Miles Monitor
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| M.33 Monitor | |
|---|---|
| Type | Target tug |
| Manufacturer | Miles Aircraft |
| Maiden flight | 1944 |
| Retired | Scrapped |
| Primary user | None |
| Number built | 22 |
The Miles M.33 Monitor was a twin engined British target tug aircraft designed and built by Miles Aircraft towards the end of the Second World War. Intended for use by the Royal Air Force and the Fleet Air Arm, the aircraft did not enter service with either.
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[edit] History
The Monitor came about as a response to Specification Q9/42 for a twin engined high-speed target tug for the Royal Air Force. Two prototypes were ordered and the first prototype (Serial Number NF900) first flew on 5 April 1944[1] . The Monitor was a high winged, twin engined aircraft, with an all-metal fuselage and wooden wings. It was fitted with novel hydraulic winch, as the normal windlasses could not be used at speeds of much more than 150 mph[1], while the Monitor was required to tow targets at double this speed.
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 was modified with dive brakes and a dorsal cupola. At the end of the war, contracts for 600 Monitors were cancelled, leaving only 20 to be built [2]. These were evaluated by the Aeroplane and Armament Experimental Establishment (A&AEE) at RAF Boscombe Down [2] but did not enter service and all survivors were scrapped. [3]
[edit] Variants
- Monitor TT Mk I
- Prototype target tug for the Royal Air Force, one built.
- Monitor TT Mk II
- Target tug for the for the Fleet Air Arm, one prototype and 20 production aircraft.
[edit] Specifications (TT.Mk.2)
Data from The Hamlyn Concise Guide to British Aircraft of World War II [4]
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 ft² (46.5 m²)
- Empty weight: 15,850 lb (7,189 kg)
- Max takeoff weight: 21,075 lb (9,559 kg)
- Powerplant: 2× Wright Cyclone R-2600-31 radial engine, 1,700 hp (1268 kW) each
Performance
- Maximum speed: 287 knots (330 mph, 531 km/h) at 15,000 ft (4,750 m)
- Cruise speed: 230 knots (265 mph, 426 km/h) at 15,000 ft (4,750 m)
- Stall speed: knots ()
- Range: 2391 nm (2,750 mi, 4,426 km)
- Service ceiling 29,000 ft (8,840 m)
- Rate of climb: 5 minutes to climb to 10,000 ft ()
- Wing loading: 42.2 lb/ft² (206 kg/m²)
- Power/mass: 0.161 hp/lb (0.265 kW/kg)
[edit] See also
Comparable aircraft
[edit] References
[edit] Notes
- ^ a b Fleet Air Arm Archive - Miles Monitor. Retrieved on 2007-03-05.
- ^ Sturivant, Ray (2004). Fleet Air Arm Fixed-Wing Aircraft since 1946. Tonbridge, Kent: Air-Britain. ISBN 0 85130 283 1.
- ^ Mondey 2002, p. 173.
[edit] Bibliography
- Amos, Peter. and Brown, Don Lambert. Miles Aircraft Since 1925, Volume 1. London: Putnam Aeronautical, 2000. ISBN 0-85177-787-0.
- Brown, Don Lambert. Miles Aircraft Since 1925. London: Putnam & Company Ltd., 1970. ISBN 0-37000-127-3.
- Mondey, David. The Hamlyn Concise guide to British Aircraft of World War II. London: Chancellor press, 2002. ISBN 1-85152-668-4.
[edit] External Links
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