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Originally Posted by freebeard
There is 10ft of travel in the landing gear? The payload is perched over a trap door????
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It'd hang from the top structure, with the sides making sure the beam doesn't flex.
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The top and sides of the airframe will have to be stiffened to allow that size a hole in the fuselage. One would think.
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Try bending a U-beam
That's essentially what this design is, with added aerodynamic covers.
Bottom would merely be an aerodynamic cover.
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I posit a better strategy: one 8x8.5 hatch in the side and rollers in the floor so it can be loaded like an 18-round magazine.
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Which would make it heavier as you'd need a floor to support the weight, the rollers, the hatch in what would be a truss-structure to keep the aircraft from bending.
The aircraft would need equipment to roll loaded 40' containers - that'd require some heavy duty powered rollers.
Every airport would need lifting equipment that can lift 40' containers.
CoG issues could pop up when loading the containers as you'd have to load those at the extreme ends first.
The side cargo door in the C-130 was deleted @ a very early stage.
In later cargo/tanker jets, this door is above the load-bearing structure (floor and beam) and requires specialised loading equipment
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Also, airplanes are sensitive to weight distribution. The containers are a standard shape, but the weight could vary. They would have to be ordered correctly.
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Exactly what's being done on ships and aircraft alike, today ...
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So... Your airframe seems to be sized for 40ft containers. Can it accommodate two 20ft containers? Another aircraft half the width for those?
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It's mentioned in the patent
If the rear aerodynamic tail was made to fold up - or deleted altogether and accepting higher drag- it could mean the cargo can be rolled under the aircraft from behind, rather than the aircraft lifting itself over the containers
That should save some complexity with the landing gear.
OTOH, the extendable landing gear would also allow for some seriously outsized cargo to be carried , possibly with some fairings
It'd dwarf the Beluga or Dreamlifter.