Molniya-1 | |
---|---|
Role | Three surface utility aircraft |
National origin | Russia |
Manufacturer | NPO Molniya |
First flight | 18 December 1992 |
Number built | 2 by 2000 |
The Molniya-1 is a six-seater utility aircraft designed and built in Russia during the 1990s.
The Molniya-1 six-seat aircraft is a three surface design with a forward balanced canard surface and a square section fuselage with a Vedeneyev M14P nine cylinder radial engine in the rear. Twin booms carry fins with balanced and trim tabbed rudders and a high set tailplane, similarly tabbed and balanced. [1]
A canard is an aeronautical arrangement wherein a small forewing or foreplane is placed forward of the main wing of a fixed-wing aircraft. The term "canard" may be used to describe the aircraft itself, the wing configuration or the foreplane.
The fuselage is an aircraft's main body section. It holds crew, passengers, and cargo. In single-engine aircraft it will usually contain an engine, as well, although in some amphibious aircraft the single engine is mounted on a pylon attached to the fuselage, which in turn is used as a floating hull. The fuselage also serves to position control and stabilization surfaces in specific relationships to lifting surfaces, which is required for aircraft stability and maneuverability.
The Vedeneyev M14P is a Russian nine-cylinder, four-stroke, air-cooled, petrol-powered radial engine. Producing 360 hp (268 kW), its design dates from the 1940s, and is itself a development of the Ivchenko AI-14 engine. The engine has been used extensively by the Yakovlev and Sukhoi Design Bureaus. The M14P is also used in some experimental aircraft and kit designs such as the Murphy Moose, Radial Rocket, Pitts Model 12, and others.
It was intended to cover a wide range of tasks including touring, cargo/mail carrying, business flights, aerial photography, patrol and air ambulance services. The three-surface configuration was intended to provide improved safety and fuel efficiency over conventional types, with the rear-mounted engine lowering cabin noise and vibration. [2] It flew for the first time on 18 December 1992. [1]
A Westernised version with a 260 kW (350 hp) Continental TSIO-550-B flat six engine and another, the Moliniya-3 with an Allison 250 turboprop, were proposed. [1] More broadly, the company were considering a number of larger types based on the three surface configuration. [3]
The Continental IO-550 engine is a large family of fuel injected six-cylinder, horizontally opposed, air-cooled aircraft engines that were developed for use in light aircraft by Teledyne Continental Motors. The first IO-550 was delivered in 1983 and the type remains in production.
In 1993 the design received a gold medal at the Eureka-93 World Inventors, Scientific Research and Know-How Salon in Brussels. It was demonstrated at the Le Bourget aero show in 1995. [2] Only two Moliniyas had been built by about 2000. [1]
Le Bourget is a commune in the northeastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located 10.6 km (6.6 mi) from the center of Paris.
Data from Simpson 2001 [1]
General characteristics
Performance
The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-8 Utka was a Soviet experimental aircraft. Built of wood, the aircraft was designed and built in 1945 to test the novel canard configuration. It also used a tricycle undercarriage, the first used by the OKB. It was modified to test a variety of vertical stabilizer and wingtip configurations and was later used as a liaison aircraft for many years by the design bureau.
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