Push Me - Pull you?

Question

Cessna had the 337 with an engine in the front and in the back. Did/does any other manufacturer use this configuration?

Answer 1

This aircraft was quite successful, as the O-2, in Vietnam as a scout and forward air controller.

Answer 2

It was a Dornier 335 Pfeil  (Arrow)   and it was incredibly fast but had a severe problem with overheating the aft engine and was remarkable for having the first operational ejection seat.

You would need it with the Cessna version as well...  I know.. I should not be so hard on it... but it seemed that everytime I saw that thing was on fire or upside down. The USAF had them designated as the O-2

There was a concept aircraft, all composite using tandem engine placement called the Star Kraft that looked quite promising for a while back in the 90's but I never heard any more about it.

The funniest story I ever saw on the thing was a guy that took off out of Lubbock going to Amarillo. He used about 8,000 feet of runway to get the thing airborne...  the tower was getting nervous as most twins become airborne in a fraction of that distance... and they asked the guy if was Ok... he said.. "Well.. I don't have a multi-engine license, so I am only using the front engine"   The Feds were waiting for him in AMA when he got there.  True Story.

Answer 3

the Adams A700 (i believe that is the model number) has the same configuration.

There are a lot of benefits of the centerline thrust airplanes, mainly the fact that if an engine is lost, performance is decreased by about 60%, rather than about 80% with a typical twin.

At the same time, there are many down sides. performance is the main draw back. Cooling of the rear engine can be difficult and in the 337 maintenance of the rear engine is an absolute nightmare, many shops will either charge a very high fee or aft engine work, or just not accept the work at all.

I believe there are other centerline thrust aircraft out there, but I can't think of any of them off the top of my head.

As a little bit of trivia, many people say a single engine rated pilot can legally fly a 337 or other centerline thrust twin. This in not correct, a multi engine rating is required.  If a multi engine checkride is taken in a centerline thrust aircraft, there will be a "limited to centerline thrust" limitation on the multiengine certificate.

Answer 4

Dornier Pfeil /arrow/ of the WWII. Do 335

OV 10 Bronco

Answer 5

Adam Aircraft has a fairly recent model, the A500, that uses this.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam_A500

(The A700 has the same body, but two jets, on either side of the body - not a push-pull configuration - see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam_A700 to compare the differences)

Back in WWII the Do 335 used this configuration.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dornier_Do_...

There was the Caproni Ca.1:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caproni_Ca....

I'm thinking there were other WWI models.  One had the engines were mounted in nacelles between two wings.  Each side had a forward and backwards facing engine (i.e. 4 engines total).  I can't think of the name of it, however (something wants me to say it was a Brittish or French model, and they ended up putting American "Liberty" engines in it because the originally intended engines were too valuable for fighters).

Here's Wikipedia's entry on push-pull aircraft:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Push-pull_c...

Answer 6

Interestingly enough, if you take your practical test for your pilot's license in an inline thrust multi-engine aircraft, those will be the only aircraft it is good for. If you take it in a normal twin, it will be valid for inline twins as well.

This is because there is no thrust asymmetry when an engine fails in these aircraft, so you cannot demonstrate competence dealing with thrust asymmetry.

Answer 7

Few:

here's at least one other

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam_A500

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Push-pull_c...

GoodLuck...