Velius
Airman 1st Class
What were some aircraft in history, military and civilian of all eras, that were problematic either structurally or becuase of unreliable engines?
I'll start with these for examples:
The Fw-200- "But the Fw 200C-1 made itself very unpopular by breaking its back on landings. At least eight Fw 200Cs were lost when the fuselage broke, just aft of the wing. Obviously, the strength of the airframe was insufficient to cope with the additional weight and stress. The Fw 200C was always an improvised combat aircraft, with many deficiencies. The crews also complained about inadequate armament and an vulnerable fuel system." (http://www.uboat.net/technical/fw200.htm)
Me-262- "The Junkers Jumo 004 is often remembered as a temperamental and failure-prone powerplant. Despite its advanced design, engine life was only between 10 and 25 hours, with the mean being at the lower end of this range. These failures were anticipated to some extent and the Me 262 was designed to permit extremely rapid engine changes."The Junkers Jumo 004 is often remembered as a temperamental and failure-prone powerplant. (Me 262 PROJECT TECHNICAL DATA)
He-177- In defense of the aircraft however, it could be said that all its troubles originated from a (absolutely asinine) 1938 requirement for a proposed heavy bomber/anti-shipping aircraft, that should also be capable of dive-bombing! So, the main problem of the He-177 was created: In an effort to reduce drag, the engineers decided that they would use coupled engines. (basically four engines, stuck together into two nacelles) These coupled engines would enter record books as being the most fire-prone engines in normal cruising flight. Out of the eight prototypes, six crashed. And of the 35 pre-production A-0s, (built for the most part by Arado Handelsgesellschaft, Warnemunde) a large number had to be written off due to take-off swings or in-flight fires. (Heinkel He-177 "Greif" (Griffin))
Avro Manchester- "The Manchester entered squadron service in late 1940 when first deliveries were made to 207 squadron based at Waddington. In February 1941, 207 launched the Manchester's operational career when six aircraft attacked shipping in Brest harbour. Over the ensuing months six other squadrons converted to the type but from the outset the aircraft proved troublesome due to the unreliability of its Rolls Royce Vulture engines." (Avro Manchester: The RAF's Greatest Disappointment)
B-29- "Another special and for a while greatly troublesome feature of the B-29 was the brand new, but fire prone, 18 cylinder Wright R-3350-23 engine" (B-29 Superfortress)
and my last example...
DeHavilland Comet- "The first sign of a flaw in the Comet came on May 2, 1953 when a Comet crashed soon after take-off from Calcutta; further crashes (January 1954 and April 1954) with no clear cause led to the entire fleet being grounded for investigation. It was found in February 1955 that, as suspected, metal fatigue was the problem; after thousands of pressurized climbs and descents the thin fuselage metal around the Comet's distintictive right-angled large windows would begin to crack eventually causing sudden depressurization." (De Havilland Comet)
Thanks in advance for any info guys!
I'll start with these for examples:
The Fw-200- "But the Fw 200C-1 made itself very unpopular by breaking its back on landings. At least eight Fw 200Cs were lost when the fuselage broke, just aft of the wing. Obviously, the strength of the airframe was insufficient to cope with the additional weight and stress. The Fw 200C was always an improvised combat aircraft, with many deficiencies. The crews also complained about inadequate armament and an vulnerable fuel system." (http://www.uboat.net/technical/fw200.htm)
Me-262- "The Junkers Jumo 004 is often remembered as a temperamental and failure-prone powerplant. Despite its advanced design, engine life was only between 10 and 25 hours, with the mean being at the lower end of this range. These failures were anticipated to some extent and the Me 262 was designed to permit extremely rapid engine changes."The Junkers Jumo 004 is often remembered as a temperamental and failure-prone powerplant. (Me 262 PROJECT TECHNICAL DATA)
He-177- In defense of the aircraft however, it could be said that all its troubles originated from a (absolutely asinine) 1938 requirement for a proposed heavy bomber/anti-shipping aircraft, that should also be capable of dive-bombing! So, the main problem of the He-177 was created: In an effort to reduce drag, the engineers decided that they would use coupled engines. (basically four engines, stuck together into two nacelles) These coupled engines would enter record books as being the most fire-prone engines in normal cruising flight. Out of the eight prototypes, six crashed. And of the 35 pre-production A-0s, (built for the most part by Arado Handelsgesellschaft, Warnemunde) a large number had to be written off due to take-off swings or in-flight fires. (Heinkel He-177 "Greif" (Griffin))
Avro Manchester- "The Manchester entered squadron service in late 1940 when first deliveries were made to 207 squadron based at Waddington. In February 1941, 207 launched the Manchester's operational career when six aircraft attacked shipping in Brest harbour. Over the ensuing months six other squadrons converted to the type but from the outset the aircraft proved troublesome due to the unreliability of its Rolls Royce Vulture engines." (Avro Manchester: The RAF's Greatest Disappointment)
B-29- "Another special and for a while greatly troublesome feature of the B-29 was the brand new, but fire prone, 18 cylinder Wright R-3350-23 engine" (B-29 Superfortress)
and my last example...
DeHavilland Comet- "The first sign of a flaw in the Comet came on May 2, 1953 when a Comet crashed soon after take-off from Calcutta; further crashes (January 1954 and April 1954) with no clear cause led to the entire fleet being grounded for investigation. It was found in February 1955 that, as suspected, metal fatigue was the problem; after thousands of pressurized climbs and descents the thin fuselage metal around the Comet's distintictive right-angled large windows would begin to crack eventually causing sudden depressurization." (De Havilland Comet)
Thanks in advance for any info guys!