GB559819A - Improvements in or relating to flying machines convertible into land vehicles - Google Patents

Abstract

559,819. Aircraft. FLETCHER, O. E., MURRAY, E. A., and EVANS, A. E. Sept. 2, 1942, No. 12379. [Class 4] A flying machine convertible into a land vehicle comprises (a) a body part provided with an engine arranged to drive wheels whereby this part may be used as a land vehicle and (b) a flight structure adapted to be detachably secured to the body part to convert it into a flying machine, the flight structure being provided with air propellers driven by a separate engine or engines and control being effected from within the body part in each case. In one construction, a motor car 1 of substantially usual type with an engine at 5 and steering and driven. wheels 3, 4 respectively, is adapted, by the provision of strong frame members extending over the root, to be detachably secured, as by bolts or automatic fastenings, to a flight structure comprising wings 6, a central engine nacelle 8, propeller 9 and a tail unit. This unit comprises a tail plane 10, elevator 11, and fin 12 and is carried by three boom members 14, 14b of which a pair 14b are coplaner with the wings whereas the boom 14 extends from a centrally disposed web 15 depending from the centre section of the flight structure. Operation of the control surfaces and propeller engine is effected from within the car 1 by rods or caths which may be manually or automatically connected when the flight structure is attached. Each wing 6 may be foldable into a vertical position with the outer part 18 foldable against the inner part 19, Fig. 4, and the structure may be supported in position for attachment to the car by the folded wings and by a jack 20. In a modification, Fig. 7 the flight structure 22 is provided with a pair of engine nacelles 24, a fuselate and separate land wheels 26 including a tail wheel 30. For attaching the structure 22 to the car 21, the legs of the wheels 26 may be telescopic so that the wheels may be raised and lowered by hydraulic means, or the car may rest upon a platform which may be raised lowered and inclined, or the wheels 26 may be positioned on surfaces that may be raised and lowered. Transmission means may be provided to enable the car engine to serve as an auxiliary to the engine on the flight structure as at take off or in the event of failure of the normal engine or it may be used to start the normal engine. The flight structure may be of the tail-less type.