Inventors:
Richard P. Ouellette - Lakewood CA
Aaron J. Kutzmann - Long Beach CA
Assignee:
The Boeing Company - Chicago IL
International Classification:
B64D 2720
US Classification:
244 23B, 244 23 A, 244 55, 244 58
Abstract:
An aircraft adapted for covert deployment and having low vulnerability to hostile detection and aggression is provided. The aircraft includes a fuselage having a pair of sidewalls and a bottom. The sidewalls and bottom form an armored payload bay. The aircraft additionally includes a pair of wings connected to the fuselage. The wings have a fixed wingspan constrained such that the aircraft can be transported within a larger aircraft. This allows for the aircraft to be aerial deployed from the larger aircraft. Each of the sidewalls include at least one pulse ejector thrust augmentor (PETA) bank that is canted outward. Therefore, a thrust exhaust produced by each PETA bank is directed down and away from a centerline of the payload bay. Furthermore, the bottom of the aircraft is adapted to allow ingress and egress of cargo, e. g. military troops, from the payload bay.