AIRLINE SAFETY
IS IN A DEEP RUT (part 2)
In 1936, the Boeing technical chiefs,
Ball, Minshall and Lauden, announced in Los
Angeles:
"Fuselages of the present type would
disappear and all equipment and load would be housed within
the center section of the wing."
This is a precise description of the
Burnelli configuration.
In 1937, Donald Douglas stated:
"When the need for a really large
transport arrives, as it inevitably will, we shall build a
flying wing."
At the
same time, Lockheed's chief engineer stated:
"The next step is the vanishing of the
fuselage itself. Sky travelers will ride in a giant wing with
plenty of headroom, plenty of space to stroll."
Both of
these men predicted that the flying wing transport would be a
reality by 1947. Indeed, it could have been, and should have
been, but craven politics intervened to stifle the natural
evolution of Burnelli's advanced lifting body
technology.
In 1939, General H. H. Arnold wrote to the Secretary of War:
"The [Burnelli] design
embodies extremely good factors of safety considerably higher
than the streamlined fuselage type." And: "In my opinion, it
is essential, in the interest of the national defense, that
this [Burnelli] procurement be
authorized."
In 1943, Dr. Max Munk, the prestigious aerodynamicist, did an in-depth
comparison of the Burnelli design with the conventional design
for the Pentagon. On safety, he concluded:
"The superior performance of the Burnelli
plane is not, in any way, obtained by sacrificing a low
landing speed. On the contrary, the Burnelli plane has a lower
wing loading and, in consequence, will land much slower than
the conventional plane. It is doubtful whether the high
landing speed of the conventional plane will make it suitable
for commercial operation."
In 1943, Colonel Harold Hartney
wrote to General H. H. Arnold:
"Regarding
safety, wing loading has been going up at such a dangerous
rate of late that an effort of some kind must be made to stop
it. With increasing wing loading, the impact in a crash - from
greater speed - mounts up so rapidly that the chances of
passengers surviving diminishes about as the square of the
increased pounds per square foot loading, something most
distressing which few seem to appreciate. I recommend that you
direct a memorandum to the joint war production committee,
suggesting that planes of the Burnelli type be put on the
integrated program of requirements. In making these
recommendations, I submit you will, by so doing, be making an
attempt to secure safer airplanes and obtain less expensive
airplanes."
In 1944, Mr. Burnelli received the 1944
Fawcett Honor Award for his "Major Contribution to the
Scientific Advancement of Aviation".
In 1947, The National Fire Protection
Association stated:
"Moving the landing gear inboard and strengthening the
fuselage to absorb the shock of landing would eliminate
applying stress to the fuel tank supporting structure. This
revision of the commonplace has been accomplished in the
Burnelli lifting wing design. Another feature of the Burnelli
type aircraft is the shifting of the fuel tanks so they are
not in direct line with the power plants and their exhaust
outlets."
(continued on next
page) 
