's no dihedral, no tail, no sweep. How is it going to fly ?
The idea being to trail a crepe paper streamer behind and try to cut it/them.
Sounds like fun.
Jes had 1 too.
The wing is just a prism of blue foam with a semi (I think) symmetric
section with balsa elevons hanging off the trailing edge.
Twin balsa fins let into the top surface.
Hole dug out for radio, covered over with a thin ply hatch.
Battery and Rx in there somewhere, with the aerial going up a hole/tube and
exiting right wing tip.
2 standard servos.
No electronic mixers cheaply available in those days, so the aileron servo tray
slides back/forward in grooves, driven by the elevator servo.
The "fuselage" is just a bit of thick ply for mounting the OS20 engine (no
throttle).
The fuel tank just straps on the side with rubber bands.
Finished in the usual red solarfilm, with black fins and elevons.
The engine area painted black and fuel proofed.
No other stress skin, the deep blue foam was plenty strong enough on its
own.
We flew these quite a bit over at Caludon school.
They flew very nicely.
Although not actually stable they were very smooth, and it is virtually
impossible to stall a flying wing.
We didn't manage much actual combat.
Getting 2 aircraft into the same bit of sky is a lot more difficult than it
sounds.
Having no throttle takes us back to the old days where you have to keep flying
it until the fuel runs out, and then starts the game of gliding "dead stick"
back to the pilot area.
The ply engine bearer would make a nice landing skid, but ours had to land
partly on the engine silencer.
Without a silencer those OS20 engines are disgustingly loud.
When I got a 110
instamatic camera, I was impressed by how little it weighed, thinking an
aircraft could easily carry it.
I made a little bracket and fitted an extra servo to activate the shutter (no
throttle control leaving that channel free).
I only got 1 shot each flight as the film advance was still manual.
The engine vibration didn't help.
Still, aerial photography in the 1970s.
Here are the best 2 photos.
Yes, we really did go out flying in the snow.
1st looking down (along the left wing leading edge) on Caludon School
playing fields.
That's me down there flying it (1 of the 3 figures) around 1980.
2nd looking down (over the aileron control servo and the tail) on Caludon
School playing fields (covered in snow).
That's me down there flying it (1 of the 2 figures) around 1980.
A bit fuzzy, probably due to the vibration from the engine.
This aircraft hung on the wall in my garage at the flat for some time.
1 day I noticed it wasn't there any more.
I guess someone (*******) lifted it when I was working in and out of the
garage.