Chapter 1949: The so-called magic
On the upper wing of the plane, the British also installed a 7.7mm machine gun. Of course, under normal circumstances, this machine gun is not expected to produce any output. This thing is used as a rangefinder machine gun for a tank. When it is time to make a few corrections, and then focus on the fire.
After this modification, the British engineers need to calculate the weight problem. The original weight of this aircraft is 1866kg and the maximum take-off weight is 3200kg. In fact, the fuel load is only about 400kg, including the removed machine gun. With the description of the equipment and cockpit, plus the additional machine guns and ammunition, the United Kingdom calculated a fortune, and the combat takeoff weight of this aircraft became 2,300 kg! There is no way. The weight of the 5 large-caliber machine guns and the attached parts is as high as 270 kilograms, plus thousands of bullets! Although some things were removed, the weight increase is certain.
"Boss, are you still changing as planned? This may be overweight, maybe the position of the center of gravity of the plane has changed?" The mechanic said while looking at the already somewhat full-fledged plane.
"Of course it changed! Don't forget, the current three-person airplane has become a two-person airplane. We lose one pilot's weight, which is about 80 kilograms of load." The man called the boss said very easily. "Our work is less than half done!"
If the previous improvements turned this dh11 light bomber from a bomb porter into a shark with a mouth full of sharp teeth, then the next job is to coat the shark with a thick layer of hard skin. After all, you are hunting giant dragons in the air. Dragons are not only thick and thick, but they also have powerful attack power, especially when they are in a group.
So, next, this group of guys who were fitters and turners before joining the army will be led by the only engineer in this group, Allen, to put thick armor on the plane, and the first thing they did The thing is to give the engine a bulletproof armor!
"This is quite a challenging job for me." Looking at the flying dragon 9-cylinder air-cooled engine in front of him, engineer Allen began to consider how to install armor while comparing the drawings. Different types of engines have different types of installation methods, such as liquid-cooled engines. Although liquid-cooled engines are fragile, the coolant flows in all cylinders to dissipate heat. Not only is the structure complicated, but it is also very easy to damage. As long as a shrapnel breaks the engine The cylinder, so quickly, all the coolant will flow out, and the airplane can only wait to die if it has no heat dissipation.
However, liquid-cooled engines also have advantages. First, the power-to-weight ratio data will be very beautiful. Secondly, the frontal windward area is small, so the resistance will be very small. Third, the cooling efficiency is high. As long as the engine is not too badly designed, cooling is generally not a problem. And the third point is that defense is better arranged.
Let’s put it this way, if the weight is not limited, the British can wrap most of a liquid-cooled engine in armor, leaving only the oil radiator under the engine! (Book friends, do you feel that this idea is familiar? Yes, the historical Il 2 was designed like this. The entire engine compartment, except for the oil radiator, is protected by armor, and because of liquid cooling, So don’t worry about the overheating of the engine. After all, the place to dissipate heat is only the oil radiator!)
But now, the British need to install armor on this air-cooled engine! As the name suggests, an air-cooled engine relies on the airflow blowing through the engine to dissipate heat. Therefore, the idea of adding a cover directly in front of the engine can be thrown directly into the trash. Block the air intake, you are so hot!
In the past, air-cooled engines generally did not have defensive armor installed on the front of the engine because of their better resistance to damage, because even if a cylinder is destroyed, the engine can still run in a short time, and the loss of heat dissipation oil is relatively slow, so luck is not special If it's bad, you can always make an emergency landing. But now it's different. In the face of the firepower of a bomber group like a storm, it is very common for an engine to be shot with more than a dozen shots in an instant, so the engine must be armored.
Therefore, after leaving the vent on the front of the engine, Allen installed a ring armor around the engine, which blocked the incoming bullets from certain angles. However, the effect was not good in the actual test, because the ring armor was added. After all, the ventilation rate is reduced, and the incoming cold air is not enough, and the heat dissipation problem cannot be solved. Then, the British chose to install a cooling fan on the coaxial propeller to improve heat dissipation, and two rows of vents were opened on the side of the engine to help cooling. After some modification, the cooling system can finally make do with the armor of this aircraft.
After the frontal defense problem has been solved to a certain extent, the next thing to be solved is the defense on the upper part of the engine and on both sides. Obviously, after the British added ring-shaped bulletproof armor and added a cooling fan~www.wuxiaspot .com~ The weight of the engine has been significantly increased, and because the power of the engine needs to drive the cooling fan, the power used on the propeller will actually be reduced. If this is an engine of 400 horsepower or above, then It’s okay, but it’s a pity that the maximum power of this engine is only 320 horsepower, so if you want to consider the flight performance, it can only be enough.
After the engine is changed, it is the protection of the cockpit. The easiest is naturally to get an armored bathtub, but in fact this is impossible and the weight is not allowed! As a result, a bullet-proof steel plate was added to the front and back of the cockpit that was most easily shot. 3 to 5mm thick steel plates are also added to some parts of the side of the body. That's it. In short, for the interceptors of this era, it is very good to be able to do this.
In fact, from the perspective of armor defense, what the Germans did was very similar to what the British did. All have made a limited defense against the engine and the cabin. After the enhancement of firepower and defense, this aircraft has already possessed the basic performance as an interceptor. But to be an excellent interceptor? Then wash and sleep, because the distance is really far away!
The modification of the first aircraft was carried out while groping, and it took about three days. Then after letting the pilot fly a test, the latter said that the flight quality was really bad... The weight of the aircraft has increased a lot, the speed has dropped a lot, and there are some problems with maneuvering and operational response. According to the pilot's words: "I feel like I'm operating a flying weight..."
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