The Ongoing Mystery Aircraft Thread Part Deux.

[wout]

Sorry for the silly remark on the red Herring. I hoped it would be a hint to the name and that somebody would know.
Is this the Herrick Vertiplane (aka Convertaplane)?

[Moses03]

That one went right over my head Walter. It is indeed the Vertiplane! The board is yours.

[lefty]

Yes, sorry, Walter, than one got past me too. Herrings indeed !

[wout]

this one is not from 1938 and not from 1940

[lefty]

It's the Bloch MB-160. Any idea about the three lower cockpit windows which appear to be on the port side only ???

[wout]

Correct Lefty :salute:
Sorry, have no idea on the cockpit window arrangement. All I understand is that the MB-160 was an independent design (separate design team) and not related to the contemporary MB-161, which of course evolved into the SE-161 Languedoc.

[lefty]

Built just a couple of years earlier than the Bloch, a purposeful-looking but quite neat fighter.

[Moses03]

Must be from Eastern Europe somewhere. Looks Aero-ish.

[lefty]

Not Aero. Close......

[Moses03]

This has to be the one and only Praga E-45.

[lefty]

It is.

[Moses03]

Here is a strange one. From a very well known company.

[lefty]

This looks like something out of one of those old H.G.Wells stories about trips to the Centre of the Earth...

Come on now, did it FLY ???? With that tunnel-borer up front ???

[Moses03]

I'm not sure how it performed (runs and ducks). Information is very tough to find about this one.

The aircraft is not unique, just the tunnel-borer section.

[lefty]

I'm off for the next couple of days (family wedding - yuk!) so I'll wave the white flag on this one.

Thankfully I'm going by road - all flights are off again here - I suspect the bridal couple are going to have a ruined honeymoon......

[Moses03]

Rgr on horse drawn carriage...

The mystery is European. The prop experiment was added to a proven biplane recon design.

[Moses03]

Sorry, this was not the greatest photo to work with. The tunnel-borer is the Fokker C.1 with the experimental Dekker prop. Thinking it was the first contra-prop ever designed? Circa 1920.

Next one is easier. A jet trainer...

[wout]

The sad remains of the Beech Jet Mentor?
On the other hand, it was saved!

[lefty]

Mouldering in Wichita, eh ? You would think someone would take this one in hand - like Beech, for example.

I WISH someone could get Aerofiles to get their site off Google's wanted list. I am sick of getting this on every page I try to access.Attachment 4986

I can get in with IE instead of Firefox, but Kaspersky still tells me there are nasty worms lurking in there.....

[Moses03]

on the Beech. Over to Wout.


Been visiting Aerofiles without any issues so far.

[wout]

Nothing wrong structurally with this one. It`s not the right wing sticking up

[Ferry_vO]

I have that pic labeled as the 'De Rouge Elytroplan', though apparently more aircraft existed with that name.

[wout]

Hi Ferry, bingo!
The Elytroplan concept was an idea of Count Charles de Rouge and the tall mast was used to control the aircraft.
Attached a photo op the first contraption as tested in 1935. Also the second aircraft (which was known as the Bouffort-Lantrè BL-10, built in 1937) in flight and as tested by the Germans, but apparently found unsuitable as basis for another secret weapon. I understand the BL-10 was destroyed in 1943.
After the war the concept was revived as the LB-20 (also built by Bouffort and Lantrès, but I donot know why the reversed the BL designation into LB).

[lefty]

The two BL-10's look a bit different there, Wout. Different shape 'endplates' and the wing on the last one looks shorter and has more dihedral, but maybe that's just camera angle.

I wonder what the theory of the tall 'sail' was ? I suppose the fact that it didn't exactly spawn a rash of imitators speaks for itself.......

Anyway, well spotted, Ferry - I was getting nowhere with this wee horror.

[Ferry_vO]

To make it even stranger (If that's possible); this airplane apparently goes by the same name:

http://www.airliners.net/photo/De-Ro...lan/0857291/M/