Fairey Delta 2
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Fairey Delta 2 | |
|---|---|
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| World speed record holder WG774 | |
| Type | high-speed research aircraft |
| Manufacturer | Fairey Aviation Company |
| Maiden flight | 6 October 1954 |
| Introduced | Experimental |
| Retired | 1966 (WG777), 1973 (WG744) |
| Primary user | Royal Aircraft Establishment |
| Number built | 2 |
The Fairey Delta 2 or FD2 was a British supersonic research aircraft produced by the Fairey Aviation Company in response to a specification from the Ministry of Supply for investigation into flight and control at transonic and supersonic speeds.
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[edit] Design and development
The design was a mid-wing tail-less delta monoplane, with a circular cross-section fuselage and engine air-inlets blended into the wing roots. The engine was a Rolls-Royce Avon RA.5 with an afterburner. The Delta 2 had a very long tapering nose which obscured forward vision during landing, take-off and movement on the ground. To compensate, the nose section and cockpit drooped 10 degrees, in a similar way to that used later on Concorde. Two aircraft were built: WG774 and WG777.
The FD2 was used as the basis for Fairey's submissions to the Ministry for advanced all weather interceptor designs leading to the Fairey Delta 3 for the F.155 specification, but it never got past the drawing board stage.
[edit] Testing
The first FD2 was aircraft WG774 which made its maiden flight on 6 October 1954, flown by Fairey test pilot Peter Twiss. On 10 March 1956, this aircraft broke the World Air Speed Record raising it to 1,132 mph (1811 km/h), an increase of some 300 mph (480 km/h) over the record set in August 1955 by an F-100 Super Sabre, and thus became the first aircraft to exceed 1,000 mph in level flight.
[edit] BAC 221
The first Delta 2, WG774, was later rebuilt by British Aircraft Corporation (BAC), who had absorbed Fairey, in 1960 as the ogee-ogive wing form aircraft BAC 221. This was for aerodynamic research as part of the Concorde development programme. It featured a new wing, engine inlet configuration, modified vertical stabiliser and a lengthened undercarriage to mimic Concorde's attitude on the ground. It flew from 1964 until 1973.
[edit] Survivors
WG774, in BAC 221 form, is now on display alongside the British Concorde prototype at the Fleet Air Arm Museum at Yeovilton. The second FD2, WG777, is preserved at the Royal Air Force Museum at RAF Cosford, alongside many other supersonic research aircraft.
[edit] Specifications (Fairey Delta 2)
This aircraft article is missing some (or all) of its specifications. If you have a source, you can help Wikipedia by adding them.General characteristics
- Crew: 1
- Length: 51 ft 7 in (15.7 m)
- Wingspan: 26 ft 10 in (8.2 m)
- Height: 11 ft (3.4 m)
- Wing area: 360 ft² (33 m²)
- Empty weight: 11,000 lb (4,990 kg)
- Loaded weight: 13,884 lb (6298 kg)
- Max takeoff weight: 13,884 lb (6,298 kg)
- Powerplant: 1× Rolls-Royce RA.5 turbojet, 10,000 lb (4536 kg)
Performance
- Maximum speed: 1,132 mph (1,811 km/h)
- Range: 830 mi (1,340 km)
- Service ceiling: 48,000 ft (14640 m)
- Rate of climb: 15,000 ft/min (76.2 m/s)
- Wing loading: lb/ft² (kg/m²)
[edit] References
- Taylor, H. A. Fairey Aircraft since 1915. London: Putnam, 1974. ISBN 0-370-00065-X.
- Twiss, Peter. Faster than the Sun. London: Grub Street Publishing, 2000. ISBN 1-902304-43-8.
- Winchester, Jim. Concept Aircraft: Prototypes, X-Planes and Experimental Aircraft. Rochester, Kent, UK: Grange books plc, 2005. ISBN 1-84013-809-2.
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