1940: BEFORE JET PROPULSION

I find this to be a very fascinating photo of a plane of the future as illustrated in an old Mechanics Illustrated magazine. Not being an aeronautical engineer, I must say I wonder if the push props on the back of the wings were superior to the conventional engine nacelles being installed as they were on most multi engine aircraft. I have a fear of flying but I love to spot those airliners in the early evening when the sun is going down here on earth, but still shines brightly on passing aircraft. However, unlike when I was a boy, I could really get closeup views with a 10 x 35 pair of binoculars because those old DC3 passenger airliners didn't fly the normal 30 to 40,000 feet. Unfortunatly my zoom binoculars are impossible to hold steady as the magnification is zoomed in and the price of image stabilization binoculars is out of the question.

Anonymous said...

I'm pretty sure that the Russian's had a few pusher bombers in their fleet. The "prototype" of the B-2 in the 1950's, the flying wing (V configuration), was a pusher also.

Ed Millerick

Sunday, September 22, 2013

Anonymous said...

Tom, the "flying V" that I mentioned was the Northrop YB-35. The only one manufactured in any numbers was the Convair B-36, of which they made 389.

The only others of note were a handful of flying boats done by the French, Italians and Germans only one of which saw commercial production and even that was only about 30.

Ed Millerick

Sunday, September 22, 2013