Water Wings Keep Plane Afloat If Forced Down at Sea

Item

Water wings that inflate automaticallywhen an airplane is forced down at seahave been developed by the U.S. Navy for the planes attached to aircraft carriers. These planes must have wheeled gear for landing on decks, and the addition of pontoons would cut down their speed and maneuverability, hence the development of water wings. Made of tough, rubberized material, they fit into compartments on wings and fuselage and are quickly inflated from flasks of carbon-dioxide gas the moment the plane strikes the water, even if the pilot is unconscious. Automatic moisture detectors which are not affected by rain or fog start the flow of gas. One plane was kept afloat nearly twenty-four hours.

Title (Dublin Core)
Water Wings Keep Plane Afloat If Forced Down at Sea
Subject (Dublin Core)
en
en
Article Title and/or Image Caption (Dublin Core)
Water Wings Keep Plane Afloat If Forced Down at Sea
Language (Dublin Core)
eng
Temporal Coverage (Dublin Core)
World War II
Date Issued (Dublin Core)
1940-04
Is Part Of (Dublin Core)
Popular Mechanics, v. 73, n. 4, 1940
pages (Bibliographic Ontology)
496
Rights (Dublin Core)
Public Domain (Google digitized)
Source (Dublin Core)
Google books
References (Dublin Core)
United States Navy
Archived by (Dublin Core)
Enrico Saonara
Alberto Bordignon (Supervisor)
Spatial Coverage (Dublin Core)
United States of America