Blohm and Voss Bv P.202

History

Speed ??has always been at the heart of aircraft design, especially in the military. During World War II, when turbojet technology finally became a viable aircraft propulsion system, many designs emerged that took advantage of the new capabilities of the engine.

One of the main limitations is the speed limit imposed by the traditionally designed straight-surface fuselage - requiring special attention when designing aircraft that can be combined with powerful engines.

One of the concepts that soon proved its worth was the value of swept wings, as this reduced drag when swiping through the air at high speeds. The idea has long been known in the aviation community, but propulsion systems have to catch up with the process to prove effective.

Overcoming the swept wing presents challenges due to the instability encountered at low speeds - critical for landing and takeoff. Nonetheless, swept wings have been an integral part of aircraft construction ever since.

For Dr. Richard Vogt of the German aircraft manufacturer Blohm und Voss, the developer of many of the long-range aircraft seen during the war (at least on paper), his P.202 proposal addresses this to some extent The problem of high-speed flight - "Pivot Wing". In the P. 202, the main-wing aircraft was set to rotate about a central axis, leading the wings from a straight regular attitude to a "swept-back" attitude. This reduces drag close to the front and places the port main aircraft section forward of the cockpit and the starboard side section behind the center mass - sweeping in both cases. The wings are mounted higher on the fuselage to sit on swinging gears buried in them.

The cockpit is set above the nose and the tail is conventional with a rudder and low level. A wide-mouth air intake was installed under the aircraft's chin to channel the proposed pairing of jet engines. The pair drained through vents at the bottom of the tail below the belly of the aircraft. A traditional tricycle landing gear should be fine for ground running, but the height of the shoulder-mounted wings means the main legs are fairly high.

The nasal bone should be located below the inhalation opening.

The design is powered by 2 Heinkel-Hirth HeS 011 series turbojet engines, each delivering up to 2,865 pounds of thrust.

Dimensions include a wingspan of 39.5 feet, a length of 32.8 feet, and a height of 10.5 feet. Takeoff weight is estimated at 11,905 pounds.

Proposed armament consists of 2 x 30mm MK 108 automatic cannons mounted on the nose.

In P. 202, the main aircraft will assume an upright attitude to achieve the stability, drag and lift required for takeoff and landing maneuvers. When high speed flight is required, the sweep of the wings is varied to achieve this (to a sweep of 35 degrees).

It is believed that the use of forward and aft swept surfaces will compensate for any general instability encountered in high speed flight.

Despite this, the P. 202 was never completed, built or flown before the end of the war in Europe in May 1945.

NASA Research Aircraft AD-1

When NASA developed its AD-1 (Ames-Dryden Model 1) based on Burt Rutan's design and manufactured by Ames Industries, the "slanted wing" concept came into play again. The first flight of this unique aircraft was recorded on December 21, 1979, and it operated until August 1982. The aircraft completed only one example, covering 79 test flights.

Powered by two tiny turbojets, the plane's wings can rotate up to 60 degrees. Top speed is 200 mph and service is capped at 12,000.

Some performance data on this page is estimated by the author.

Specification

Basic

Production

Roles

Dimensions

Weight

Performance

Performance

Armor

Changes