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Cranston Fine Arts  Aviation Art and Artists Modern Era Aircraft More Aircraft Initials A - O  Flying Wing |
[UP] - A-7 Corsair - B2 - Bear - Beverley - Brigand - Buccaneer - Canberra - Constellation - Crusader - Delta Dart - Eagle (F-15) - F-84F-25 - Falcon (F-16) - Firefly - Flying Wing - Globemaster III - Growler - Harrier - Hastings - Hawk - Hornet (F-18) - Hustler - Intruder - Lancer - Lightning (RAF) - Lincoln - Mauler - Meteor - MiG17 - MiG15 - MiG19 - MiG21 - Mirage 2000 - Mirage III - Nimrod |
| Flying Wing Aviation Prints |
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| Text for the above items : |
Jacks Unusual Design by Stan Stokes. John K. Jack Northrop was one of the pioneers in American aircraft design and production. He was the chief designer for Lockheed, developing that companys first aircraft, the Vega. In 1939 he formed his own aircraft company. Jacks passion was the tail-less aircraft, or flying wing, a concept he supported passionately. The B-2 bomber of today exhibits many of the design attributes which were pioneered by Jack Northrop in many of his ill-fated, but highly-charged forays in the world of the flying wing. The N1-M was a small flying wing prototype which Northrop demonstrated in 1940-41. The N-9M was built in several different versions to test out some design concepts for Jacks ultimate goal, development of the long-range B-35 flying wing bomber. Northrop eventually succeeded in winning an initial government contract to develop the very large B-35 Flying Wing. This 172 foot wingspan aircraft with a takeoff weight in excess of eighty tons, was conceived by Northrop as the ultimate long range strategic bomber. With a design objective of having a 10,000 mile range with a 10,000 pound bomb load, the B-35 would be a true intercontinental bomber. Under the command of Northrops test pilot Max R. Stanley, the prototype aircraft exhibited a range of 7,500 miles at a cruising speed of 240-MPH. One of the most unusual-looking aircraft ever developed, the XB-35 was powered by four large piston engines powering counter rotating propellers mounted in the pusher position on the aft portion of the wing. The program was plagued with more than its fair share of problems, and it became clear that the design needed to be modified to a jet powered aircraft. Only fifteen of the piston powered aircraft were built, although at one point during the project 200 were on order. The YB-49 was the jet-powered evolution of the B-35 program, and B-35 airframes were modified to take the jet engines. Three prototypes were ultimately produced utilizing the modified B-35 airframes. The YB-49 was powered by eight Allison jet engines, and was capable of a top speed of more than 490-MPH. With a cruising speed of roughly 420-MPH, the jet-powered flying wing had a range of more than 3,000 miles. Northrops Chief Test Pilot Max Stanley piloted the YB-49 on its maiden flight on September 29, 1947, and worked with the B-49 until it was turned over to the Air Force in October of 1947. The slim silhouette of the B-49 provided a small radar target, and during tests off the California coat, the B-49 was able to penetrate air space without being picked up by radar. As depicted in Stan Stokes painting, which is dedicated to the memory of Jack Northrop and his passion for the tail-less aircraft, the B-49 is put through its paces over the mountains surrounding Edwards Air Force Base in California by USAF Chief Test Pilot Major Robert Cardenas. Cardenas flew the B-49 from December of 1947 until May of 1948. He was then scheduled to go back to school, but after one B-49 crashed in June of 1948, he was called back to continue flight tests. Cardenas, who retired from the Air Force as a Brigadier General, flew the B-49 from California to Washington, D.C. in February of 1949. While in Washington, President Truman toured the aircraft, and then requested a tree-top fly-by of the B-49 down Pennsylvania Avenue. Several weeks later Cardenas received a 35mm photo taken by a tourist of the B-49 passing just over the Capitol Building. The annonymous sender could not stand the pressure of having a picture of the Air Forces latest top secret space plane. |
| Flying Wing Pilot and aircrew signature details |
Max R Stanley Our estimated value of this signature : £15 | Max R Stanley Max Stanley's first employment as a professional pilot was by Lockheed as a co-pilot ferrying newly built Hudson bombers from the Burbank factory to the East Coast. These aircraft were then shipped by boat to England. With the advent of America's Lend Lease Program, Lockheed loaned Max to Pan Am where he spent two years as a Captain shuttling all types of twin-engine aircraft from Miami across the South Atlantic to British forces in Africa, Egypt and India. When Pan American terminated its ferry operations, Max was employed by United Air Lines as a Captain of four-engine cargo/passenger aircraft flying the route from San Francisco to Australia. In early 1943 Max resigned from United and accepted an offer of employment from Northrop as an experimental test pilot. His war time work included serving as the primary test pilot on the P-61 Black Widow program, where he made the first flight in all variants accept the XP-61. He also recorded first flights in the Northrop F-15, the Trimotor Pioneer, and the Trimotor C-125 Raider. Max also participated as a test pilot in the F-89 Scorpion and T-38 Talon programs. His most significant test pilot assignments involved his participation in Jack Northrop's Flying Wing program. Max made numerous flights in the N-9M, which was a 1/3 d scale model of a large flying wing bomber. When the first full size aircraft was ready, the X13-35, Max was selected as Chief Test Pilot of the huge flying wing for the Contractor Phase 1 Test Program, and began preparing for the first flights. As the program evolved, Northrop's designers converted the B-35, which was powered by four huge piston engines, into the Y13-49, which was powered by eight early jet engines. Max was also selected to be Northrop's Chief Test Pilot on the B-49. During the course of this program Max would set a World Record for jet aircraft with a non-stop, unrefueled flight of 3,950 miles in a little over 9 hours, while carrying a simulated 10,000 pound bomb load. Once the Air Force accepted delivery, Max turned over primary test pilot chores to his Air Force counterpart on the program, Bob Cardenas. Max's next assignment was with the SM-62 Snark missile program where he served as the Chief Pilot for the numerous manned aircraft which were used during the development and testing of the missile. Max Stanley is a Founding Fellow of the Society of Experimental Test Pilots and he served for several years as Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Society of Experimental Test Pilots Scholarship Foundation. Max is also a member of the Caterpillar Club, having qualified on two occasions. After a twenty-eight year career at Northrop, Max is generally known as the 'Dean' of Northrop test pilots. |
| Flying Wing Squadron details |
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