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History:
Helicopters | UAVs | Compound | Geeps | Heavy Lift | Future | Piasecki first
History - Flying Geeps
M O D E L PA-59H
AirGeep
II was powered by two turbines to provide one engine out safety, and a larger payload.
Compactness in width, length and height gave it a mobility that no other VTOL system
possessed. It could operate with ease along roadways, from ship deck, or in other confined
areas.
The Airgeep rotors were loaded heavier than
helicopter rotors and not capable of autorotation. Thus multiple engines and zero
speed-zero height ejection parachutes were used for safety.
The canted fuselage allowed placement of the
rear duct at a smaller in-flow turn angle than the forward duct in forward flight. This
reduced the momentum drag caused by the sharp turn of airflow through the horizontal
ducts.
The higher power and high fuel consumption of
early turbines stimulated the idea of powering the landing gear to extend range when not
hindered by surface obstacles. A hydrostatic pump drive from one turbine and two
hydrostatic motors mounted on the main wheel axles enabled the vehicle to move on the
ground at 35 mph with substantially reduced fuel consumption.
The Airgeep could fire weapons while remaining
obscured behind an obstruction. Only the weapon and sight need be visible above the line
of defilade. The helicopter must rise above the line of defilade in order to launch its
weapons mounted below the rotor plane, revealing the large rotor disk, and thus
eliminating surprise and providing a much greater target area.
The Airgeeps ability to fly under trees,
overhanging obstructions, under bridges, and even inside buildings, enabled the Airgeep to
operate within the nap-of-the-earth and thus maintain its invisibility. The ducts of the
AirGeep, when in the hovering position, shielded the propellers and thus their flickering
could not be seen visually or by radar, maintaining "stealth" in the
battlefield.
Cutbacks in military research funding shelved
this promising development.

Airgeep II first flight: 15 February 1962; "Tommy"
Atkins, pilot

Airgeep II featured hydrostatic drive for ground travel
Model PA-59H |
| Type |
4 place Flying Geep |
| Length |
24.5 FT |
| Width |
10 FT |
| Height |
5.8 FT |
| Engines |
(2) Turbomeca Artouste IIC |
| H.P. |
530 each |
| Rotor Prop Diameter |
8.4 FT |
| Weight Empty |
2,611 LB |
| Normal G.W. |
3,670 LB |
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