Dyott monoplane
Encyclopedia
The Dyott monoplane was a single-engined, single-seat mid-wing monoplane
designed by G.M. Dyott for his own use as a sports and touring aircraft. It proved successful, making a six month tour of the USA soon after its first flight in 1913.
. He had earned Royal Aero Club
Aviators' Certificate (no. 114) in 1911 and designed his cross country machine the following year. One strength of the design was the simplicity of rigging and assembly, making it easy to transport by land or sea where necessary. The machine was built by Hewlett & Blondeau of Clapham, London.
The Dyott was a single-seat, mid-wing monoplane of clean appearance for its day. The fuselage
was built up around four longerons. These were of ash in the stressed region from wing spars to engine, spruce
at the rear and internally wire braced. Stringers behind the cockpit formed a smooth rounded decking under the overall fabric covering
. The forward fuselage, including the cockpit was aluminium
clad, with a neat nose piece over the 7-cylinder, 50 hp (37 kW) Gnome rotary engine, more to protect the pilot from oil than for streamlining. Steel tubing was used in several places: the empennage was steel framed, as was the pilot's seat, and steel tubes formed the vertical undercarriage
members. There were four of the latter, each pair mounting a short wooden skid with steel cross bracing and a single axle on shock absorbers carrying a pair of wheels. The undercarriage was initially completed with a long sprung tail skid, later replaced by a shorter cane skid mounted further aft. At the same time, Dyott made some changes to the transverse bracing of the main undercarriage.
The low aspect ratio
wings were parallel edged and almost square tipped, with the thin airfoil
section typical of the time. They were built around two spars
, each a spruce-ash-spruce sandwich, and the profile was formed with mixed spruce and ash ribs. Both spars fitted into sockets formed by two transverse fuselage struts, but the rear socket was made oversize and the spar attached with a bolt and split pin to allow movement, as the Dyott was laterally controlled by wing warping
. The main in-flight aerodynamic forces on each wing were carried by pairs of cables to the front spar from the forward skid mounting point, an arrangement that caused some concern over the transfer of landing loads to the wing. Each wing was braced from above with four wires, two to each spar, from an inverted V steel pylon just in front of the cockpit. A short vertical steel post below the rear of the cockpit carried pairs of wing warping wires to the rear spar.
The tailplane, attached to the top of the fuselage was triangular, without eternal bracing and carrying elevators with a V shaped gap to allow rudder movement. The fin was very small and triangular; the rudder hinge ran from fin tip to the bottom of the fuselage. Control wires ran externally from about halfway down the rear fuselage.
The aircraft was completed early in 1913; testing was rapid and satisfactory.
immediately after flight testing was complete. He flew over 2,000 miles (3,200 km) between April and October 1913. The Dyott proved to have good performance ("It goes like a rocket", he wrote) and high reliability, giving demonstration flights across the US from New York
to California
.
After returning from the US, he entered his monoplane into the London to Brighton handicap, which involved a round trip to Brighton
from Hendon Aerodrome
, refuelling at Shoreham
near Brighton. A strong wind took him off course and required a landing at Beachy Head
. This was done successfully, but the wind overturned the aircraft and damaged it, forcing Dyott's retirement.
Dyott planned to take the repaired machine on a tour of India. This did not happen; instead, the monoplane was taken over by the Admiralty in 1914.
The Dyott monoplane appeared in a set of cigarette cards issued by Lambert & Butler
in 1915.
Monoplane
A monoplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with one main set of wing surfaces, in contrast to a biplane or triplane. Since the late 1930s it has been the most common form for a fixed wing aircraft.-Types of monoplane:...
designed by G.M. Dyott for his own use as a sports and touring aircraft. It proved successful, making a six month tour of the USA soon after its first flight in 1913.
Design
The Dyott monoplane was named after its designer and owner, George DyottGeorge Miller Dyott
George Miller Dyott was an American pioneer aviator and explorer of the Amazon.-Biography:Dyott was born in New York to a British father and American mother. He test piloted planes not long after the Wright brothers, and was one of the first pilots ever to fly at night...
. He had earned Royal Aero Club
Royal Aero Club
The Royal Aero Club is the national co-ordinating body for Air Sport in the United Kingdom.The Aero Club was founded in 1901 by Frank Hedges Butler, his daughter Vera and the Hon Charles Rolls , partly inspired by the Aero Club of France...
Aviators' Certificate (no. 114) in 1911 and designed his cross country machine the following year. One strength of the design was the simplicity of rigging and assembly, making it easy to transport by land or sea where necessary. The machine was built by Hewlett & Blondeau of Clapham, London.
The Dyott was a single-seat, mid-wing monoplane of clean appearance for its day. The fuselage
Fuselage
The fuselage is an aircraft's main body section that holds crew and passengers or cargo. In single-engine aircraft it will usually contain an engine, although in some amphibious aircraft the single engine is mounted on a pylon attached to the fuselage which in turn is used as a floating hull...
was built up around four longerons. These were of ash in the stressed region from wing spars to engine, spruce
Spruce
A spruce is a tree of the genus Picea , a genus of about 35 species of coniferous evergreen trees in the Family Pinaceae, found in the northern temperate and boreal regions of the earth. Spruces are large trees, from tall when mature, and can be distinguished by their whorled branches and conical...
at the rear and internally wire braced. Stringers behind the cockpit formed a smooth rounded decking under the overall fabric covering
Aircraft fabric covering
Aircraft fabric covering is a term used for both the material used and the process of covering aircraft open structures. It is also used for reinforcing closed plywood structures, the de Havilland Mosquito being an example of this technique....
. The forward fuselage, including the cockpit was aluminium
Aluminium
Aluminium or aluminum is a silvery white member of the boron group of chemical elements. It has the symbol Al, and its atomic number is 13. It is not soluble in water under normal circumstances....
clad, with a neat nose piece over the 7-cylinder, 50 hp (37 kW) Gnome rotary engine, more to protect the pilot from oil than for streamlining. Steel tubing was used in several places: the empennage was steel framed, as was the pilot's seat, and steel tubes formed the vertical undercarriage
Undercarriage
The undercarriage or landing gear in aviation, is the structure that supports an aircraft on the ground and allows it to taxi, takeoff and land...
members. There were four of the latter, each pair mounting a short wooden skid with steel cross bracing and a single axle on shock absorbers carrying a pair of wheels. The undercarriage was initially completed with a long sprung tail skid, later replaced by a shorter cane skid mounted further aft. At the same time, Dyott made some changes to the transverse bracing of the main undercarriage.
The low aspect ratio
Aspect ratio
The aspect ratio of a shape is the ratio of its longer dimension to its shorter dimension. It may be applied to two characteristic dimensions of a three-dimensional shape, such as the ratio of the longest and shortest axis, or for symmetrical objects that are described by just two measurements,...
wings were parallel edged and almost square tipped, with the thin airfoil
Airfoil
An airfoil or aerofoil is the shape of a wing or blade or sail as seen in cross-section....
section typical of the time. They were built around two spars
Spar (aviation)
In a fixed-wing aircraft, the spar is often the main structural member of the wing, running spanwise at right angles to the fuselage. The spar carries flight loads and the weight of the wings whilst on the ground...
, each a spruce-ash-spruce sandwich, and the profile was formed with mixed spruce and ash ribs. Both spars fitted into sockets formed by two transverse fuselage struts, but the rear socket was made oversize and the spar attached with a bolt and split pin to allow movement, as the Dyott was laterally controlled by wing warping
Wing warping
Wing warping was an early system for lateral control of a fixed-wing aircraft. The technique, used and patented by the Wright brothers, consisted of a system of pulleys and cables to twist the trailing edges of the wings in opposite directions...
. The main in-flight aerodynamic forces on each wing were carried by pairs of cables to the front spar from the forward skid mounting point, an arrangement that caused some concern over the transfer of landing loads to the wing. Each wing was braced from above with four wires, two to each spar, from an inverted V steel pylon just in front of the cockpit. A short vertical steel post below the rear of the cockpit carried pairs of wing warping wires to the rear spar.
The tailplane, attached to the top of the fuselage was triangular, without eternal bracing and carrying elevators with a V shaped gap to allow rudder movement. The fin was very small and triangular; the rudder hinge ran from fin tip to the bottom of the fuselage. Control wires ran externally from about halfway down the rear fuselage.
The aircraft was completed early in 1913; testing was rapid and satisfactory.
Operational history
Dyott took the monoplane on a tour of the USAUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
immediately after flight testing was complete. He flew over 2,000 miles (3,200 km) between April and October 1913. The Dyott proved to have good performance ("It goes like a rocket", he wrote) and high reliability, giving demonstration flights across the US from New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
to California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
.
After returning from the US, he entered his monoplane into the London to Brighton handicap, which involved a round trip to Brighton
Brighton
Brighton is the major part of the city of Brighton and Hove in East Sussex, England on the south coast of Great Britain...
from Hendon Aerodrome
Hendon Aerodrome
Hendon Aerodrome was an aerodrome in Hendon, north London, England that, between 1908 and 1968, was an important centre for aviation.It was situated in Colindale, seven miles north west of Charing Cross. It nearly became "the Charing Cross of the UK's international air routes", but for the...
, refuelling at Shoreham
Shoreham Airport
- Sussex Police Air Operations Unit :The Sussex Police Air Operations Unit is headquartered at Shoreham Airport. The unit has been equipped since February 2000 with a MD Explorer, registered as "G-SUSX". The unit is headed by a Police Inspector, assisted by a Police Sergeant and two Police...
near Brighton. A strong wind took him off course and required a landing at Beachy Head
Beachy Head
Beachy Head is a chalk headland on the south coast of England, close to the town of Eastbourne in the county of East Sussex, immediately east of the Seven Sisters. The cliff there is the highest chalk sea cliff in Britain, rising to 162 m above sea level. The peak allows views of the south...
. This was done successfully, but the wind overturned the aircraft and damaged it, forcing Dyott's retirement.
Dyott planned to take the repaired machine on a tour of India. This did not happen; instead, the monoplane was taken over by the Admiralty in 1914.
The Dyott monoplane appeared in a set of cigarette cards issued by Lambert & Butler
Lambert & Butler
Lambert & Butler is a British cigarette brand launched in 1979. The brand sells £1.379 billion worth of cigarettes every year. Due to Imperial Tobacco not owning the copyright on the original name, Lambert & Butler is known in some countries as L&B or Great & British...
in 1915.