Most Beautiful Aircraft

[tiv]

What is it?

Looks a bit like a Swift

Close, it's a Supermarine 508 that morphed in to the Scimitar.

 

[Themanwho]

IDF version would be good for returning asylum seekers.

With or without retarding parachutes?

 

[Maninthestreet]

AVPRO Exint pod, still being touted for F-35.

View attachment 563540

It would seem a handy thing to have in the inventory for CSAR, since attack helos could be tasked instead of transports, but it requires the extractee to be mobile, uninjured and not in need of hoisting.

There was also a parachute-retarded version for deployment from non-VTOL aircraft for insertion only, reportedly adopted by the IDF.

Similar on the p38.

 

[oldsoak]

Screw coming in for a belly up landing.

 

[Cold_Collation]

Similar on the p38.

There was me looking up to see whether that was in fact an F-4 or 5 cameras in the nose), and, well, you learn something new every day. There’s also a P-51...

P-38 can opener - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[kiwidoug]

With or without retarding parachutes?

Why on Earth would you want to waste some perfectly good parachute silk?

 

[Themanwho]

Why on Earth would you want to waste some perfectly good parachute sil?

Kutbacks, perchance?

 

[diehard57]

View attachment 563617

Similar on the p38.

I remember reading a story about Matt Braddock the RAF ace in the Victor comic back in the 1960’s where he managed to escape from the slant eyed Nips on a Pacific island by sawing the ends off the drop tanks to use as personnel panniers for his navigator George and a Yank pilot.

 

[Soluton Architect]

Just had to look that up, more info here The EXINT Pod if anyone is interested.

"...bought some of the initial production run, made by Hunting Engineering."

Now that was a fascinating little company that received a lot of interesting contracts. An official declassified history would be gold.

Not just aeroplanes and unusual pieces of equipment, but a large chunk of the deterrent force relied on Hunting systems.

 

[CrabfatBILL]

Allen Airstrip is a grass airstrip in Southampton Township, NJ. Once a month the pilots get a free breakfast if they come in and do a few maneuvers for the crowd. The flight path goes through a wood which has now been opened up a bit. 10 years ago it was a smallish gap and if the pilots knew you were taking photos, some would go through the gap 90deg to the deck very low. I will try and find some photos, may take some time to find the right Hard drive.

View attachment 562650View attachment 562651

Nice to see a tractor with spade lugs.

CFB

 

[kiwidoug]

"...bought some of the initial production run, made by Hunting Engineering."

Now that was a fascinating little company that received a lot of interesting contracts. An official declassified history would be gold.

Not just aeroplanes and unusual pieces of equipment, but a large chunk of the deterrent force relied on Hunting systems.

Weren't they involved with the runway denial systems used by GR1s in Iraq?

 

[Graculus]

Weren't they involved with the runway denial systems used by GR1s in Iraq?

JP 233? Aye, and the BL 755 and various other stuff as alluded to earlier.

 

[Soluton Architect]

Probably my favourite Exint painting, simply because it features the marvellously hideous X-32

And a snippet from Flight International in 1998 regarding DERA testing

 

[Cold_Collation]

Probably my favourite Exint painting, simply because it features the marvellously hideous X-32

View attachment 563715

And a snippet from Flight International in 1998 regarding DERA testing

View attachment 563716

The proposed production version was rather more of a looker.

 

[Rapierman]

I remember reading a story about Matt Braddock the RAF ace in the Victor comic back in the 1960’s where he managed to escape from the slant eyed Nips on a Pacific island by sawing the ends off the drop tanks to use as personnel panniers for his navigator George and a Yank pilot.

We all know there was only one Braddock that has ever served in any real combat.......................

 

[Goldbricker]

View attachment 563617

Similar on the p38.

Too bad they used an F5, the droop snoot versions could hold a 3rd wounded in the bombardier nose

 

[Goldbricker]

Screw coming in for a belly up landing.

nah just toggle em, wont damage the plane

 

[Waldeck]

Not sure what it is but the pilot was pretty brave.

 

[flieslikeabeagle]

Curtis Flyer?

 

[tiv]

View attachment 563549
SE200

Really not sure if beautiful or ugly, or just plain WTF?

It's been done already:



but it didn't end well, crashing on it's second flight: