Video of the day
- Thread starter HuskyDude
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ipscgraz
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
At least some of them did. The abandoned B17 found in Greenland had one. After about 3 million dollars to get flyable the pilots taxied the aircraft and the internal APU broke the mounts, fell over and started a fire. The aircraft was destroyed.
That was one of the most heart-breaking documentaries i ever watched. I recall the APU starting the fire.
What I did not know was whether these planes had a built-in APU, or if the Greenland one was just added to that plane because they needed extra power.
It looks like maybe they all had an APU. Strange that I never heard of this.
That was an extraordinary film!! Thanks ... the singer was a terrific story teller (her brother in law was James Mason?!?).. she reminds me of my mother ... sounded a lot like her too
I met (as did Ganderite) a Canadian who flew moonplanes ... he described once how he would loiter off the coast and wait for British bombers going on a raid to draw off the night fighters and attract the defensive fire ... then he would slip in after to deliver his cargo... I dont recall that he carried a lot of passengers but he did drop various supplies etc to the resistance
The B-29 APU was apparently a standard feature often called the "putt putt" by its crews, and was mounted aft. It provided power for engine starting and provided the plane's electricity during takeoff to save that extra load on the main engines.
In the case of the Greenland disaster, it was extra jury-rigged gasoline tankage failing too close to Kee Bird's existing APU.
Did B17s and B24s also have an on-board APU?
I would think not based on this one fact. The B17 (Big Stoop) that was force landed on Greenland along with the accompanying P38 Lightening fighters ran one of its engines to power the radios after the crew cut the propeller blades off. Seems that was the procedure of sorts as the B17 "My Gal Sal" that force landed in June 1942 also had the props cut to power radios. So based on those examples I doubt a APU was fitted in B17 or B24 bombers, there was many cost cutting measures deemed not required when the planes where produced.
Sources differ, with some claiming the B-29 was the first, but there also appears to be some indication that Homelite Corporation built an APU model called the HRU-28 (and HRU-28A) that saw widespread use onboard a number of USAAF aircraft and US Navy aircraft. Including the B-17 and B-24 (in the latter case, possibly starting with the B-24D, and possibly the same or similar unit in the B-29 as well.)
For example:
source
Its possible they were retrofitted to earlier aircraft types after the B-29 started production.
2000 watts. That would be like a small lawnmower engine hooked to a car generator. Small. If it is small and light, I can see it being a handy thing to have on board. But it would not run the engine starter motor.
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fat tony
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
just a sec
''pourbaix diagram" https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pourbaix_diagram
Since the things were dropped in streams, lakes, & swamps long ago the natural water where these well preserved relics are found is a 'protective' water implying the local bedrock leaches calcium carbonate into the groundwater. The calcium carbonate precipitates on surface of the metal parts of the relics. This is a gross oversimplification. Groundwater chemistry can be very complex.
If you have noticed many well preserved relics are scooped out of a fine grey clay material.Since these vids are shot in Russia, its likely to be calcium bentonite which has the property of binding ions. This makes corrosion less likely.Again other factors are at play in the natural waters where the relics are found.
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