Bill Daniels wrote:
wrote in message
oups.com...

Rich S. wrote:
...
This is a solution in search of a problem.


Doesn't a swing wing accomplish pretty much the same thing?

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FF

Yes, for supersonic fighters. Swept wings aren't a good choice for light
aircraft.

IIUC, sweeping the wing backwards has an adverse effect on stall
which is often offset with washout or twist.

How about swinging the wing forward instead?


For slow propeller airplanes, the telescoping wing does have its
attractions. It's a way to keep the slow stall speed required for single
engine airplanes and stilll get a fast economical cruise. It probably
wouldn't help the venerable C-172 but an airplane that was already
aerodynamically clean might benefit quite a lot.

The airfoil could be any reasonable one for light aircraft. The outer wing
wouldn't make the innner wing more than an inch thicker.

It would be easier to have the outer wing be the moving part from
a structural perspective, but then you have a longer chord on the
wing tip.

Another even more exotic alternative would be to design a wing
that could shape to higher or lower lift and drag airfoils. Actually
the Wright Brothers sort of did that.

Always happy to muddy the waters.

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FF