Gull wing Totally Explained

Everything about The Gull Wing totally explained

The gull wing is an with a prominent bend in the wing somewhere along the span, generally near the wing root. Its name is derived from the seabirds which it resembles. It has been incorporated in aircraft for many reasons.

Sailplanes

The gull wing was first seen on glider when the Weltensegler flew in 1921. Its wings were externally braced and featured swept-back wingtips. After the aircraft broke up, killing its pilot, the design feature stayed out of popular use. The gull wing made a resurgence in 1930 with Alexander Lippisch's record-breaking Fafnir. Lippisch used the configuration for its increased wingtip clearance and the ill-founded belief it improved stability in turns. The true success of the Fafnir's gull wing laid primarily in its aesthetic value; the gull wing would be a staple of the high-performance sailplanes of the time, until the 1950s. Notable gull wing sailplanes:

Seaplanes

The gull wing design found its way into seaplanes by the early 1930s. As engine power increased, so did the need for large propellers that could effectively convert power to thrust. The gull wing allowed designers to ensure adequate propeller tip clearance over the water by placing the engines on the highest point of the wing. The alternative was placing the engine on a pylon. Possibly the first flying-boat to utilize the gull wing configuration was the Short Knuckleduster, which flew in 1933. The Dornier Do 26, a high-speed airliner and transport platform, of which 6 aircraft were built, flew in 1938. The configuration was also used on the US Navy's PBM Mariner and P5M Marlin maritime patrol aircraft. The emergence of long range, land-based jets in the 1950s and the subsequent demise of the seaplane prevented widespread use of the gull wing, although it was still used in some post-war designs, like Beriev Be-12 Chaika (the name means 'the gull' in Russian). On the other hand, large seaplanes, with high fuselages, and jet-powered ones, didn't need a gull wing design. Notable gull wing seaplanes

Dornier Do 26

Martin PBM Mariner

Martin P5M Marlin

Beriev Be-6

Beriev Be-12

Landplanes

The gull wing design found its way into landplanes in the late 1920s, with Polish inventor Zygmunt Puławski designing the PZL P.1 in 1928. The arrangement he devised is occasionally, known as the "Pulawski Wing" or the "Polish wing". The gull wing was used to improve visibility in a high wing arrangement, because such wing could be thinnest by the fuselage, and in theory, should limit pilot's view no more than A-pillars of a windscreen in a car body. It was used in fighter aircraft like PZL P.11 and Polikarpov I-15 and also in some other planes like Westland Lysander. The inverted gull wing was developed at the same time and for the same reason as seaplanes. More powerful engines generally require larger propellers, but clearance between the propeller tip and ground must be maintained. Long landing gear legs are heavy, bulky, and weaker than their shorter counterparts. The Vought F4U Corsair, designed from the onset as a carrier-based fighter, not only had the largest propeller of any U.S. fighter, but was also expected to face rough landings aboard a pitching carrier deck. The inverted gull wing allowed the landing gear to be short, tough, and to retract straight back, improving internal wing space. Notable gull wing landplanes

Vought F4U Corsair

Junkers Ju-87 Stuka

Westland Lysander

PZL P.11

Polikarpov I-153Further Information

Get more info on 'Gull Wing'.

External Link Exchanges

Do you know how hard it is to get a link from a large encyclopaedia? Well we're different and will prove it. To get a link from us just add the following HTML to your site on a relevant page:

<a href="http://gull_wing.totallyexplained.com">Gull wing Totally Explained</a>

Then simply click through this link from your web page. Our crawlers will verify your link, extract the title of your web page and instantly add a link back to it. If you like you can remove the words Totally Explained and embed the link in article text.
As long as your link remains in place, we'll keep our link to you right here. Please play fair - our crawlers are watching. Your site must be closely related to this one's topic. Any kind of spamming, dubious practises or removing the link will result in your link from us being dropped and, potentially, your whole site being banned.