Apophenia's Offerings

[Tophe]

Nice colours and markings. It is pleasant to see He-162s on the "good" side... :)

[GTX_Admin]

Outstanding!

[Nexus1171]

Aphophenia

I love the following designs

• AW-24M: It looks highly streamlined and capable of respectable speed; it also looks like it could come out of the era (The only thing that would make it better would be if the canopy was glass-covered)
  
• XP-51G Griffon Mustang: The Merlin rocked, the Griffon is even more powerful; with the contra-rotating props, it looks cooler and performs even better yet.
• North American Aviation NA-145J: I've long since expressed disappointment that there weren't many jet-powered GA planes until very recently.  This not only is jet-powered but it's also sleek looking
• Supermarine Skookum Scimitar Interceptor
• Blackburn Firebird Mk. II: Looks consistent for the era, and seems like a more sensible idea to build a dedicated Navy fighter, than a modified RAF plane (provided it performs well enough).
• Vought V-160: It looks sort of what the P-35 was to the P-47; interestingly there was a V-160 in real life -- it didn't look like this at all of course, but still.

I also like the following

• Harvard Turboprop: I like the design, but there was a proposal called the PA-48 which could do much of the same thing.
• FMA I.Ae.19T Boleadora: It does look way sleeker than the Ju-87, and is a nice looking aircraft, it's service in the Argentine Air Force is sort of also poetic considering how many Germans fled to there after the War ; I'm not sure what function the GIB has as it has no tail-gunner anymore

[apophenia]

Thanks for the feedback. GIB is nav/radio op (like the Fulmar or Firefly).

Now for some gull-winged Macch silliness:

Cranked Castoldis - Macchi Gabbiano & Corsaro

Macchi's C.220 Gabbiano was a close-support aircraft with reverse-gulled wings intended to provide clearance for under-fuselage ordance while also addressing the Saetta wing's high-speed stall problems. A comparatively tiny wing area gave the Gabbiano terrible characteristics (particularly on landing).

The C.210 Corsaro (or 'Super Saetta') was Mario Castoldi's design for a two-seat C.200 stablemate. The heavier Corsaro used a larger version of the Gabbiano wing and a larger, 1450 hp Fiat A.41 twin-row radial.

The failure of Fiat's ambitious 50 litre, 14-cylinder radial doomed the C.210 project. Plans to adapt the airframe to the 28-cylinder Alfa Romeo 1101 liquid-cooled radial would also be abandoned.

Image notes: Fuselages mostly based on Teodor Liviu Morosanu's early C.200 profile; wings and u/c based on Janusz Swiatlon's F4U-1.

The C.220 was envisioned as a scale-o-rame of 1/48 Macchi C.200 and 1/72 Corsair (spats are shortened 1/48 Fokker D.XXI units). The C.210 uses same scale Corsair and C.200 parts (with the latter's fuselage greatly extended obviously).

[Tophe]

Nice Macchis!

raafif did up a float-fighter version of the Airabonita for my 'Canadian Cobras' story line.
http://beyondthesprues.com/Forum/index.php?topic=3320.msg49233#msg49233
That inspired a float version of the production CanCar Cobra:

Have you seen the blue one built by Ericr? at http://beyondthesprues.com/Forum/index.php?topic=3546.30

[Nexus1171]

Apophenia

Thanks for the feedback.

You're welcome

GIB is nav/radio op (like the Fulmar or Firefly).

Okay, I see your point.  I was wondering if you have considered employing it as a hybrid observation/ground-attack aircraft with the back-seater acting as an observer?

[ericr]

That inspired a float version of the production CanCar Cobra:

beautiful floatplanization ! 

[apophenia]

Nexus: The original concept wasn't mine. Upnorth went on to develop his idea in 'Stealing the Stuka': http://beyondthesprues.com/Forum/index.php?topic=1501.0

CCF Sea Goblin

In September 1940, the CCF-built Grumman GE-23 Goblin constituted the sole RCAF fighter defence of Nova Scotia. Flying from Dartmouth, the two-seat Goblin proved woefully unsuited to its role. By late 1941 the RCAF was considering transferring the Goblins to Army Co-operation duties when the Royal Canadian Navy expressed interest in the biplane.

Surviving RCAF Goblins were transferred from No. 118 RCAF Sqn's A Flight to the RCN's Shearwater Naval Air Station near Halifax, NS. Obviously obsolete as a fighter, the RCN intended to use the Goblin as a recce-strike aircraft from anticipated 'escort carriers'.

Fitted with US Navy-proved arrestor gear, the Sea Goblin first formed a training flight at Shearwater. Originally flown in slightly modified RCAF colours, the Sea Goblin fleet was later resprayed in a scheme similar to Royal Navy shipboard aircraft.

The Sea Goblins were fitted with wing racks for two 100-lb GP bombs. CCF experimented with US Mk 54 aerial depth charges. It was found that the Sea Goblin could carry two of the 325-lb weapons only if flown as a single-seater. One Sea Goblin Mk.IA (418) was permanently modified as a single-seater but the remainder of the fleet carried only one depth charge.

The Sea Goblins served alongside RCN Swordfish on RN escort carriers from late 1942 until May 1943 when CCF had built sufficient Sea Hurricanes to replace the remaining Grumman biplanes.

[elmayerle]

Now that's purty.  I wonder if they looked at up-engining it?

[Tophe]

I like your single-seat conversion. :)

[GTX_Admin]

 :)

[apophenia]

Thanks lads!

Evan: The GE-23 was up-engined compared with the FFs (the 700 hp R-1820-78 Cyclone being replaced by a 800 hp R-1820-F52). If you meant re-engining the Goblin itself, the 1200 hp GR-1820-G205A with three-bladed prop would be an obvious choice (that Cyclone variant powering the Toronto-based Norwegian Hawk 75A-8s).

[elmayerle]

I like that approach, subtle but quite plausible.  It would be an obvious move.

[apophenia]

Couldn't resist ...

In late 1942, Canadian Car and Foundry re-engined an RCN Sea Goblin with a more powerful Wright GR-1820-G205A Cyclone radial. A reduced-diameter, three-bladed propellor was fitted to ensure deck clearance on landing. The RCN regarded the re-engined Sea Goblin, serial 424, as a success but ordered no further modified examples.

Based on the success of the GR-1820-G205A installation, CanCar proposed a new variant. Taking advantage of its  ex-Grumman tooling, the GE-23 fuselage would be retained. But the day of the biplane was over and ex-Brewster wing tooling was scrapped. Instead, CCF proposed that the 'Goblin monoplane' be fitted with the wing of the Westland Lysander being build by National Steel Car in Malton, ON. This new variant was tentatively dubbed the Cormorant but the RCN declined the type. Instead, the CCF plant turned to production of SBW-3 Helldivers for the  US Navy.

[Tophe]

I prefer this "new" monoplane version, thanks!
Uh, the (new?) tail looks like a F4U one, is it?

EDIT: while looking back on previous pages to see the "old tail(s)", I discovered again your delicious "late EF-250"  and that inspired new Mustang derivatives (http://www.kristofmeunier.fr/r_P-51TR8_aah.JPG ), thanks!

[GTX_Admin]

 :)

[Queeg]

Kinda playing late catch-up on this thread ....it's packed full of goodness. Especially like the 109/P51 hybrid, very tempting.

[apophenia]

Thanks folks. Tophe: Cormorant  tail was not based on the F4U but it does look rather similar.

Focke Wulf Schlachtflugzeuge

Focke Wulf designed its Fw 189C variant to meet the 1937 Schlachtflugzeuge contest. But, by late 1938, Kurt Tank had concluded that the As 410-powered twin-boomer would be underpowered. It was decided to bolster Focke Wulf's entry with an armoured ground attack derivative of the Fw 187 fighter would also be submitted.

Since the Luftwaffe's future Schlachtflugzeuge was to have air-cooled engines, Tank's team reviewed foreign powerplants. The first choice was the 540 hp Isotta-Fraschini Gamma R.C.35-I but this changed when Germany occupied Bohemia-Moravia, bringing Czech engine-maker Walter under German control.

In March 1939, the Fw 187 V2 prototype was rebuilt with its Jumo 210Gs replaced by twin Walter Sagitta I-MR air-cooled V12s. The proposed production Fw 187S-0 was to have its cockpit replaced by a fully-armoured enclosure. Armament was to be twin 7.92mm MG17s and two 2.0cm MG-FFs. The redesigned Fw 187S V1 conversion flew well but the RLM decided to curtain wartime Walter production to German-designed engines only.

By the beginning of 1940, Focke Wulf had completed two prototype Fw 187S-0s but these airframes remained engineless. However, after the fall of France, thought was given to re-using captured French engines. After examining Renault V12s, the choice fell on the larger Gnome-Rhône 14M radial. Engines of this type (complete with their Potez 63.11 cowlings) were installed in July 1940 and pre-production Fw 187S-1s began to be delivered to an operational trials unit, 4./SchG 101, based at Orly/Paris in late August 1941.

[Tophe]

The Fw-187 is not well known, I had to check the Web (http://lmk.vsetin.org/?clanek=81 with Google) to appreciate your work.
And... congratulations, engineer, for your 'improvements'...

[Logan Hartke]

Ah, one of my favorite "What Ifs"!  The Fw 187 was always so pretty.  I'd love to see a standard single seater with DBs and in the gray 109/110/190 fighter scheme.

Well done!

Cheers,

Logan

[apophenia]

Thanks Tophe. Yes, the Fw 187 is somewhat obscure but a rather dainty design, I think.

Logan: Agreed, a DB-powered single-seater would be cool. I know that the Luftwaffe felt no need for interceptors at that point but you'd think they'd have spotted the fast recce potential of such an aircraft.

Might the Fw 187 have also provided the Luftwaffe with a Westland Whirlwind analogue? The Jumo 210G is almost the same displacement as the Rolls-Royce Peregrine (19.7 litres vs. 21.2 L). Maybe tweak the Jumo 210 series, push the cockpit back, and add four MG-FFs to the nose?

[Logan Hartke]

I honestly think that it's more likely that they would have gone bigger with the Jumo 211 or 213 a la Ta 154.  You could even incorporate the Fw 190D/F's blow canopy, too, since the original's was much like the Fw 190A's canopy.  For visibility, I think you'd want to keep the cockpit as far forward as possible.  If your weapons won't fit in the normal places (which they should), then I think the better alternatives are a lengthened nose or a ventral pod.  Even side blisters like the B-25 would work, too.  I kind of like the shorter noses on these sorts of fighters.

Cheers,

Logan

[apophenia]

Tiefdecker - Low-winged Monoplane Fighters for the Luftwaffe

Shortly after the Nazis came to power in the September 1930 German elections, the establishment of the Luftwaffe was announced. Heinkel had already begun work on biplane fighter designs but a new requirement was issued for a fully modern low-wing monoplane fighter as well.

The Heinkel He 49 series diverged into two designs for the new Luftwaffe. The He 49c prototype formed the basis for the Luftwaffe's first new fighter, the biplane He 51A. The original He 49a prototype was modified into what would become the He 52 V2 monoplane. The later combined the shorter fuselages of the He 49a with a wooden eliptical wing scaled-down from the He 70 transport.

The production He 52A was powered by the same 740 hp BMW VI V-12 as the He 51 biplane. The empennage was identical in both types and the fuselages were similar (whereas the He 51 got a 40 cm stretch to the He 49 rear fuselage, the stretch on the He 52 was in front of the cockpit). For simplicity, the RVM ruled against a retractable undercarriage for the He 52 so both types featured fixed, spatted landing gears.

'Zwei Eisen im Feuer'

The He 52A was ready for service use in early 1933 but, against Ernst Udet's recommendations, the RVM issued a request for a back-up design. The Bayerische Flugzeugwerke M.32 was a low-wing monoplane fighter designed by Willy Messerschmitt at the invitation of Rudolf Hess. Essentially an enlarged M.29 racer, like the He 52, the M.32 was fitted with a 740 hp BMW VI 7,3 Z V-12 engine.

Shown here is the prototype M.32 v1, first flown in August 1933. The M.32 introduced some radical features. Its cockpit was fitted with a side-hinged canopy (a feature rejected when proposed for the He 52. The M.32's monocoque fuselage was largely constructed from pre-pressed dural 'hoops'. Less successful was the all-moving horizontal tailplane. The small run of re-production M.32a fighters had fixed stabilizers on a revised tail with a horn-balanced rudder.

BFW received no order for the definitive M.32b interceptor. Instead, Messerschmitt was encouraged by the new Reichsluftfahrtministerium to pursue his more advanced M.38 design for the Luftwaffe. The M.38 was superficially similar to the M.32b but smaller overall due to its use of the new aka BMW XII (aka BMW 116) inverted V-12 rated at 620 hp.

[Logan Hartke]

Very nice!  I like those a lot.

Cheers,

Logan

[finsrin]

Those two sure look right for the time and their role.