Charette VTOL Executive Vertiplane

[hesham]

Hi,


http://crimso.msk.ru/Site/Crafts/Craft31799.htm

 

[Jemiba]

Some additional information:
designer was Mr. Rene Charette from Canada in 1957, the aircraft was to have been powered by one
turbine engine, VTOL should be achieved by deflecting the slipstream of the two oversized
propellers by a double flap system. It's mentioned, that construction of a prototype was actually
begun, but as we never heard of it again, I think, it wasn't finished, or at least never flew.
Intended as a four-seat executive aircraft, length was 7,6m (25 feet), span 11,6 m (38 feet),
speed 150 mph and range1.500 miles.
Those information comes from the site linked by hesham, but please, as websites often aren't made
for eternity, it would be great, if you would add those basic information by yourself !
About the design itself, I cannot help the feeling, that the dimensions are quite small for what was
intended to be achieved with four persons on board.

 

[AeroFranz]

I would add that no deflected slipstream aircraft (to my knowledge) achieved true VTOL- just spectacular STOL.

 

[hesham]

OK my dear Jemiba.

 

[hesham]

From Aeroplane 1957.

 

[Apophenia]

René Charette is an elusive guy. Unfortunately, René Charette is quite a common Francophone name in Caanda which makes him difficult to search for. The name shows up in connection with Canadair's CL-227 UAV. Was this the same René Charette? If so, was Canadair's Gilles Charette related to René?

Earlier on, he pops up in Model Aircraft: The Journal of the Society of Model Aeronautical Engineers, March 1951, pg 116 (https://rclibrary.co.uk/files_titles/1684/Model_Aircraft_1951_03.pdf). From this entry, I assume that his first initial was 'F' ... but that hasn't been helpful with online searches.

F Rene Charette of Ottawa, Canada, is an aircraft designer and [image] No. 5 shows a flying scale model of his Airmobile which has been test flown successfully. Yalking of the full-sized prototype, he says:- "It will change from a motor car to an aircraft at the push of a button and requires no dismantling. Furthmore, it has automatic flap-control and cannot dive, stall of spin." Rene adds that his Airmobile design has been granted a patent, but lack of funds has compelled him to discontinue his experiments. Tough luck !

Despite mention of an Airmobile patent, Canadian patent searches show no results for 'René Charette'.

Skipping forward in time, Charette placed a want-ad in the May 1984 addition of Flying Magazine. It read:

INVENTOR SEEKS PARTNER with $15,000 to finance patented Ultralight Circular Wing Aircraft prices at $10,000. $1,000 royalty. Contant Rene Charette, 37 Beechwood Avenue, Ottawa, Ontario K1M 1M1, Canada

Lack of funding seems to have been the bane of René Charette's existence. But note that his given address is in Ottawa's posh New Edinburgh neighbourhood (alongside 24 Sussex Drive and the GG's residence). So, was aircraft design just the pastime of a wealthy hobbyist who was unwilling to invest his own cash in his designs? Or was René Charette living and working in a tiny New Edinburgh coach-house garret? Who knows?