since the Second World War and Vietnam became apparent that without air support to win a military confrontation is very difficult.In recent years marked by the rapid development of assault and fighter aircraft, and for this industry attracts more and more scientific research.
One of the most revealing results of the merger of the defense science and technology has become a fighter "Typhoon".According to leading foreign and domestic experts in the field of aviation, it is one of the most high-quality specimens of western weapons.What is this plane and how it is characterized, we describe in this article.
immediately noticed that his distant ancestor, "Typhoon" - the fighter of World War II, is also highly manoeuvrable and great live performance.
Basics
At its core, this twin-engine fourth-generation fighter.It features a delta wing and is built on a "duck."It should be noted that the modification of "Typhoon", which were released in recent years include the generation 4+ and 4 ++.In general, the development of such a promising aircraft was launched back in 1979.
produce cars in four variants.Separate versions exist for Britain, Germany, Italy and Spain.Especially interesting is the fact that the details for the release of the aircraft are not available in one place: this involved several aircraft manufacturing consortium.
State succession
Let's list the ones that produce the most important part of the fuselage and the engine:
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Alenia Aeronautica.Does the back of the case, flaperons and the left wings.
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BAE Systems.It overlaps the first manufacturer in the production of parts for the rear of the aircraft engaged in the production of the forward fuselage (including canards), fairing, lantern.Also responsible for the tailplane.
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EADS Deutschland.Does the center section, and has been producing the central part of the body.
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EADS CASA.The company produces slats and the right wing.
main design features
Generally, fighter "Typhoon" was created largely with the use of the most advanced achievements of electronics and aircraft.The designers have done a lot in order to ensure maximum performance maneuvers, even when coming under attack at the limit angles.
design airplanes scheme involves the use of a delta wing with a sweep of 53 degrees.Slats and flaps - two-section, canards performed by rotary type, keel and rudder - without stabilizer.This scheme is just the same and pretty sharp increase maneuverability of the aircraft and a decrease in resistance of the air at supersonic speeds.
Samolet- "invisible»
order to reduce the visibility of the car to the radar, the front edge of the front tail made of a material that absorbs radio waves.Though officially a fighter "Typhoon" does not belong to the category of machinery, made by technology "stealth", with its production of widely used technologies and materials that can effectively dissipate the radio emission.In fact, such a task was put before the original designers: make a plane as inconspicuous as possible to the front of the modern radar detection.
What has been done to achieve this?Firstly, the air intakes maximize drowned in the housing front end engines masked by special devices.All bearing plane of the wing leading edges and tail stabilizers and covered with the front edge of materials that absorb radar radiation.In addition, the suspension of guided missiles and as close to the body, which also gives them the ability to hide from enemy radar radiation.
Here it should be mentioned that at present "Typhoon" - fighter-bomber, multi-purpose, and therefore ensure that it is complete invisibility impossible in principle (so it is not so necessary).
Basic developers
Almost all new components and alloys that have achieved such high indicators have been developed by engineers group EADS / DASA.In addition, the same company was one of the founders, and later many major producers of structural elements of the aircraft.These areas include virtually all of the leading edge of both wings, the outer and inner surfaces of the air intakes, as well as elevators and adjacent components.
main materials that were used in the construction materials used
set, and traditional aircraft aluminum alloys are not so much.For example, more than 40% of the total mass of carbon fiber airframe.Number alloys of lithium and aluminum up to 20% on a pure aluminum alloy accounts for 18%.High-strength materials based on titanium occupied 12%, while the share accounted for 10% of fiberglass.The surface of the aircraft at close to 70% carbon fiber, 12% are materials based on glass fiber.
About 15% of the area falls on the metal, and another 3% are very durable plastic and other construction materials.By the way, among all European combat aircraft most technologically just the same fighter "Typhoon": 5% of all of the technical solutions have not yet been disclosed, as a secret development of European space agencies.
Even during the initial planning of the aircraft structure in the terms of reference were laid down the condition that the empty weight of the aircraft should not exceed 9999 kilograms.Furthermore, the use of structurally incorporated in the design of new magnesium-based alloys and aluminum.Airframe is not less than six thousand hours.Thus, a fighter "Typhoon" significantly outperforms the American F-35, which this figure varies between 2-4 thousand hours.
Characteristics of structural elements
body is made of semi-monocoque scheme.There is quite an effective add-on armor cabin that protects the pilot from the fire of individual small arms.Canopy - tselnoformovanny, relatively far in favor of the body.This solution allowed the pilot to ensure maximum good review.This is extremely important in today's air combat maneuvering.In this case, the fighter "Typhoon", which has a picture in the paper is one of the best vehicles of NATO.
As we have already said, it was used in the construction scheme odnokilevym plumage, which is quite a large area.Quite noticeable massive intake of heat.The entire wing skin is made of highly durable carbon fiber.However, there is one exception.We are talking about containers and flap, which are located at the ends of the wings.They are made of aluminum alloys and lithium.
total area of the horizontal stabilizer is 2.40 m2.In its manufacture are also lightweight polymers (mostly).Simply put, the fighter "Typhoon" (photo you can see in this material) is a high-tech aircraft, production of which is simply impossible without a strong industrial base.
Chassis
Landing gear - tricycle.Equipped with one-wheeled racks.The feature that the first two go off in the direction of the housing, while the head is removed in advance.Another unusual feature of the art of NATO - the chassis is perfectly optimized for landing on very rough, poorly repaired runways.But there is a problem.Initially it was assumed that the minimum length of GDP for planting will be five hundred meters.For this indicator, the fighter "Eurofighter Typhoon" also had to be advanced.
But in the course of the first field test revealed that in such conditions there is a strong overheating of the brakes, and therefore the minimum possible length was increased to 750 meters.However, in extreme cases, the pilot can use a brake parachute.
engine development, the main specifications of the power plant
engine began to develop back in 1983.Work began far from out of nowhere: the basis of the engine taken from the aircraft "Tornado".However, there are indications that the power plant was taken from experimental cars Rolls-Royce XG.40.Whatever it was, bench tests were initiated only in 1988.
The result was the development EJ200.This turbofan turbofan engine, a feature of which is a massive afterburner.Turbine blades are made with extensive use of single crystal materials, all drives are made by the method of powder forging.The control system is fully digital power plant.Moreover, the engine has a built-in diagnostic system.Almost all stationary parts of the engine are made of composite materials.The combustion chamber is protected from wear by the ceramic composition.
This attention to detail makes the fighter "Eurofighter Typhoon" one of the most enduring modern combat aircraft.Thus, as of 2010 it has collected more than 250 engines, a resource that has been brought up to 10 thousand hours.
air intake is located under the fuselage, its contours immutable.The side walls are straight, lower - curved.Vertical wall, this construction is divided into two channels and the lower part of each can vary, providing better air flow under heavy braking.
Engine Specifications
Note that at the stage of designing the aircraft, Germany, Great Britain, Spain and Italy have signed an agreement under which the country pledged to work together to develop and modify the propulsion system for the Eurofighter Typhoon.The main feature of the engine is not even its durability and service life, and modular design.This bold solution reduced the time required for dismantling, up to 45 minutes.
Engine has the following characteristics:
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Link "dry" is 6120 kg.
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reheat index value - 9097 kg.
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under normal flight fuel consumption varies from 0.745 to 0.813 kg / kg per hour.
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in afterburner, the figure is already much more - from 1.65 to 1.72 kg / kg per hour.
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temperature turbine gases emitted can reach 1840 ° K.
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average flow rate of 76 kg / s.
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main turbine diameter - 740 mm.
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total length of the power plant - 4 meters.
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its weight is 989 kg.
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Resource old versions - 6 thousand. Hours, but modern engines can already fly at 10,000.
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interval between inspections of the engine - 1 thousand. H.
This is what characterized "Typhoon" (fighter).The power plane is that it can reach a maximum speed of up to Mach 2, which is about 2500 kilometers per hour.
fuel reserves
Fuel is in the fuselage and in the pitching side, and in the wings, being placed in the tanks of high-strength materials.It is possible to place on just two hardpoints spare tank having a capacity of 1,500 liters and 1,000 liters, respectively.It should be particularly noted that the designers have provided an opportunity to air refueling, particularly different than just "Typhoon" (fighter).Fighter of the model, using all the reserves of fuel, can fly about four thousand kilometers (in fact - not more than 3200).
flight control systems
flight control system adaptive quadruplex.Note that the backup is no mechanical link.It is due to complex electronic systems ensures the highest flexibility at extreme speeds of flight, as well as the confident behavior of the aircraft in such circumstances.The system of forward-looking PIRATE and pulse-Doppler station ECR90 are part of the main armament.
inertial navigation system.Has a ring laser gyroscopes, the pilot can use a special indicator sight and hardware that automatically predicts the priority means of attack of the enemy.In addition, the same system is responsible for determining evasive maneuvers and attack enemy forces.Of course, the electronics can make recommendations for the weapons systems that the best use in a dogfight.
Defense Systems and system attacks
most expensive electronic filling system is the DASS.It is a long time to create advanced institutes in Germany and the UK.The system processes and interprets data plane receives from the laser and radar equipment.It is responsible for the release of decoys and jamming sources.It controls and passive protection of the aircraft.The containers are placed with the equipment on the wing.The laser rangefinder with the function of target indication is also located on the end section of the wing.
note that this fighter in principle, has no internal weapons bay.They are replaced by suspensorial external components that greatly simplify the detection of aircraft radar systems for the enemy, but you can greatly expand the range of weapons used.
specifically for this model fighter have been designed and used for fuel tanks polukonformnye.
Total aircraft has suspensorial thirteen knots.They tend to place up to four rockets "Skayflesh" (RAF) or "Asp" (Italian Air Force).They are placed in a little "flush" position under the hull of the aircraft.It is also allowed to place two small guided missiles ASRAAM or AIM-9.They hung on the nodes under the wings.
entire aircraft can be equipped with ten missiles "air-air", but in this case, the take-off weight of the machine must not exceed 18 tons.For suspension additional fuel tanks are three separate suspension assembly.Note that the multi-role fighter "Typhoon" is additionally equipped with an automatic gun caliber 27 mm, which is engaged in the production of firm "Mauser".
Bomb load
If you plan to perform strike operations on the ground, the seven external hardpoints can accommodate up to 6,500 kg of bombs, as well as at least six missiles of class "air-to-air."Radius hostilities may exceed one thousand kilometers.The smallest height of the battle for this fighter is considered a mark of 325 meters, maximum - kilometer.With full arms fighter-bomber "Typhoon" (a photo of him there in this material) can perform combat missions during the three and a half hours.
Distribution of funds for the production of
total was planned to produce 620 machines of this type.Since the beginning there were four States that wish to participate in the program, the aircraft were distributed among them, in accordance with the available capacities.
For plants the UK undertook to collect 232 "Typhoon", collected in Germany, 180 units, the share of Italy got 121 aircraft.Spaniards, due to poor working conditions, entrusted to collect only 87 fighters.The first planes began to arrive in 2003.Britain also received the first fighters of this model at the same time, some of them immediately went on the formation of 17 Squadron.It planes carefully tested.Ironically, the EU officially in the Air Force aircraft received only 1 July 2005.The first batch was delivered 148 units of fighters, all of them are still in service.
Already in 2002, the Austrian government has expressed interest in acquiring 18 pieces of equipment, investing in the production of just 2.55 billion dollars.However, in June 2007 because of the impending crisis was revised agreement: according to the new conditions, the Austrians wanted to get more than 15 aircraft, and in a "curtailed" configuration.To date, similar agreements signed with the United Arab Emirates and a number of customers.It is reported that the European Union should put the plants on them just 707 fighters.
agreement to start production of the second batch was signed December 14, 2004.The first tranche of this aircraft took to the air in 2008.Unlikely.
