Thursday, July 29, 2010

Brawny.


This is coolbert:

Here is the Il-40.

Dedicated Soviet era ground attack aircraft. Successor to the proven winners of World War Two [WW2] fame, the Il-2 and Il-10.

Combat aircraft, specificially designed from the get-go as having a dedicated ground attack mission, supporting the Red Army, strafing, firing cannon, dropping bombs.

"The Ilyushin Il-40 (NATO reporting name: "Brawny") was a two-seat Soviet jet-engined armored ground-attack aircraft."

An two-seat armored aircraft, designed to dish-out punishment [six 23 mm cannon] having a robustness of construction making the warplane relatively impervious to enemy ground fire [AAA].

AND - - as with the propeller driven Il-2 and Il-10 - - having a rear-tail gunner, remotely operating a rearward-firing 23 mm cannon! The design bureau of Ilyushin still maintaining the old ways - - the incorporation of a second crew member, dedicated to aircraft defense being seen as a MUST! All other airforces of the world seeing the tail-gunner as an outdated anachronism - - but NOT the Soviets!!

The Il-40 never being deployed - - existing only in prototype versions!

Those SIX 23 mm cannon as originally carried by the Il-40 having a significant defect. "Combustion gasses" from the guns firing causing flameout [engine stall or shutdown] or "hiccups"!! Those two jet engines not receiving the necessary amount of "fresh air" to function properly.

"The first prototype flew in 1953 and was very successful except when it fired its guns, as their combustion gasses would disturb the airflow into the engines and cause them to flameout or hiccup."

Interestingly enough, in the early 1970's, the first prototypes of the American A-10 Thunderbolt ["Warthog"] ground attack aircraft ALSO encountered the same exact problem. Engine shut-down occurring as a result of the main gun [30 mm GAU-8] firing. A one second burst of the GAU-8 "burning" about twenty-five pounds of "gunpowder", placing into the atmosphere an engine clogging amount of noxious gasses.

The Soviets twenty years ahead of the U.S. in this category!! Unintended jet engine flameout as the result of too much firepower.

coolbert.

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