What the 'Woomera' is that?!! ...

[Mark Allen M]

An RAAF Gloster Meteor with an "X-1' looking thing at Woomera Rocket Range I'm assuming in the late 40's.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RAAF_Woom ... ge_Complex

[Paul Stroud]

It's an Australian GAF Pika, one of 2 manned development aircraft to test systems and aerodynamics for the Jindivik target drone. According to Wiki, it first flew in I950, and one is preserved in the RAAF Museum. Think I'd prefer the Meteor myself...

First post by the way, been lurking for years though. Hi everybody

[Kyleb]

How dodgy would it have been to fly a taildragger jet with no prop blast to add rudder authority?

Yikes.

[Stoney]

that's not that bigger then the Bede 5 , but probably better airplane, that i gave Jim my 5$

[JohnB]

Being a jet taildragger it naturally reminds me of the Supermarine Attacker...
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supermarine_Attacker

If course the Attacker was much larger, as you would expect from an operational type.

[Zac Yates]

And here I was, looking forward to a thread on the CAC CA-11 Woomera!

[phil65]

It's an Australian GAF Pika, one of 2 manned development aircraft to test systems and aerodynamics for the Jindivik target drone. According to Wiki, it first flew in I950, and one is preserved in the RAAF Museum. Think I'd prefer the Meteor myself...

First post by the way, been lurking for years though. Hi everybody

Welcome aboard...

Phil

[phil65]

How dodgy would it have been to fly a taildragger jet with no prop blast to add rudder authority?

Yikes.

I believe the M262 started out as a taildragger.

Phil

[Kyleb]

How dodgy would it have been to fly a taildragger jet with no prop blast to add rudder authority?

Yikes.

I believe the M262 started out as a taildragger.

Phil

No doubt. Imagine the difficulty of spooling those 2 engines up evenly to stay on the runway!

Last edited by Kyleb on Mon Dec 07, 2020 7:08 pm, edited 1 time in total.

[bdk]

How dodgy would it have been to fly a taildragger jet with no prop blast to add rudder authority?

Yikes.

Not to mention the bane of airport managers everywhere when the asphalt gets melted.

[Aeronut]

Yikes.[/quote]Not to mention the bane of airport managers everywhere when the asphalt gets melted.[/quote]

The aforementioned Supermarine Attackers were assembled and test flown from High Post airfield near Salisbury which only ever had grass runways. There was a hell of a lot of scorched grass on the runway.

BTW the largest aircraft to land at High Post was this B-36.

B36Boscombe.jpg (63.84 KiB) Viewed 3026 times

[Archer]

Was that a landing or just an 'arrival'?

[Aeronut]

Was that a landing or just an 'arrival'?

Well it touched down on the (fortunately frozen) grass of High Post airfield but having crossed the Salisbury to Amesbury road it stopped just short of the boundary fence of Boscombe Down airfield, whose curving approach lights the B-36 crew had been following in the fog. The 'arrival' was close enough to a landing to allow the aircraft to be towed through the (removed) fence on to Boscombe Down's runway from where few days later it flew back home from.
To this day the bend in the road you can see is known as 'Low flying corner'

[Michel Lemieux]

I believe the M262 started out as a taildragger.

Phil

Yup!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uj1HeF17ts8

https://www.military.com/video/operations-and-strategy/second-world-war/rare-ww2-german-me-262-take-off/2781572238001

[Archer]

Thanks Aeronut! Sounds like the crew had some memorable moments there.