ranchero
Member
I've been looking at some twins with the tractor engines mounted closely together like the Grumman XF-5F, DeHavilland Hornet, and Fw-189. It seems like good solution to minimize asymmetric thrust and it puts the prop blades out of harm's way.
Rutan used a variation of this configuration on his Pond Racer.
Against this, the design limits the volume of the forward fuselage, the engine mounts have to be pretty long, it's noisy, and there must be some interference between the props (?).
A number of German WW2 bombers (Ju-88, Do-17) had the engines mounted well forward and I wonder how they managed the weight & balance with that engine placement and the entire crew forward of main spar. I'd guess it was the long aft fuselage (?).
What are the drawbacks to this design aerodynamically, mechanically, and in terms of weight & balance?
Rutan used a variation of this configuration on his Pond Racer.
Against this, the design limits the volume of the forward fuselage, the engine mounts have to be pretty long, it's noisy, and there must be some interference between the props (?).
A number of German WW2 bombers (Ju-88, Do-17) had the engines mounted well forward and I wonder how they managed the weight & balance with that engine placement and the entire crew forward of main spar. I'd guess it was the long aft fuselage (?).
What are the drawbacks to this design aerodynamically, mechanically, and in terms of weight & balance?
