Arsenal O.101 Explained
The
Arsenal O.101 was a French research aircraft that flew shortly after
World War II. It was a low-wing
monoplane of conventional configuration with fixed
tailwheel undercarriage, but incorporated several novel features for its role as an airborne testbed for evaluating
airfoil sections and control surface designs. It was designed to accommodate a pilot and an observer in tandem
cockpits. However, since the observer was to be watching the aircraft's wings, this cockpit was sunken fully into the
fuselage, affording no fore-and-aft view at all. The pilot's cockpit was set well back along the fuselage, near the
tail.
The O.101 was fitted with extensive instrumentation to measure pressures and loads throughout the aircraft, and was given dimensions such that the entire aircraft could be placed inside the wind tunnel at Chalais-Meudon without any disassembly required.
References
- de Narbonne . Roland . Juillet 1948, dans l'aéronautique française: Trop vite, trop tôt, le NC 211 "Cormoran" . Le Fana de l'Aviation . July 2008 . 464 . 76–79 . fr .
- Book: Taylor, Michael J. H. . Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation . 1989 . Studio Editions . London . 81 .
- Book: World Aircraft Information Files . Bright Star Publishing. London . File 889 Sheet 81 .