Think Defence hopes to start sensible conversations about UK defence issues, no agenda or no campaign but there might be one or two posts on containers, bridges and mexeflotes!
I think this should have been in widescreen. squashed into 4:3 the thing looks like a Mi-2 Hoplite! I see these a lot around Dishforth, btw why *did* we replace the skids with the wheels from a moon buggy, just to make is look more like Naval Lynx?
admin
Ease of ground handling I think Dave but it adds weight so I guess its a case of swings and roundabouts
Richard Stockley
I think they got the idea from the Lynx 3 prototype, the big wheels allow rolling take-offs and run-on landings, you can’t do that in a navy Lynx.
Dangerous Dave
Thanks, I hoped there would be a good reason for them. I guess I thought they were to improve crash survival for the crew compartment – they seemed very robust structures if they were *just* for ground handling or rolling take-offs.
paul g
had the nickname “wheelie bin ” from day one, gotta love squaddie humour!!
Richard Stockley
You’re right, a big and hefty undercarriage will absorb a lot of the energy of a crash/hard landing, although that is not their primary purpose.
Given the approx £4.2million spent on the upgrade I would’ve thought the MOD might have forked out few more shekles and added some crashworthy seating and save a few compressed spines!
It’s a shame now that the Lynx is in the twilight of its career that its actually starting to mature into a useful system, albeit a small and expensive one. It should’ve looked like this in the early nineties, never mind, we got there eventually!
Richard Stockley
If you ever wondered where Westland’s get the ideas for their designs, compare the Lynx Mk 9A undercarriage with that of the SARO Skeeter and the early Scout prototype, the SARO P.531, notice something familiar? There’s also a rumour that the oleo is the same as that on the Westalnd Whirlwind…..if it ain’t broke!
I think this should have been in widescreen. squashed into 4:3 the thing looks like a Mi-2 Hoplite! I see these a lot around Dishforth, btw why *did* we replace the skids with the wheels from a moon buggy, just to make is look more like Naval Lynx?
Ease of ground handling I think Dave but it adds weight so I guess its a case of swings and roundabouts
I think they got the idea from the Lynx 3 prototype, the big wheels allow rolling take-offs and run-on landings, you can’t do that in a navy Lynx.
Thanks, I hoped there would be a good reason for them. I guess I thought they were to improve crash survival for the crew compartment – they seemed very robust structures if they were *just* for ground handling or rolling take-offs.
had the nickname “wheelie bin ” from day one, gotta love squaddie humour!!
You’re right, a big and hefty undercarriage will absorb a lot of the energy of a crash/hard landing, although that is not their primary purpose.
Given the approx £4.2million spent on the upgrade I would’ve thought the MOD might have forked out few more shekles and added some crashworthy seating and save a few compressed spines!
It’s a shame now that the Lynx is in the twilight of its career that its actually starting to mature into a useful system, albeit a small and expensive one. It should’ve looked like this in the early nineties, never mind, we got there eventually!
If you ever wondered where Westland’s get the ideas for their designs, compare the Lynx Mk 9A undercarriage with that of the SARO Skeeter and the early Scout prototype, the SARO P.531, notice something familiar? There’s also a rumour that the oleo is the same as that on the Westalnd Whirlwind…..if it ain’t broke!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Saro_P.531_58.jpg
http://www.airliners.net/search/photo.search?aircraft_genericsearch=Saro%20(Saunders-Roe)%20Skeeter