http://www.af.mil/news/story.asp?storyID=123009869
Diorama idea ?
Yea, those things are neat. I use to watch this procedure with the Chevy El Camino when I was at Beale and various overseas locations.
Darwin, O.F. [alien]
I do not know of any 1/48th modern car models, but 1/43 scale is darn close! It would be a neat diorama. That would be a neat job to have, that is driving a Z-28 at wide open throttle and getting paid for it.
From what I’ve read about the U-2 it has a very tight flight envelope. There are only a few mile per hour difference between being too slow and stalling, and being too fast and having the airplane come apart.
I remember reading that, at least with the earlier U-2’s, the coffin corner at altitude was something like 3-4 knots. That is, three knots between the V(NE) red line and stall speed. No wonder they needed that autopilot. And the fold-down foot pedals so they could stretch their legs on 11-hour flights. Also, the first ones had no ejection seats and did not yet have that great big J-75 engine. It was not, and is not in its current, slightly tamer form, an airplane for the squeamish. I don’t need military flight instruction to know that.
Just a footnote, but under high altitude conditions the B-47’s coffin corner was not much more than that of the U-2. Between that and having to land that monster on the bicycle gear, and requiring the deployment of not one chute, but deploying two: one on short approach, and one on landing rollout, the B-47 was another a/c that was not for the faint of heart. That sucker was hard to slow down. The U-2, on the other hand, will slow down, but never has liked to stop flying from what I’ve read and been told by a couple of pilots who have experienced it. And everyone has read or seen the film of the U-2’s first flight, when Tony LaVier got it down, and into ground effect with those huge glider wings (remember, it started life basically as an F-104 mated to a sailplane), it simply would not put its wheels down on the lakebed.
TOM
Yeah - I’ve read that the U2 just “floats” when close to the ground…just doesn’t want to stop flying. A U2 dio with a chase car would be interesting.
My understanding is that the El Caminos were used originally to “catch” the wings of the returning bird, and put the pogo wheels in. Later on, Lockheed put skid plates on the wingtips because it was very dangerous to ‘catch’ the wing during landing. At least that’s how it was related to me.
I have a 1/1 1965 El Camino that is due for restoration [8D]; I have considered repainting it as a Dragon Lady chase car. And a couple of AMT car kits (unfortunately, they are 1/24, not 1/48)…
I agree, that would be a very interesting diorama! Hmmm, I’m gonna have to go out to the base today… we have a U-2 on static display here; I think it’s a B model. Will get pics and upload them, if y’all think that would help…
Diorama indeed !
But like any good diorama you will have to use some perspective with it. Show the camaro at 1/35th scale running down the runway and show the U2 at 1/72nd just after touchdown, or just about to touchdown. It will take a front shot looking down the runway at it. But it will look fantastic ! You will have to make the runway appear to get smaller and you will have to make the sides solid, this will force the viewer to look only in one direction to see it.