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Convertiplane

As the name stands for a plane that converts, but exactly in what? First of all, the plane needs to take off vertically and landing as well, so it is VTOL (Vertical take-off and landing), specifically using a rotor, and in a normal regime fly like a fixed-wing aircraft. This is a definition from the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI).

CMV-22B tiltrotor transport, a Tilt Rotor. Source: en.topwar.ru

The most common aircraft configuration in this category is the proprotor, its rotor blades for vertical take-off become propellers for horizontal flight. There are two main types of proprotor, tilt-rotor and tilt-wing. Therefore, the difference lies in the mechanism to divert the propulsion along the wing.

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Vertol VZ-2 (Model 76), a Tilt Wing. Notice the wing and propellers rotate. Source: Nasa

An example of a Tilt rotor is The Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey Military, with two engines, the rotors work as a helicopter rotor for taking off vertically and then in flight they lean forward similar to an airplane. Within this type, the AgustaWestland AW609, a civilian aircraft with outstanding flight performance.

AW609, Tilt Rotor. Source: JUSTHELICOPTERS/Youtube

On the other hand, in the Tilt wing aircraft, the system works in such a way that the whole system rotates (the engine and the wing) simultaneously. An example of this aircraft, the Vertol VZ-2 or Hiller X-18.

Hiller X-18. Source: commons.wikimedia.org

The convertiplane seems to be a versatile aircraft for many environments since it can be operated in a heliport and airport, has a high top speed due to the horizontal tilt configuration, and the maneuverability needed in different places.


References:

https://www.popularmechanics.com/

Cover photo:

Peter Gronemann/commons.wikimedia.org

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3 comments

comments user
registrace na binance

Thanks for sharing. I read many of your blog posts, cool, your blog is very good.

comments user
lroliver1066

Hello, just letting you know in your tanker air refueling blog you have very large inaccuracies. I am in the USAF and work on these planes. If you would like more information to make your blog more accurate, please reach out. Have a blessed day! 🙂

comments user
SPANDAN

This blog always brings something new. This also gives me a load of ideas for my blog. Thank you for this consistency.

Spandan owner: https://aviationblog.in/

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