The control wheel controlled the pitch and the steering of the aircraft, both on the ground and in the air, simplifying control and coordinated turning and eliminating the need for rudder pedals. A two-control system linked the rudder and aileron systems, which controlled yaw and roll, with the steerable nosewheel. Lacking rudder pedals, the Ercoupe was flown using only the control wheel. The prototype 310 featured an ERCO-made inverted four-cylinder engine, the ERCO I-L 116, which was quickly dropped due to its high manufacturing cost compared to the new four-cylinder Continental A-65 air-cooled boxer engine. The easy-to-fly design included unique design features, including a large glazed canopy - with almost as much visibility as a bubble canopy - for improved visibility. The ERCO 310, which included a fully cowled engine, made its first flight in October 1937 at College Park Airport and was soon renamed the "Ercoupe". Retaining the tricycle gear for ease of maneuvering on the ground, and limited stall-spin features, Weick switched to a low-wing monoplane configuration in his new model, powered by an engine in tractor configuration.Īn Erco 415 Ercoupe showing its double tail configuration Focusing his efforts on a number of design issues, primarily simplicity and safety, Weick strove to create a reasonably priced aircraft that would not stall or spin. Weick left NACA in 1936 and joined Engineering and Research Corporation's (ERCO) fledgling aircraft team as chief designer, primarily to continue improving his aircraft design. After the prototype W-1 underwent a forced landing, an updated W-1A was built by Fairchild, incorporating leading edge cuffs. The W-1 was not intended for production to qualify as a competitor, but was purchased by the Bureau for continued experimental tests in spin-control safety. Two other winners were the Waterman Aeroplane and a roadable autogyro, the Autogiro Company of America AC-35. In 1936 the winner of the competition was the Stearman-Hammond Y-1, incorporating many of the safety features of the W-1. In 1934, the Bureau of Air Commerce approached Weick's team looking for standards for a competition for a safe and practical $700 aircraft. Two-control operation using controls for pitch and roll.Suitable longitudinal and lateral stability with limited up-elevator deflection, to prevent loss of control due to stalling and spinning.Tricycle landing gear with castering nosewheel, steerable if desired.įred Weick listed the W1 design goals that were tested in later seminars: The resulting aircraft, known as the W-1, featured tricycle landing gear, a parasol wing, and a pusher propeller configuration. Weick and a group of co-workers designed and assembled the experimental aircraft with a group of his colleagues who worked on the project in their spare time and paid for it themselves. In 1934 he asked permission to build an aircraft based on the 1931 Stout Skycar, using fabric instead of aluminum covering, and control modifications based on NACA research. In 1931, aeronautical engineer Fred Weick was assistant chief of the aeronautics division of the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA). It is shown in March 1934 in NACA's full scale wind tunnel. Fred Weick designed the W-1 with tricycle landing gear.
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