Unknown Light Aircraft Projects ?

[hesham]

Hi,


in L + K magazine,I found two articles about light aircraft projects,I don't know
if all of them from USA or not,only the Robertson and his aircraft is known,the
names of the designers is so weird,any help.

 

[MrT]

The second one down the germain had a touch of the Edgely Optica about it. Must be the boom arrangement and egginess of it.
Any publishing details? As in date? Might be interesting to see which was designed first.

 

[hesham]

The second one down the germain had a touch of the Edgely Optica about it. Must be the boom arrangement and egginess of it.
Any publishing details? As in date? Might be interesting to see which was designed first.

I don't know that MrT,but may be the Germain was came first.

 

[Stargazer]

Don't forget that the Czech language (like all Slavonic languages, but also German and Latin) uses case endings which alter the spelling of names depending on their place in the sentence.


For this reason the same name can be spelt differently than normal.


The names quoted in the article are actually as follows:


Constance Pearson / Arthur V. St. Germain (the aircraft project being called "Lady Constance")
(St. Germain can be found in a patent here: https://www.google.com/patents/US2545679)


Homer O. Hacker (later known as a locally-renowned Ohio-based painter and sometimes musician)
The image attached below (and many other light aircraft projects by others) can be found here:
http://blog.modernmechanix.com/these-are-the-planes-youll-fly-after-the-war/
NOTE: Fellow member Tophe pointed to this article some years ago in another thread and on the What If forum.


Richard Naugle

"Two brothers, Harry and Richard Naugle of Ligonier, are building in an abandoned factory here a small, all-metal plane of secret design which they hope will set a speed record for light planes. "We feel confident it will do 150 miles an hour and we are certain it is a safe airplane," said Richard, 25-year-old vice-president of the Naugle Aircraft Corporation which the brothers have founded." Harrisburg Telegraph, 19 July 1940

Naugler built the Mercury prototype, found on Aerofiles here: http://www.aerofiles.com/naugle.jpg

Mercury N-1, N-2 1940 = 2pChwM; 75hp Lycoming GO-145; span: 30'0" length: 20'6" (?>21'8") load: 610# v: 142/138/43 range: 450. All-metal; unique X-spar, slotted cantilever wing with interchangeable front and rear spars. POP: 1 [NX28646]. Retractable landing gear planned for production models, of which none was built—the N-2 designation was apparently for this one, as specs were the same except for higher speeds (projected: 155/138/55). Production curtailed by the war; reappeared 1947 as Midwest Mercury.

(more on Naugle's Mercury project in the second attachment below)

 

[hesham]

Thank you Stargazer very much.

 

[MrT]

Well that lovely little plane certainly predates the Optica by at least some 30 years, by the look of things certainly. Fascinating concept which I guess would have a low stalling speed, probably good fuel economy, heck it would be the ideal plane for running small charter operations to small islands in the Caribbean and also the Channel Islands. Perhaps also ideal for special ops?

 

[Stargazer]

Well that lovely little plane certainly predates the Optica by at least some 30 years, by the look of things certainly. Fascinating concept which I guess would have a low stalling speed, probably good fuel economy, heck it would be the ideal plane for running small charter operations to small islands in the Caribbean and also the Channel Islands. Perhaps also ideal for special ops?

A great design, for sure. The immediate postwar years produced such a wealth of remarkable designs and prototypes. If there hadn't been such an amount of surplus military "Grasshopper" types and the likes flooding the market (the same way the Curtiss Jenny had done for most of the twenties), many of these could have had some beautiful careers. I was reading an item earlier today which said that something like 2500 aircraft only had been built in the United States in a year, quite an anti-climax to the advertised postwar boom (I think it was 1946 but don't quote me on it!).

 

[hesham]

From Flying magazine 1945-11,

here is a Midwest Mercury,which we don't know if it was built
or not ?.

1945 Aviation Article Midwest Mercury Light Plane Personal Airplane Private | eBay

Date: 1945. Condition: Excellent.

www.ebay.com

 

[Sherman Tank]

A cursory Google search indicates the Midwest Mercury was basically another go at selling the Naugle Mercury N-2.

EDIT: An even more cursory glance in this thread shows that Stargazer2006 posted this very information seven years ago.