Miles Monitor
| M.33 Monitor | |
|---|---|
| |
| Role | Target tug |
| Manufacturer | Miles Aircraft |
| First flight | 5 April 1944 |
| Primary user | None |
| Number built | 22 |
The Miles M.33 Monitor was a twin-engined British
Design and development
The Monitor came about as a response to
The Monitor was a high-winged aircraft with an all-metal fuselage and wooden wings. It was originally stipulated that the aircraft would incorporate the
The original requirement for a target towing aircraft for the RAF was abandoned, and the orders for Monitors was taken over by the Fleet Air Arm, who required an aircraft capable of simulating dive-bombing attacks on warships. To meet this requirement the aircraft, fitted with hydraulically actuated dive brakes, nose cameras for marking Fleet gunnery, a dorsal midship cupola and radar equipment was used to accurately determine height[2] was known as the Monitor TT Mk II.[1] The Monitor's 10 hp (7.5 kW) winch was fitted with 6,000 ft (1,800 m) of towing cable, and was capable of towing flag and sleeve targets as well as 16 and 32 ft (4.9 and 9.8 m)-span special winged targets. Spare targets were stowed on board and could be changed in flight, while winged targets were towed off the ground on a 250 ft (76 m) line.[2]
At the end of the war, contracts for 600 Monitors were cancelled and only 20 were built. As with all aircraft for service use, the Monitor was evaluated by the
Variants
- Monitor TT Mk I
- Prototype target tug for the Royal Air Force, one built.
- Monitor TT Mk II
- Target tug for the Fleet Air Arm, one prototype and 20 production aircraft.
Specifications (TT.Mk.2)
Data from Miles Aircraft since 1925,[7]</ref>The Hamlyn Concise Guide to British Aircraft of World War II.[8]
General characteristics
- Crew: 2
- Length: 47 ft 8 in (14.53 m)
- Wingspan: 56 ft 3 in (17.15 m)
- Height: 14 ft 3 in (4.34 m)
- Wing area: 500 sq ft (46 m2)
- Aspect ratio: 6.3
- Airfoil: root: NACA 23021; tip: NACA 2412
- Empty weight: 15,850 lb (7,189 kg)
- Gross weight: 21,075 lb (9,559 kg)
- Fuel capacity: 480 imp gal (576 US gal; 2,182 L) fuel ; 32 imp gal (38 US gal; 145 L) oil
- Powerplant: 2 × Wright R-2600-31 Twin Cyclone14-cylinder air-cooled radial piston engines, 1,700 hp (1,300 kW) each
- Propellers: 3-bladed constant-speed propellers
Performance
- Maximum speed: 330 mph (530 km/h, 290 kn) at 15,000 ft (4,572 m)
- Cruise speed: 265 mph (426 km/h, 230 kn) at 15,000 ft (4,572 m)
- Range: 2,750 mi (4,430 km, 2,390 nmi)
- Service ceiling: 29,000 ft (8,800 m)
- Rate of climb: 2,480 ft/min (12.6 m/s)
- Time to altitude:
- 15,000 ft (4,572 m) in 6 minutes 24 seconds
- 20,000 ft (6,096 m) in 10 minutes 6 seconds
- Wing loading: 42.1 lb/sq ft (206 kg/m2)
- Power/mass: 0.161 hp/lb (0.265 kW/kg)
- Take-off run: 1,035 ft (315 m)
- Take-off distance to 50 ft (15 m): 2,430 ft (741 m)
See also
Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era
Related lists
References
Notes
- ^ ISBN 1851526684.
- ^ a b c d e Bridgman (Jane's) 1998, p. 131.
- ^ Brown 1970, p. 210.
- ^ Mason 2010, p. 252.
- ^ Sturivant, 2004.
- ^ Brown 1970, pp. 207–211.
- ^ Mondey 2002, p. 173.
Bibliography
- Amos, Peter. and Brown, Don Lambert. Miles Aircraft Since 1925, Volume 1. London: Putnam Aeronautical, 2000. ISBN 0-85177-787-2
- Brown, Don (1970). Miles Aircraft since 1925. London: Putnam. ISBN 0-370-00127-3.
- Bridgman, L, (ed.) (1998) Jane's fighting aircraft of World War II. Crescent. ISBN 0-517-67964-7.
- Mason, Tim. The Secret Years: Flight Testing at Boscombe Down, 1939–1945. Crowborough, UK: Hikoki Publications, 2010. ISBN 978-1-9021-0914-5.
- Mondey, David. The Hamlyn Concise guide to British Aircraft of World War II. London: Chancellor press, 2002. ISBN 1-85152-668-4.
- Sturivant, Ray. Fleet Air Arm Fixed-Wing Aircraft since 1946. Tonbridge, Kent: Air-Britain, 2004. ISBN 0-85130-283-1.
- Thetford, Owen. British Naval Aircraft since 1912 . London: Putnam, Fourth edition, 1978 ISBN 0-370-30021-1.
External links
