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In message , Cub Driver
writes The British were into aerial refueling first, if you don't count the Piper Cubs that used to stay up for days during the Great Depression, for the very good reason that British aircraft didn't have the range to cross the Atlantic. The USAAF began mucking about with it at Wright Field in 1944 by passing drop-tanks from a B-24 to a P-38, in preparation for raids on Japan. (The twin-fuse Mustang came out of the same need.) The USAF got serious in 1948 as the Cold War began to percolate into consciousness. The British by this time were actually using the "crossover system" on trial flights London-Montreal. Each plane trailed a cable with a grappling hook. The tanker moved left, crossing over the recipient aircraft and engaging the hooks. The recipient reeled them in, followed by the hose from the tanker. The British also came up with the probe & drogue system, which I think is what Wright Field was experimenting with in 1948. The OP might google for a Brit company called 'Flight Refuelling'. Mike -- M.J.Powell |
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"M. J. Powell" wrote:
snip The OP might google for a Brit company called 'Flight Refuelling'. Now Cobham PLC after Sir Alan Cobham, who did most of the early refueling work and started Flight Refueling Ltd. Guy |
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