Ryan XV-5 Vertifan

History of the Ryan XV-5 Vertifan

The Ryan XV-5 Vertifan was a prototype developed by the U.S. Army in search of a suitable battlefield reconnaissance aircraft.

GE supplied the J85 turbojet for this aircraft. It has two engines driving three fans for vertical flight and hovering capabilities. Two fans are on the wings and one on the nose.

The Ryan XV-5 Vertifan first flew in May 1964 and made its first vertical flight in July of the same year. The following year, an XV-5 prototype was destroyed in a crash that killed Ryan test pilot Lou Everett.

In 1966, a second aircraft crashed while testing the XV-5 Vertifan's ability to carry slings. The pilot, Bob Tittle, ejected, but was killed. In a bizarre twist of fate, the drone landed without serious damage and was repaired for further testing.

In 1967, the Ryan XV-5 Vertifan program was handed over to NASA and the Ames Flight Research Center. When it arrived, it was upgraded and the landing gear moved out of the wing fans. This has the effect of improving ground stability and braking.

The improved aircraft was known as the XV-5B, and continued in 1974 for test flights and contributions to V/STOL research.

Ryan XV-5B Vertifan is currently housed at the Army Aviation Museum at Fort Rucker, Alabama.

Specification

Basics

Year of Service

1964

Origins

United States

Status

retirement

does not work.

Crew

1

Production

2

Manufacturer

Ryan Aeronautical - USA

Carrier

US (retired)

Roles

X-Plane (development, prototype, tech demo)

Aircraft designed for prototyping, technology demonstration, or research/data collection.

Dimensions and Weight

Length

44.5 feet

(13.55m)

Width/span

29. 9 feet

(9.10m)

Height

14.8 feet

(4.50m)

Cured weight

7,540 lbs

(3,420 kg)

MTOW

13,603 lbs

(6,170 kg)

Wgt Difference

+?6,063

(+2,750 kg)

Performance

Installed:

2 GE J85-GE-5 turbojets, 2,658 lb thrust each; 2 GE X353-5 top drive ceiling fans, 7,500 lb thrust each; 1 x GE X353-5 Tip Drive Fan

Maximum speed

547 km/h

(880 km/h | 475 knots)

Maximum

39,370 feet

(12,000 m | 7 km)

Area

1,000 km

(1,610 km | 2,982 nautical miles)

rate of climb

8,000 ft/min

(2,438 m/min)

Range (MPH) Subsonic: <614mph | Transonic: 614-921 | Supersonic: 921-3836 | Hypersonic: 3836-7673 | Hypersonic: 7673-19180 | Reentry: > 19030

Armor

None.

Variant

XV-5 "Vertifan" - Base Serial Number XV-5A - First airworthy aircraft; two completed to the same design standards; second prototype collapsed. XV-5B - Rebuilt/modified second post-crash prototype with improved control scheme; improved list engine.

Comments

General Rating

firepower

Performance

survivability

Versatility

Impact

Scores are derived from various categories related to the aircraft's design, overall functionality, and historical impact in aviation history.

Overall Rating

Overall score takes into account

60 individual factors

is related to this aircraft entry.

22

Scored over 100 points.

Relative max speed

Hello: 750mph

Low speed: 600 km/h

The maximum speed listed for this entry (547mph).

Graph Average

563

Miles per hour.

City-to-city range

New York

London

LAN

Par

Par

bit error rate

BER

Moss

Moss

good

good

Sydney

Sydney

Los Angeles International Airport

Los Angeles International Airport

New York

The operating range of the Ryan XV-5 Vertifan compared to the distance (in kilometers) between major cities.

Visualization of maximum height

Design Balance

The three qualities reproduced above are

Height

Speed

and

regions

Flight Time Span

This era of aircraft design.

Piece Production (

2

)

2

36183

44000

Comparison with

Ilyushin IL-2

(military) and

Cessna 172

(civilian).