Douglas D-2085 Logistic Transport Support System (SS-476L)

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Factory proposal model of the Douglas Model 2085 (Douglas Aircraft Co., Santa Monica, December 1960 / 85,000 lbs Max. Payload / 292,000 lbs GTOW). This submittal was in response to USAF RFP No. 476L for a Logistics Transport Support System.

The airplane had a rear cargo loading ramp and was (of course) also compatible with the USAF 463L Materials Handling Support System. In spite of its excellent MATS track record with the C-54, C-118, C-74, C-124 and C-133 programs, Douglas would not get any orders for the Model 2085. At the time, Douglas also fully intended to offer the Model 2085 to the civilian market (as it eventually did 35 years later with the MD-17).

18 months after the 2085, Douglas Long Beach would propose three military cargo designs, described in this topic: the D-890, D-895 and D-900.

Illustrations of the 2085 have never been published to date, to my knowledge.
 

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Fuselage upper part looks like DC-8.
 
Douglas Model 2085 3-View drawing with relevant dimensions in inches.
 

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... and a couple more photos of the Douglas Model 2085, including the all-important side view. The rear-loading doors (above and behind the ramp) are 4-part, split lateral hinged affairs -- quite complicated and heavy when compared to C-5 or C-17 arrangements. My assumption is the need to wrap these doors around a tight-fitting ICBM.
 

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Strange here, at least to my opinion, is the relatively low set wing, limiting the height of the
cargo hold. But if ICBM transport was to have been its main task, this could have been neglegible,
as lond as a circular free cross section was guaranteed.
And this point actually makes this design sticking out from other transports ! ;)
 
Re: Circle-5's Reply #36 Douglas Model 2085
USAF RFP No. 476L for a Logistics Transport Support System
Click to expand...
Am I correct in saying USAF RFP No. 476L Logistics Transport Support System was the competition won by the Lockheed C-141 Starlifter??

Regards
Pioneer
 
Pioneer said:
Re: Circle-5's Reply #36 Douglas Model 2085
USAF RFP No. 476L for a Logistics Transport Support System
Click to expand...
Am I correct in saying USAF RFP No. 476L Logistics Transport Support System was the competition won by the Lockheed C-141 Starlifter??

Regards
Pioneer
Click to expand...

The competition that would lead to the C-141 was a USAF umbrella document, known as Specific Operation Requirement 182, whereas RFP No. 476L, as its acronym implies, was a more detailed request for proposals, directed at the contractors following SOR 182. At least that's how I understand the flow of paperwork, back in early 1960.

So yes, to answer the essence of your question, the Douglas Model 2085 lost the airlifter competition to the Lockheed Model 300 (GL207), which then became the C-141 in the spring of 1961.

It's hard to tell if the Lockheed design won on its own merits, or if the very powerful Georgia Senator Richard Russell gave it a "helping hand", as he did a few years later with the C-5 competition (with a lot less subtlety). In any case, the C-141 proved to be an excellent aircraft, while the Douglas Model 2085 has been all but forgotten.
 
Thank you Circle-5 for you're reply!
It can be confusing at times!
It's funny, because until we get some dimensions of the Douglas Model 2085, the actual design (going by the desk-top model), looks as if it had a much more practical and useful internal space (or is it just me?).
Please keep the information flowing.
Very interesting!!

Regards
Pioneer
 
Pioneer said:
... until we get some dimensions of the Douglas Model 2085 ...
Click to expand...

My reply No.5, earlier in this topic, includes a number of basic dimensions of the Douglas Model 2085 (on the factory 3-view drawing). These are listed in inches.
 
Who says I'm not organized ...
 

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Circle-5 you da man!!

Regards
Pioneer
 
Topic split. There is now enough material to justify a separate D-2085 topic. Thanks again circle-5 for your invaluable contribution to the subject.
 
As mentioned quite a while ago, I made a 3-view, starting with the drawing posted by Circle-5 and
the photos of the model. To my opinion, Douglas again made good use of components of the DC-8.
Contrary to the D-890, where the lower lobe was taken from the DC-8, here it was the upper one.
The tail surfaces seem to be very similar, too, the wing shows differences in the position of ailerons
and flaps, maybe the result of the outer engines positioned closer to the fuselage ? For the engine
nacelles, I used those of the DC-8 versions fitted with the TF-33. The landing gear shows a marked
resemblance to that of the D-900.
Obviously Douglas used a modular system for its tranport proposals. Can this be found for othercompanies, too ?
 

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Was turning an appropriate colour scheme over in my mind, until I stumbled across
a sentence in the projects description: "... The aircraft is also expected to provide efficient
capability for the transportation of commercial cargo and mail."
That's it, a real commercial success for Douglas on the civil market, too ! ;)
 

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Absolutely brilliant. FedEx would have definitely been a 2085 operator (had it been built), followed by UPS, Airborne and possibly the U.S. Postal Service. Pentagon procurement officials control a lot more than military contracts. That's why bribes are so important.
 
circle-5 said:
Factory proposal model of the Douglas Model 2085 (Douglas Aircraft Co., Santa Monica, December 1960 / 85,000 lbs Max. Payload / 292,000 lbs GTOW). This submittal was in response to USAF RFP No. 476L for a Logistics Transport Support System.

The airplane had a rear cargo loading ramp and was (of course) also compatible with the USAF 463L Materials Handling Support System. In spite of its excellent MATS track record with the C-54, C-118, C-74, C-124 and C-133 programs, Douglas would not get any orders for the Model 2085. At the time, Douglas also fully intended to offer the Model 2085 to the civilian market (as it eventually did 35 years later with the MD-17).

18 months after the 2085, Douglas Long Beach would propose three military cargo designs, described in this topic: the D-890, D-895 and D-900.

Illustrations of the 2085 have never been published to date, to my knowledge.
Click to expand...
Will anyone have the information on the dimensions that cannot be read in the three-view diagram?
 
Jemiba said:
As mentioned quite a while ago, I made a 3-view, starting with the drawing posted by Circle-5 and
the photos of the model. To my opinion, Douglas again made good use of components of the DC-8.
Contrary to the D-890, where the lower lobe was taken from the DC-8, here it was the upper one.
The tail surfaces seem to be very similar, too, the wing shows differences in the position of ailerons
and flaps, maybe the result of the outer engines positioned closer to the fuselage ? For the engine
nacelles, I used those of the DC-8 versions fitted with the TF-33. The landing gear shows a marked
resemblance to that of the D-900.
Obviously Douglas used a modular system for its tranport proposals. Can this be found for othercompanies, too ?
Click to expand...
Will anyone have the information on the dimensions that cannot be read in the three-view diagram?
 

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