Conroy Giant Cargo Aircraft Projects Colossus & Virtus

Antonio

Antonio

Moderator
Staff member
Senior Member
Joined
22 January 2006
Messages
4,434
Reaction score
2,796
Can I outrun you with the Virtus?
Click to expand...

Matej, the link to your web doesn't works for me (I have even tried from a Windows PC) :(

So I add drawings courtesy from Lark
 

Attachments

  • Conroy Virtus.jpg
    Conroy Virtus.jpg
    62.9 KB · Views: 899
  • Conroy Colossus.jpg
    Conroy Colossus.jpg
    68.5 KB · Views: 859
Lark's drawings coming from Aviation Magazine number 629 (1-3-74)

I have found this version from Dennis R Jenkins "Space Shuttle"
http://www.amazon.com/Space-Shuttle-National-Transportation-Missions/dp/0963397451/sr=1-1/qid=1168123818/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/103-6399913-6222227?ie=UTF8&s=books
 

Attachments

  • LaRC.jpg
    LaRC.jpg
    30.4 KB · Views: 863
Hi,

From NASA report;

Since the orbiter cannot be flown on such a mission, a large aircraft
is needed to transport the orbiter. It has been proposed that an
existing B-747 aircraft be modified to meet these. requirements.
The B-747 would carry the orbiter or booster tank on top
of the fuselage in piggyback fashion. (See ref. 1.) An alternative
approach might be to develop a new aircraft for the mission
requirements which could carry the orbiter below the aircraft rather
than above as in the B-747 proposal. One configuration (ref. 2)
for this new aircraft would use a high straight wing with a 137-m
(450-ft) span and twin fuselages and tail booms. The orbiter or
orbiter booster tank would be carried between the fuselages and
below the high wing.

https://ntrs.nasa.gov/api/citations/19750020004/downloads/19750020004.pdf
 

Attachments

  • 3.JPG
    3.JPG
    38.6 KB · Views: 356
  • 2.JPG
    2.JPG
    52 KB · Views: 337
  • 1.JPG
    1.JPG
    71.5 KB · Views: 351
  • 19750020004.pdf
    4.2 MB · Views: 5
Last edited by a moderator:
After looking at the pictures above, three words popped into my mind...Thunderbirds Are Go!
 
Did are the two Virtus fusaleges taken from ealry B-52s??
They look like that to me....
 
The Houston AIAA section has published a 4-page article I put together on the Conroy "Virtus," a twin-fuselage heavy lift aircraft built from B-52 parts meant to serve as the Space Shuttle Carrier Aircraft. You can download it (in the March/April 2012 issue of Horizons) for free here:
https://www.aiaahouston.org/Horizons/
 

Attachments

  • virtus.jpg
    virtus.jpg
    130.9 KB · Views: 800
  • Horizons_2012_03_and_04.pdf
    14 MB · Views: 3
Last edited by a moderator:
Re: Conroy "Virtus" Article

Scott, do you know why I have the Virtus listed under "Rockwell International"?
 
Re: Conroy "Virtus" Article

How about since the Shuttle was Rockwell & the Virtus was intended as its carrier?
 
Artist's impression of Conroy Colossus a modification of the Canadair CL-44.
Conroy Colossus!
The world's largest commercial cargo aircraft will be constructed by Conroy Aircraft of Santa Barbara, Calif. Capable of carrying a payload of 65,000 lbs., the aircraft will have a cargo compartment 25 ft. 6 in. high, 25 ft. 2 in. wide and 113 ft. 2 in. long. A larger version of the company's previous modification of a Canadair CL-44, the Colossus is designed to transport airbus components and space hardware.
Click to expand...

Source:
http://www.allaboutguppys.com/
 

Attachments

  • colpainta.jpg
    colpainta.jpg
    78 KB · Views: 777
  • colosa.jpg
    colosa.jpg
    55.7 KB · Views: 685
pometablava said:
Can I outrun you with the Virtus?
Click to expand...

Matej, the link to your web doesn't works for me (I have even tried from a Windows PC) :(

So I add drawings courtesy from Lark
Click to expand...

Hi,

http://archive.aviationweek.com/image/spread/19740204/20/2
http://archive.aviationweek.com/image/spread/19740204/21/2
 

Attachments

  • 2.png
    2.png
    126.3 KB · Views: 154
  • 1.png
    1.png
    147.8 KB · Views: 157
  • 5.png
    5.png
    77.9 KB · Views: 209
  • 3.png
    3.png
    465.2 KB · Views: 175
  • 4.png
    4.png
    137.3 KB · Views: 197
Conroy Colossus Giant Cargo Aircraft

Hi to all!

The Conroy Colossus was meant to be a development of the shuttle carrier Conroy Virtus. It is a very misterious and large project, and I want to join efforts to find images and information about this project. I have plans to make a scale model of it, so let's do it! The only image I have I found here on this forum. Please check in attach.
 

Attachments

  • 5.png
    5.png
    77.9 KB · Views: 546
Agreed! Conroy Collossus looks like it was based upon the same Canadair Yukon/Britannia airframe as some of his earlier Guppies." It would need much larger tail surfaces to fly straight.
 
Speaking of tail surfaces...did anyone do a ventral tailfin that hinged up to be a ramp? Double tail closes like a door...ground crew inserts heavy stiffening bars not used in flight.
 
The configuration in #16 looks rather familiar. Convergent evolution ??
 
Graysi said:
Orionblamblam said:
Art and a high-rez 3 view:

http://www.aerospaceprojectsreview.com/blog/?p=4425
Click to expand...
That's a totally different plane from the Conroy Colossus! The Conroy plane was just a bigger Guppy!

I never put the study on eBay because Covid hit and that was the end of my selling days (for awhile at least).
Click to expand...
Available evidence says otherwise (see reply #9, for one, and the fact that the three-view referenced in the aerospaceprojectsreview.com link calls it "Colossus" *twice.*). If you have contradictory evidence, we're all ears. reply #8 shows a somewhat earlier Conroy concept also called "Colossus." It may well be that Conroy used the name twice. The later larger design was under the Turbo Three Corporation, a later iteration of Conroy's enterprise.
 

Attachments

  • colossus 3 view smallerized.png
    colossus 3 view smallerized.png
    149 KB · Views: 131
Last edited:
Orionblamblam said:
Graysi said:
Orionblamblam said:
Art and a high-rez 3 view:

http://www.aerospaceprojectsreview.com/blog/?p=4425
Click to expand...
That's a totally different plane from the Conroy Colossus! The Conroy plane was just a bigger Guppy!

I never put the study on eBay because Covid hit and that was the end of my selling days (for awhile at least).
Click to expand...
Available evidence says otherwise (see reply #9, for one, and the fact that the three-view referenced in the aerospaceprojectsreview.com link calls it "Colossus" *twice.*). If you have contradictory evidence, we're all ears. reply #8 shows a somewhat earlier Conroy concept also called "Colossus." It may well be that Conroy used the name twice. The later larger design was under the Turbo Three Corporation, a later iteration of Conroy's enterprise.
Click to expand...
I do have evidence but I haven't taken photos of it yet. The Conroy plane I have looks just like a super-huge Guppy.

The plans for the one I have is from Strato Engineering and it's dated 1971.
 
Last edited:

Similar threads

Back
Top Bottom