Aviation of World War II
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Aviation of World War II |
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SM.62
In Italy, two boats were in serial production - SM-62 and SM-62bis. They differed in engines: the first one had an Isotta-Fraschini Asso with a power of 500 hp, and the second one also had an Asso, but 750 hp. The S-62bis became more widely known than its predecessors. This three-seater flying boat turned out to be advanced for its time; it was in service with the naval aviation of Italy and Romania. SM-62 boats were in service until the mid-30s, however, in the 88 Gruppa Autonoma Caccia Marittima aviation unit, some of them flew until 1938. A small number of civilian S.62P flying boats were produced in 1928, some with an enclosed cockpit for a crew and four passengers, others with open cockpits. A number of aircraft were used by the Italian airline SAM, and some were exported to the USA and Spain. | ||
Description of design. SM-62/SM-62bis - a three-seat single-jet reconnaissance flying boat - was a single-pillar biplane of all-wood construction. The upper wing consisted of three detachable parts: the center section, on the tubular struts of which the engine mount was attached, and the wing consoles with ailerons. The upper wing consoles were connected to the lower struts, and the lower ones were hingedly attached to the power frames of the boat's hull. The strength of the wing box was ensured by bracing bands. Under the lower wing there were side floats of a round cross-section. The wing structure consisted of two spars and ribs made of poplar. The most loaded parts of the hull were reinforced with tubular steel struts. The boat was made of wooden frames connected by wooden stringers. The bottom and hull below the waterline, in addition to 4 mm plywood sheathing, were upholstered with 4 mm cedar boards 90 mm wide. Between the layers of plywood and boards there was a three-layer linen gasket impregnated with a special mastic. Above the waterline, the hull was also covered with mastic and covered with waterproof varnish. The entire bottom was riveted with copper rivets. The aircraft's landing gear is two-wheeled, mounted on an axis passing through the hull of the boat near the redan. The tail unit is of mixed design. Wooden stabilizer, adjustable in flight. The design of the keel and rudders is welded, made of steel pipes, covered with fabric. Towing and mooring facilities were located in the bow and tail compartments. Isotta-Fraschini Asso engines with 500 and 750 hp were used as the power plant. or Hispano-Suiza 12-L with 600 hp. The engine was mounted between the wings on N-shaped struts. The propeller is four-bladed, wooden, and has a constant pitch. The fuel was in five fuselage tanks, one of which was consumable. The aircraft is armed with two Breda machine guns mounted on turrets. One was located in the navigator's cabin, the second - in the rear shooting point behind the wing box. The machine gun fire was conducted by the navigator and flight mechanic (gunner). Machine gun armament varied depending on the country in which the boat was operated. Thus, in Romania they installed Vickers machine guns, in the USSR - a DA machine gun or a spark DA-2, in Spain - whatever was at hand, including ShKAS machine guns received from the USSR during the civil war. Under the lower wings there were bomb racks for eight bombs with a caliber of up to 50 kg.
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