Aerocon Dash 1.6 wingship

The Aerocon Dash-1.6 wingship was a proposed American ground-effect vehicle intended to carry large cargos and thousands of passengers over long distances at near-aircraft speeds.

The Aerocon Dash 1.6 wingship, a 5,000-ton ground effect vehicle concept

The vehicle was claimed to be able to carry a combination of 1,500 short tons (1,400 t; 3,000,000 lb; 1,400,000 kg) of cargo and 2,000 passengers a distance of 11,500 miles (18,500 km; 10,000 nmi) at speeds close to those of commercial airliners.[1]

The US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) evaluated the Aerocon design, along with submissions from several other manufacturers, as part of a preliminary study of the concept during the 1990s to determine whether a billion-dollar program was viable, to develop a wingship for military uses.[2][3][4] By the end of 1994, the Department of Defense decided that the design was too high a risk and did not offer further funding.[5]

Specifications

Data from W. I.: Technology Roadmap, Appendix C - Structures, page C-4 – C-6

General characteristics

  • Capacity: more than 3,000 passengers; 2,000 troops[6]
  • Length: 566 ft 0 in (173 m)
  • Wingspan: 340 ft 0 in (104 m)
  • Height: 112 ft 0 in (34 m)
  • Wing area: 38,720.0 sq ft (3,597.21 m2)
  • Empty weight: 3,588,000 lb (1,627,000 kg)
  • Max takeoff weight: 10,000,000 lb (4,500,000 kg)
  • Example Cargo capacity. Data from[7]
    • 32 helicopters
    • 20 tanks
    • 4 landing craft
    • 300 105mm howitzers
  • Powerplant: 20 × unknown type of jet engines, 90,000 lbf (400 kN) thrust each

Performance

  • Cruise speed: 460 mph (741 km/h, 400 kn)
  • Range: 12,000 mi (19,000 km, 10,000 nmi)
  • Service ceiling: 15,000 ft (4,600 m)
  • Lift-to-drag: 32.5
  • Wing loading: 258 lb/sq ft (1,260 kg/m2)

See also

References

Notes
  1. Frederick, Donald (19 September 1993). "Giant Soviet airship could evolve into cruise ship or winged hospital: Aviation: The 540-ton Caspian Sea Monster would be reborn as a 5,000-ton 'wingship' if one American has his way. The original, built in '60s, crashed in '70s". Los Angeles Times. National Geographic. p. A11. ISSN 0458-3035. OCLC 474112039. Archived from the original on 22 March 2015. Retrieved 30 August 2018.
  2. "Wingtip Investigation Volume 3: Technical roadmap", Advanced Research Project Agency, September 30, 1994.
  3. W. I.: Final Report, Chapter 2 - Introduction, page 2-1 – 2-2
  4. Evers, Stacey (August 22, 1994). "U.S. wingship pursuit keyed to ARPA study". Aerospace Daily. Aviation Week & Space Technology. 141 (8). pp. 55–56. ISSN 0005-2175. OCLC 41598016.
  5. Lardner, Richard (December 22, 1994). "Smaller vehicles may be worth pursuing: DOD study: Technical, cost risks of large wingships outweigh advantages". Inside the Pentagon. 10 (51). Inside Washington Publishers. pp. 1, 8–9. ISSN 2164-814X. JSTOR 43992627. OCLC 13302463.
  6. Flynn, Barry (February 15, 1992). "Winged ship could airlift 2,000 troops". Local. The Daily Press. Newport News, Virginia. p. A1. OCLC 37397036.
  7. Lardner, Richard (December 13, 1993). "Aircraft could carry 2,000 troops: Wingship touted as best way to get future army to far-off hot spots". Inside the Army. 5 (50): 14–16. ISSN 2164-8182. JSTOR 43975735. OCLC 839737692.

Bibliography
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