The Republic Aviation XF-84H is reputed to be the loudest single-engine aircraft ever built -- if not the loudest propellor aircraft ever. It was an F-84 variant fitted with a turboprop engine!!!
I used to have to reach up underneath Harrier bellies to open the Main gear doors and collect engine maintenance data...my duty jacket will NEVER be clean of that gunk...not just oily streaks - try oily film, or coating. About 1/8" thick...perpetually.
I was wondering the same thing until 20 years ago or so. I went out to the airport to watch the CAF B-29 "Fifi" take-off. Sounded loud enough as they ran up the Cyclones on the tarmac, sounded pretty good when it took off and came back around for a fly-by. Then a common as dirt Eastern Airlines ('member them) 707 took off in its wake and put things in perspective -> The jets made a helluva lot more noise.
I've never heard one (thank God!) but I hear the ramjet/scramjets are kings of the piloted atmospheric noisemakers. Of course nothing is as loud as the whine from your Mom or wife or SO or daughter yelling at you to stop what you're doing and come to heel. ;-)
WmB
When I was still flying Prowlers in the Reserves out of Andrews we'd go into Martin State (north Balitmore) for practice approaches. They finally had enough and called ops and said no more, and if we showed up plan on getting vectors to Norfolk and back for our pain.
Allen Epps Catonsville, MD
"Graeme Cosgrove" wrote in news:cq68i1$bng$1$ snipped-for-privacy@news.demon.co.uk:
Yeah, I saw two in tandem hover at Farnborough in '90 I think. Also freaking loud. Course, I always appreciated the U-2 for being *way* louder than it looks.
TF
Harriers, Lightnings, Triumphs (2 and 4 wheels) - they all leak, they're all made in Pommyland... anyone else see a pattern here? (c:
RobG
All world beating!
Funny, that's what they used to say about F-84Fs, A-4s and I believe the FJ-2s.
Bill Shuey
On Prowlers it was always of "if it's not leaking it's underserviced" come to think of it that always applied to my Alfa Romeo as well.
Allen
...which all use an American knock-off of the British Saphire engine...
It wasn't a "knock-off." It was produced under license. The American high production version had so many startup problems that the engine was practically redesigned. It wasn't the American's fault though. The limited production of this engine by the Brits entailed a considerable amount of tweaking, fitting, and hand polishing. When the American production line was started up, the engines were made precisely to the specified tolerances .. and they didn't work well, had low thrust, very bad wear, etc. At the beginning of the Korean war there were about a thousands Republic F-84 on the tarmac waiting for engines that worked. The American Engine licensee (I think it was P&W, but it might have been GE or Wright Aero) and the USAF investigated. Seems as if some crucial steps had been left out of the specifications. One was old Henry, who did the final balancing of the rotors by touching the buckets here and there with a piece of crocus cloth. There was expert tweaking of that kind all over the engine. It was impossible to clone old Henry for the production run. Hence the extensive redesign of the manufacturing process to get the production up to the needed level. The original Saphire was a hand-built, Rolls Royce engine .. the American replacement more akin to a GM production line product. Hardly a "knock-off."
Boris
why don't brits build computers? they can't make them leak oil.
my 650cc tr6r bike leaked until last rebuild. we chamfered the edges of the holes, put in modern seals and gaskets and whoa-laa, no leaks. it doea complain about being tight ass, however.
Typical of Brit engineering even in the 1990's. We were building handheld radios that were encryption, SSB and CTCSS capable, digitally controlled with three swappable band modules and the Brit engineers didn't see a problem with hand massaging each one into passing the minimum tests. Keep in mind we had to produce 100/month and each one had three frequency modules plus the encryption module....this was possible but about as efficient starting an SR-71 with a pull rope. What got the point across was removing the PC's from their offices and substituting old manual typewriters and slide rules (it took over a week for them to figure even that out).
You obviously didn't see the tongue firmly in my cheek there...
Guy I knew once had a Triumph bike. He would up taking to wearing his chaps on the inside of his thighs to save his trou from oil stains. That damn bike was a pig! And let's no forget electronics by Lucas, Prince of Darkness.....
-- John The history of things that didn't happen has never been written. . - - - Henry Kissinger
...and A/B Hornets...and Harleys...
They don't "leak"...they mark their spot.
Heh - spent some time upgrading T-45As at NAS Kingsville during Fleet intro. In the T-45 fuselage, McDonnell builds everything from frame 12 forward, BaE builds everything from frame 12 aft. We noticed that just about nothing aft of frame 12 hardly ever matched print.
...seems at BaE, they have a special class of riveter/metal worker called a "fitter". A fitter's job is to make stuff fit - beat to fit/paint to match - during final assembly on the line when maufacturing tolerances get out of hand...so...so much for blueprints. But hey - you get a hand made jet out of the deal...
...use the force, Lucas...
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