Ball-Bartoe JW-1 Jetwing
Research into the "blown wing" concept dates back to just before World War II, but it was not until the 1950s that the technology was put into use. The concept was to bleed air from the aircraft's engine through holes over the wings' flaps: this would lower the aircraft's stall speed and make it easier to control at low speeds, such as at landing. The first aircraft to operationally use a blown wing was the F-104 Starfighter--with such a small wing, it needed all the help it could get due to a high landing speed.
Blown wings fell out of favor after Vietnam, as outright speed was not found to be as effective in combat as originally thought, but then was resurrected as both the United States and the Soviet Union began experimenting with STOL (Short Take-Off and Landing) transports--the YC-14 and YC-15 (and later the C-17 Globemaster III) for the US, and the An-72 Coaler for the USSR. While the Americans went with large blown flaps for their transports, the Soviets mounted the engine above the wing, using direct thrust to get the same effect. There was numerous research into blown wings/flaps, which led to the creation of the unique Ball-Bartoe JW-1 Jetwing.
The Jetwing was never meant to go into production, and only one was produced, strictly for experimental purposes. Most of both wings had redirected engine thrust blown over the wing surface, and wing fences were added to ensure the air went where it was supposed to go. Though it looked ungainly, with a faint whiff of the F-84 Thunderjet, the Jetwing proved to be easy to fly, and remained controllable at the astoundingly low airspeed of only 40 mph. (Most aircraft land at least at three or four times that number.) The aircraft first flew in 1977, and the test program proceeded through the late 1970s before it was grounded. The Jetwing was then donated to the University of Tennessee for display and further research, but when the university no longer wanted the aircraft, it was in turn donated to Wings Over the Rockies in the 1990s.
This strange aircraft was nearly hidden behind the museum's EA-6B when I visited in August 2020, and I had no idea what it was--I thought it was some sort of "Luftwaffe 1946" experimental design come to life. The Jetwing is an interesting artifact, and unique.
Ball-Bartoe JW-1 Jetwing
Research into the "blown wing" concept dates back to just before World War II, but it was not until the 1950s that the technology was put into use. The concept was to bleed air from the aircraft's engine through holes over the wings' flaps: this would lower the aircraft's stall speed and make it easier to control at low speeds, such as at landing. The first aircraft to operationally use a blown wing was the F-104 Starfighter--with such a small wing, it needed all the help it could get due to a high landing speed.
Blown wings fell out of favor after Vietnam, as outright speed was not found to be as effective in combat as originally thought, but then was resurrected as both the United States and the Soviet Union began experimenting with STOL (Short Take-Off and Landing) transports--the YC-14 and YC-15 (and later the C-17 Globemaster III) for the US, and the An-72 Coaler for the USSR. While the Americans went with large blown flaps for their transports, the Soviets mounted the engine above the wing, using direct thrust to get the same effect. There was numerous research into blown wings/flaps, which led to the creation of the unique Ball-Bartoe JW-1 Jetwing.
The Jetwing was never meant to go into production, and only one was produced, strictly for experimental purposes. Most of both wings had redirected engine thrust blown over the wing surface, and wing fences were added to ensure the air went where it was supposed to go. Though it looked ungainly, with a faint whiff of the F-84 Thunderjet, the Jetwing proved to be easy to fly, and remained controllable at the astoundingly low airspeed of only 40 mph. (Most aircraft land at least at three or four times that number.) The aircraft first flew in 1977, and the test program proceeded through the late 1970s before it was grounded. The Jetwing was then donated to the University of Tennessee for display and further research, but when the university no longer wanted the aircraft, it was in turn donated to Wings Over the Rockies in the 1990s.
This strange aircraft was nearly hidden behind the museum's EA-6B when I visited in August 2020, and I had no idea what it was--I thought it was some sort of "Luftwaffe 1946" experimental design come to life. The Jetwing is an interesting artifact, and unique.