aviast
Well-Known Member
There is a Henri Farman model III that was recently imported from the U.S. and now lives at Caboolture, north of Brisbane. I took a snap at the airshow last weekend...
Apparently there was only one attempt to fly this particular aircraft which ended in a crash.
This type of aircraft was quite popular for it's time (just prior to WWI) so - in theory - it should be able to get off the ground.
The example I saw has a few modern improvements:
To me this plane just doesn't look right. Obviously the cg is well behind the main wing which necessitates the lifting tail surfaces; that makes me uncomfortable.
Is there a "back of the envelope" calculation that can be done to determine if a plane will fly and be controllable? I suspect the cg position will need to be known, but the other great unknown is the centre of pressure. How can this be calculated?
Apparently there was only one attempt to fly this particular aircraft which ended in a crash.
This type of aircraft was quite popular for it's time (just prior to WWI) so - in theory - it should be able to get off the ground.
The example I saw has a few modern improvements:
- Lycoming engine
- Thick airfoil
To me this plane just doesn't look right. Obviously the cg is well behind the main wing which necessitates the lifting tail surfaces; that makes me uncomfortable.
Is there a "back of the envelope" calculation that can be done to determine if a plane will fly and be controllable? I suspect the cg position will need to be known, but the other great unknown is the centre of pressure. How can this be calculated?
