Brochocki BKB-1

The Brochocki BKB-1 was a Canadian mid-wing, single-seat, experimental tailless glider that was designed and constructed by Stefan Brochocki with assistance from Witold Kasper and A. Bodek. The designation indicated the contributions of all three men. The aircraft was intended to study flight above the stall angle.[1][2]

BKB-1
BKB-1
Role Experimental glider
National origin Canada
Designer Stefan Brochocki
Introduction 1959
Status Sole example destroyed in 1971
Number built one
Variants Kasper Bekas

Design and development

The BKB-1 was constructed in 1959 and built entirely from wood. The 39 ft (11.9 m) wing was swept, had a 9.5:1 aspect ratio and employed a NACA 8-H-12 airfoil. The aircraft had a very high wing area of 160 sq ft (15 m2) which resulted in a light wing loading of just 3.81 lb/sq ft (18.6 kg/m2).[2][3]

The prototype BKB-1 was originally registered in Canada as CF-ZDK-X. Later it was moved to the United States, owned by Kasper and registered as N2991G.[2][4]

As a testbed the aircraft went through several modification states. The modifications included aerodynamic devices to improve aircraft control above the stalling angle. These reduced the stall speed to 20 mph (32 km/h) and resulted in a 200 ft/min (1.0 m/s) rate of descent while stalled. This allowed stalled landings with no ground roll. As a result of these and other design changes the aircraft was designated as the BKB-1A, the "A" indicating aerobatics. The aircraft was intended to be fully aerobatic, including tumbling maneuvers.[2]

Kasper had a plan to produce the aircraft and the developmental derivative Kasper Bekas, which mount different wings to a common fuselage, as a single kit, with the choice of wings, but it seems none was actually produced.[2]

Operational history

The sole BKB-1A was destroyed on 6 November 1971 near Arlington, Washington, when a pilot conducted unauthorized aerobatics in the aircraft, subjecting it to an estimated negative 30g during a high-speed inverted descent. The 31-year-old commercial pilot, who had a total of 3000 flying hours and five hours on type, was wearing a parachute, but did not bail out and was killed in the accident. The National Transportation Safety Board cited as cause factors that the pilot misjudged the aircraft's speed and overstressed the airframe to failure.[2][5]

Variants
BKB-1
Early configuration of the aircraft[2]
BKB-1A
Later configuration of the same aircraft with modifications for parachute flight above the stalling angle and also aerobatics.[2]

Specifications (BKB-1)

Data from Soaring[2] The World's Sailplanes:Die Segelflugzeuge der Welt:Les Planeurs du Monde Volume II[6]

General characteristics

  • Crew: one
  • Length: 9 ft 10 in (3 m)
  • Wingspan: 39 ft (12 m)
  • Wing area: 155 sq ft (14.4 m2)
  • Aspect ratio: 10
  • Airfoil: NACA 8-H-12
  • Empty weight: 370 lb (168 kg)
  • Gross weight: 571 lb (259 kg)

Performance

  • Stall speed: 35 mph (56 km/h, 30 kn)
  • Never exceed speed: 101 mph (162 km/h, 87 kn)
  • Rough air speed max: 162 km/h (100.7 mph; 87.5 kn)
  • Aerotow speed: 140 km/h (87.0 mph; 75.6 kn)
  • Winch launch speed: 100 km/h (62.1 mph; 54.0 kn)
  • g limits: +5.33 -2.67 at 162 km/h (100.7 mph; 87.5 kn)
  • Maximum glide ratio: 30:1 at 87 km/h (54.1 mph; 47.0 kn)
  • Rate of sink: 142 ft/min (0.72 m/s) at 71 km/h (44.1 mph; 38.3 kn)
  • Wing loading: 3.7 lb/sq ft (18 kg/m2)
gollark: Being embodied in biology is so irritating.
gollark: Maybe you should go to sleep or warm up your fingers or ??? biology things.
gollark: Fascinating.
gollark: I'm only asking ironically. Have you not heard of the "if you're X, name all Y" joke?
gollark: I mean you should explain what happened to the rock.

See also

Related lists

Notes
  1. Activate Media (2006). "Bekas 1-A Kasper". Archived from the original on 19 August 2012. Retrieved 6 August 2011.
  2. Rogers, Bennett: 1974 Sailplane Directory, Soaring Magazine, page 94. Soaring Society of America, August 1974. USPS 499-920
  3. Lednicer, David (2010). "The Incomplete Guide to Airfoil Usage". Archived from the original on 20 April 2010. Retrieved 1 July 2011.
  4. Federal Aviation Administration (August 2011). "Make / Model Inquiry Results N2991G". Retrieved 15 August 2011.
  5. National Transportation Safety Board (August 2011). "NTSB Identification: SEA72FYE19". Retrieved 6 August 2011.
  6. Shenstone, B.S.; K.G. Wilkinson (1963). The World's Sailplanes:Die Segelflugzeuge der Welt:Les Planeurs du Monde Volume II (in English, French, and German) (1st ed.). Zurich: Organisation Scientifique et Technique Internationale du Vol a Voile (OSTIV) and Schweizer Aero-Revue. pp. 34–36.

References
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