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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Custer_Channel_Wing
The Custer Channel Wing was a series of American-built experimental aircraft
designs of the 1940s and 1950s incorporating a half-barrel shaped section to
each wing.
Willard Custer filed a United States patent in 1929 for a wing design
incorporating a semi-circular channel or "half barrel" shape in which an engine
was to be fitted in pusher mode. Custer claimed that this layout, the channel
wing, which gave STOL operating capabilities, resulted in a design "which is an
aircraft not an airplane. It does not plane the air to fly, rather it brings the
air to the lift surfaces and reduces pressure to fly at 8 to 11 mph.
The first aircraft to incorporate Custer's concept was the CCW-1 which was
fitted with a single-seat and was powered by two 75 h.p. Lycoming O-145 pusher
engines. Registered NX30090 in the FAAs experimental category, the sole example
first flew on 12 November 1942 during a solo flight that was quite
unintentional. Custer, who was a non-pilot, taxied the aircraft in a
demonstration for financial backers and it suddenly became airborne. A hard
landing followed, and one landing gear collapsed, but this did not dampen his
backers' enthusiasm. This aircraft was donated to the National Air and Space
Museum and displayed at Silver Hill, Maryland.
The CCW-1 was test flown by Frank D. Kelley, who would become a partner in the
National Aircraft Corporation with Custer. The Channelwing concept was
demonstrated with scale wind tunnel tests for the Army Air forces in Dayton in
June 1944, and again in 1946 with 53 different configurations.
CCW-2
This was an evolution of the CCW-1 as a single-seat test bed and used an adapted
uncovered fuselage of a Taylorcraft BC-12 light aircraft, replacing the single
engine with two pusher engines fitted each side of the fuselage and placed
within the wing channels. The sole example N1375V first flew on 3 July 1948. It
was flown for about 100 hours of testing with take-off and landing being made
aircraft" it was calculated that a stock Piper Cub was more efficient, lifting
18 lbs/h.p. versus the CCW-2s 11 lbs/h.p. The CCW-3 and CCW-4 designations were
not used.
CCW-5
During the early 1950s, Custer formed the Custer Channel Wing Corporation to
develop and build the five-seat CCW-5 design which was intended for commercial
sale. The first example N6257C was designed by Custer but built by the Baumann
Corporation of Santa Barbara, California. It utilised an adapted fuselage and
tail assembly of a Baumann Brigadier. Power was from two pusher 225 h.p.
Continental O-470 engines. The first flight was made on 13 July 1953.
Custer persisted with his design and built the second example N5855V at the
Custer Channel Wing Corp factory. It again used a Baumann Brigadier fuselage and
tail assembly. Although several firms expressed interest in production of the
design, all failed to provide sufficient funds. This aircraft first flew on 19
June 1964.
The CCW-5 accommodated five persons, and its power plants are suspended in the
centre of the 6 ft-chord wing channels on tubular frameworks attached to the
wing spars. The aircraft draws air through the channels at high velocity,
decreasing pressure over the wings and increasing lift. The CCW-5 was claimed to
be capable of flying at a sustained speed of 35 mph. Production deliveries were
scheduled to commence during 1965, but this was never achieved.
Later, research performed by NASA concluded that the advantage in lift and field
length performance achieved did not offset the layout's many deficiencies in
climb and high speed ability, and problems meeting certification requirements
for general aviation. The main issue is that the semi-circular beam wing
configuration incurs increased profile drag and weight penalties over a
conventional wing of the same lifting planform, and a common straight wing could
provide almost the equivalent lift enhancement when exposed to the same
slipstream induced increased dynamic pressure.
Hybrid Channel Wing
From 1999-2004 A joint research project led by Georgia Institute of the
Technology Research Institute in Atlanta was funded by Langley Research Center.
Aircraft were tested using channel wing principle layouts with circulation
control devices that leveraged the Coanda effect. Performance of the wing was
increased, and angle of attack was lowered, reducing some of the drawbacks of
the design. The resultant design has been patented.
Role
Experimental aircraft
National origin
United States
Manufacturer
Custer Channel Wing Corporation
Designer
Willard Ray Custer
First flight
13 July 1953
Introduction
1953
Status
preserved in a museum
Produced
1953-1964
Number built
2
Developed from
CCW-1 Channel Wing
The CCW-5 continued to make developments flights during the 1960s and 1970s, but
no production orders were obtained. The second example was donated to the
Mid-Atlantic Air Museum at Reading Airport, Pennsylvania and is on restricted
display.
Specifications (CCW-5)
General characteristics
Crew: 1
Capacity: 4 passengers
Length: 28 ft 8 in (8.74 m)
Wingspan: 41 ft 2 in (12.55 m)
Height: 10 ft 10 in (3.30 m)
Empty weight: 3,675 lb (1,667 kg)
Gross weight: 4,925 lb (2,234 kg)
Max takeoff weight: 5,400 lb (2,449 kg)
Performance
Maximum speed: 200 mph (322 km/h; 174 kn)
Cruise speed: 180 mph (290 km/h; 156 kn)
Range: 1,150 mi (999 nmi; 1,851 km)
Service ceiling: 22,000 ft (6,700 m)
Rate of climb: 2,500 ft/min (13 m/s)
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