Horrible planes?
Discussion
Usually when I've seen pilots interviewed about the planes they fly, or flew, they often use phrases like ' a dream to fly'
or 'you become a part of the plane': Question is, are there any planes out there that are complete dogs to fly, the sort that makes pilots groan when they know they have to fly them? Any era, military or civil.
or 'you become a part of the plane': Question is, are there any planes out there that are complete dogs to fly, the sort that makes pilots groan when they know they have to fly them? Any era, military or civil.
IanMorewood said:
Royal BE2. First RFC aircraft to see mass production and totally incapable as such. Slow, poorly armed and with difficult handling its no wonder that the Red Barron clocked up 19 kills against this type alone (despite it being largely obsolete by the time MvR air war started).
To be fair it was probably state of the art in 1911. The problem was that nobody was really sure what, if anything, you would use an aircraft for in war. The assumption was that you might be able to drop bombs and maybe even take photographs. But air to air combat, let alone the characteristics needed for a fighter, was barely considered.If BE2 was bad the BE12 was worse!
RE8
In fact I'm not sure there was anything the Royal Aircraft Factory built that was any good save for the SE5/SE5A.
However my nomination for the worst a/c of all time has to be Henri Mignet's 'pou du Ciel' (Flying Flea), an utter killer of a design.
RE8
In fact I'm not sure there was anything the Royal Aircraft Factory built that was any good save for the SE5/SE5A.
However my nomination for the worst a/c of all time has to be Henri Mignet's 'pou du Ciel' (Flying Flea), an utter killer of a design.
Dr Jekyll said:
The problem was that nobody was really sure what, if anything, you would use an aircraft for in war. The assumption was that you might be able to drop bombs and maybe even take photographs. But air to air combat, let alone the characteristics needed for a fighter, was barely considered.
Scouting was the first intended use I think. Then the other side realised that their ground dispositions were being compromised and tried to shoot them down. So the scouts took escorts for protection - and then the fight started.Ginetta G15 Girl said:
However my nomination for the worst a/c of all time has to be Henri Mignet's 'pou du Ciel' (Flying Flea), an utter killer of a design.
We had a customer come in a few months back with a drawing for a propeller pully for his ultra-light, the name on the drawning was also 'Mignet' not sure if it was his son or nephew.Apart from the fact that it was impossible to make what had been drawn the customer was less than impressed when I pointed out that the designer was related to the man responsible for one of the worlds worst aircraft.
This is a good read...
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Worlds-Worst-Aircraft-Jame...
I'm not a pilot but I have heard unkind remarks about the following
B26 Marauder; nicknamed the Widowmaker, apparently tricky flying characteristics.
B29 Superfortress, although I think it was the engines in that case, new pilots were arriving at Far East airstrips with piles of crashed planes at the ends of the runways, not very good for morale.
MD-11 airliner; I found out it had a bad reputation some years after I flew in one from Amsterdam to Vancouver (and back)!
F-104 Starfighter aka 'lawn dart'.
Short Stirling, big, slow and low ceiling.
B26 Marauder; nicknamed the Widowmaker, apparently tricky flying characteristics.
B29 Superfortress, although I think it was the engines in that case, new pilots were arriving at Far East airstrips with piles of crashed planes at the ends of the runways, not very good for morale.
MD-11 airliner; I found out it had a bad reputation some years after I flew in one from Amsterdam to Vancouver (and back)!
F-104 Starfighter aka 'lawn dart'.
Short Stirling, big, slow and low ceiling.
Tango13 said:
We had a customer come in a few months back with a drawing for a propeller pully for his ultra-light, the name on the drawning was also 'Mignet' not sure if it was his son or nephew.
Apart from the fact that it was impossible to make what had been drawn the customer was less than impressed when I pointed out that the designer was related to the man responsible for one of the worlds worst aircraft.
This is a good read...
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Worlds-Worst-Aircraft-Jame...
Thanks for the suggestion - just ordered a used one from Amazon for 1p plus delivery Apart from the fact that it was impossible to make what had been drawn the customer was less than impressed when I pointed out that the designer was related to the man responsible for one of the worlds worst aircraft.
This is a good read...
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Worlds-Worst-Aircraft-Jame...
I can also recommend Bill Gunston's 'Back to the Drawing Board'
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