GB567887A - Improvements in or relating to towed aircraft and means for towing the same - Google Patents

Abstract

567,887. Towing gliders. C.B. PROJECTIONS (ENGINEERING), Ltd., and BELL, C. S. April 20, 1943, No. 6336. [Class 4] A glider for use as a target or other purposes, with wings designed to have very little movement of the centre of pressure during flight, has two attachment points for a crowsfoot connection to a towing cable in front of and above the leading edges of the wings, the tail plane being set at a slight negative angle. Fig. 2 shows a glider having symmetrical section wings 13 set parallel to the longitudinal axis of the fuselage which has a movable weight 24 adjusted to bring the centre of gravity 26 slightly behind the centre of pressure. A vertical fin 17 at the forward end of the fuselage has a series of holes 23 for attachment of a transverse rod 18 braced to the fuselage by cables' 20, the crowsfoot ends 22 of the towing cable being attached to the ends of the rod 18. The normal lift of the wings 13 is insufficient to support the weight of the glider and its load apart from the upward component of the pull of the towing cable which normally passes through the centre of gravity. The arrangement ensures that the glider is at all times below the towing craft and consequently it can be used for carrying an explosive charge against any vertical obstruction. Small tabs 30 are provided at the end of the tail plane to adjust its effective angle. In another form, a tailless aeroplane with swept-back wings having discs 43, 44, Fig. 7, at their ends, has elevators 45, 46 coupled to two two-armed levers 49, 50 on a transverse axis connected at their ends to four cables joined to the towing cable 36. Variations in level of the glider result in movements of the elevators to preserve the longitudinal stability of the glider. Lateral tilting results in opposite movements of the elevators, through the action of the cables, to correct the tilt. Such a scheme may be applied to a glider having tail planes. Fig. 10 shows another form in which the wings are pivoted about a longitudinal axis above the fuselage, pivoted tips 59, 60 being actuated by bent rods 61, 62 engaging cam slots in the fuselage which cause the tips to preserve the lateral balance of the plane. The elevators 45, 46, Fig. 7, may be biassed by springs to move upwardly, when the towing cable is detached, to cause the nose to tilt upwards and afford sufficient lift to enable the machine to glide to earth. A train of such gliders may be successively uncoupled to glide to earth with mails &c.