[NORTHROP AIRCRAFT YB-49 FLYING WING PROMOTIONAL FILM]

greatest answer to aviation's demand for more speed more range and greater efficiency of operations load faster farther and with greater economy than conventional airplanes of similar size and power since the Wright brothers airplane first flew at Kittyhawk in 193 Americans of this Century have seen great advances in air transportation you men indeed can see the Flying Wing in operation without saying the plane of Tomorrow is flying today since man first learned that mechanical wings could carry him into the sky airmen have dreamed of the ideal airplane one of Maximum efficiency in which every expess surface would have the greatest possible useful purpose contributing to the lift of the Flying Machine 24 years of research and millions of hours of work of of these new aerial Giants the designers the engineers and many other men working with North rcraft have long had this dream and have turned it into a reality the Flying Wing this airlane was developed as an effective way to solve the old problem of reducing drag drags rather hard to describe a simple definition is to say that it's the resistance of the air to an airplane's forward Passage you felt dragged by putting your hand out of a car window and probably you've noticed that you can reduce it by turning your hand edgewise presenting less surface to the wind in the Flying Wing we've reduced drag by designing an airplane with a more efficient form its shape creates less resistance to forward motion and passes through the air more easily here I'll illustrate it for you primitive man used a sled to transport loads greater than he could carry this sled rubbed on the ground just as airlanes rub against the air it took sheer power to overcome the friction or drag of this conveyance the larger the sled the more drag surface it presented and consequently the more power was required to overcome this Drag The Logical solution lay in reducing drag to a minimum so man developed the wheel which permitted transportation of equal loads with greatly reduced power or increase the loads and speed with the same amount of power since the beginning Aviation design has been confronted with much the same problem as was primitive man today's basic aircraft design still has unnecessarily large drag forces the engines callings and and the cells the tail surfaces used for stability and control the bulky extended fuselage they all are causes of drag drag to be overcome at the expense of speed operational range payload and Power in the Flying Wing we have reduced drag by removing the external engines callings and the Nels the tail surfaces and finally the fuselage itself now we sweep back the wings for purpose of balance control and stability and we see a picture of the basic flying wing and that briefly is what has been done about the problem of drag rather than try to overpower it we've reduced it knowing that when we eliminate the cause we eliminate the effect we now have an airplane which due to its increased efficiency is capable of transporting a given load 25% farther or faster and it's possible with an ordinary airplane using the same same power that is what is meant by efficiency of design our second objective was greater efficiency of structure in order to illustrate efficiency of structure we can use these charts for comparison here is a massive Bridge structure massive because of the engineering principles involved notice that all loads are transferred to Central concentrated points this requires a ponderous expensive structure to sustain the loads and resist the applied stresses stresses that are multiplied in turn by the leverages of the spans now here on the same Highway carrying the same traffic load is an economical Causeway type of bridge it does the same job as the first Bridge with a much simpler structure and a fraction of the material the answer is simple stresses are absorbed and weights are sustained by the individual units or pilings and in the same way this comparison may be applied to Conventional and all-wing aircraft in the ordinary type the lift which carries the load works on the wing from tip to tip but the bulk of the weight is centrally located necessitating heavier Wing construction particularly at the roots or points of suspension in the Flying Wing the same weights distributed over the span of the wing are sustained by individual areas or lift forces permitting a large saving in structural weight at no sacrifice of strength this saving is convertible to additional payload or fuel and that very simply is what is meant by efficiency of structure today Northrup men know well that by combining efficiency of design and efficiency of structure the result is a high lift low drag flying wing which can carry a greater load carry it farther carry it higher and carry it faster than conventional airplanes of similar size and power at far-flung bases and remote corners of the globe large hangers to house big airplanes are usually hard to find when these planes are repaired and maintained the men must work in the open often in bitter weather which slows them down and makes the task far more difficult and costly in time and money but not the Flying Wing to shelter the wing requires only a small and modest structure hardly more than a large quanin placed on dollies the wing can be trundled sideways into its hanger a hanger that is small economical and easily constructed as easy to maintain as it is to house the Flying Wing is built low to the ground and can be easily serviced short ladders or low platforms available at any airport are all that are required to reach almost any part of even a large flying wing where outdoor storage is necessary espe in cold weather this is a great Aid when all surfaces must be cleared of ice or snow prior to takeoff with these additional advantages it is little wonder that forward-thinking Aviation experts already are envisioning the day when Giant flying wing transports will enable World Air travelers to fly faster and farther at reduced fairs in a degree of comfort surpassing the most modern ocean liner tailess Folly I calls it well sounds as if someone has an opinion who ever heard of airplanes without tails birds have taals Haven they if they didn't need them they wouldn't have them flying wings now there's a real expert an Authority on any subject his ancestors were all authorities too for instance steamboats it's ridiculous whoever heard of a boat without sails Bolton's Folly I calls it steam trains ah it's ridiculous who ever heard of cars without horses 18 M an hour they say flying machines H it's ridiculous who ever heard of a Man flying never be practical who ever heard of an airplane without a tail no stability I tell you won't be able to fly they'll never get that thing off the ground they should me IED a little bit about aan recognize him he's one of that group of Skeptics who just can't understand any scientific advancement and won't believe it when he sees it an open mind and a little inquiry would disclose the fact that the engineers haven't changed the basic princip of stability at all in building the wing they've merely arranged the controlled surfaces in a different manner in a form our skeptic doesn't recognize thereby reducing drag by eliminating the tail surfaces and the fuselage that supports them yes it's just about that simple and logical remember as a youngster when you SE saw it on a plank sometimes there was a heavier boy on the other end and you had to move out further to to establish a balance with both of you at the ends your little brother had quite a time moving the plank but once in Balance you could both move in and out proportionately to maintain that balance and when you were close to the pivot little brother could swing you lots easier than when you were out at the end now the airplane is balanced about its center of gravity in the same way as the Seesaw was on its pivot and when all of its weight is concentrated close to the center of gravity as it is in the Flying Wing the size of the tail can be reduced or moved much closer to the wing and the same degree of stability and control will be retained here is a top view of an ordinary air plane and this is what the skeptic fail to investigate if the load usually spread out the length of a fuselage is carried in the wing close to the center of gravity then the fuselage can be removed and the tail moves up close to the wing now the tail has much less work to do and therefore requires a shorter moment arm swep back or v-shaped wings are coming into General use even on conventional planes because of their recognized advantages in the reduction of drag at high speed thus the wing is simply swept back and one half the tail is combined with each wing tip all the original elements needed for stability remain completely effective but over half the drag of the original airplane has been eliminated having already discussed deficiency of design structure and maintenance there's but one final Point operation extremely important in any aircraft is efficiency of operation the handling character istics of the wing are important to the pilot that's right makes a lot of difference if a man who flies a plane likes the way it operates because of its stability ease of handling and maneuverability the wing is as simple to fly as a conventional type airplane despite its 100 ton gross weight it still responds to fingertip control pressures but let's get aboard and I'll show you the Inside Story the flight controls in the cockpit operate in a normal fashion and differ very little from those in a conventional plane foot pedals operate the Rudders which consist of Double Split flaps similar to dive flaps located at the wing tips when a Rudder pedal is depressed the flaps open to produce drag at the required wing tip here's an easy way to explain the action of wing tip rudders notice that when drag or pressure is applied to a wing tip the plane pivots around its Central axis exactly as if Rudder were applied consequently our wing tip Rudders give us the same control as the rudder on a standard type plane on the Flying Wing both pedals may be operated at the same time this creates an air braake effect increasing the rate of descent or reducing the air speed a valuable asset in landing a clean modern airplane of this type this airbrake feature is the only variation from a conventional control Arrangement longitudinal and lateral control are maintained by elevons a combination of the standard elevators and aerons when the control column is pulled back the elevons located just in Board of the Rudders are moved upward causing the wing to climb forward movement of the control column moves the elevons downward resulting in an opposite or diving effect these operations of the control column and the elevons produce the same effect as the elevators on a conventional type airplane lateral rolling effect is achieved by operating the control wheel in the normal fashion this works the alons in the same way that aerons are operated on a standard ship for example turning the wheel to the left raises the left elvon and depresses the right causing the airplane to roll to the left by turning the wheel to the right the plane Will Roll to the right the plane can either climb and turn or dive and turn by using longitudinal and lateral control at the same time got the engin hell to this is Air Force 2367 taxi clearance please with its eight jet engines the wing is one of the most powerful planes in the air ground handling and taxiing are identical to that of any other large airplane having a steerable nose wheel this ease of handling simplifies parking and storage operations notice that the pilot of the Flying Wing has excellent forward downward and round thee clock Vision which minimizes taxiing hazard hello to this is Air Force 2367 ready for takeoff over Air Force 2367 this is a tower clear for takeoff 2367 Roger thus in a matter of seconds this 100ton giant is airborn notice its phenomenal rate of climb ease of operation together with slow noise and vibration levels make long distance operation almost a pleasure because of the pressurized cabin and temperature control grueling hours of long range flying can be accomplished with a minimum of pilot fatigue even at altitudes above 40,000 ft as Pilots know the Flying Wing is an easy plane to handle when a Rudder pedal is depressed drag is induced by the opening of the split Rudders and the plane is pulled in that direction as both Rudders are depressed an airbrake effect is created for sure short approaches or steep descents over Landing Hazard normal control column movement results in a climb a dive or a bank as desired with these controls operated by dual hydraulic systems plus an electrical standby the Flying Wing is the most maneuverable large aerplane in the sky it is a proved and powerful weapon a plane that can hold its own against enemy Fighters the wing has a small frontal area and profile making it difficult to hit or to detect with radar with its relatively low Wing loading and high