Dec 312009
When Lockheed was designing what would become the C-141 “Starlifter,” they started with their previous success, the C-130 “Hercules” and expanded it. Stretched the fuselage, swept the wings, added turbojets. Obviously it turned out not to be as simple as that, and the C-141 had almost nothing of the C-130 in it… but in these drawings of the GL-207-45 (submitted for System 476L) from 1960, you can still see a hint of Herc.
5 Responses to ““Super Hercules””
Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time.
Does look like a stubby 141. Having spent quite a few hours riding in each, and C 5s, I can tell you that nothing is as down home comfy, and earnumbingly loud, as a Herc. Just never had that feel in a in a Starlifter or C 5. Something kinda cold and impersonal about them.
A mistake with either design was that they kept roughly the same cargo hold dimensions as the C-130 so the A models were full before reaching max weight. Stretching the fuselage to create the B version helped but they should have had a wide body to begin with.
Yep, the “stretched” 141s had/have structural problems, but still operated well. Though, I heard around the campfire that one dropped a wing during fueling over at Wright-Patterson a few years ago. Good thing it was on the tarmac instead of in the sky, would have made one hell of a mess!
Airbus calls their version the A-400M; I can’t help but look at the thing and think “modernized” C-130. I think all the C-141s are now retired whereas the C-130 just hums along, rather like the DC-3. I guess the airframes just wore out, instead of modernizing them with new engines and avionics, as is being done with the C-5M.
China calls theirs the Y-20:
http://www.flightglobal.com/blogs/the-dewline/2009/12/c-17-and-a400m-had-a-baby-in-c.html
Still, one of the things designers need to take into acount is InterModal Boxes. If the aircraft can’t fit one then that makes the Logistics that much tougher.
20 foot standard sized one for the small aircraft at least. 40 foot Hi-Cube’s for the rest … bigest should take at least two 40 footers side by side. 😉