Miles M.30

The Miles M.30 X-Minor was an experimental aircraft, designed by Miles Aircraft to evaluate the characteristics of blended fuselage and wing intersections.

M.30
Miles M.30 X-Minor
Role Experimental aircraft
National origin United Kingdom
Manufacturer Miles Aircraft
First flight February 1942
Number built 1
Variants Miles M.26

Design and development

Begun in 1938, the X series of designs was Miles designation M.26, covering a wide range of aircraft designs from small feeder-liners to very large 8-engined transatlantic transports.

To investigate the design philosophy of the blended wing/body Miles was given a contract to design and build a sub-scale flying model of the X.9 design, which emerged as the M.30 X-Minor. The small size of the X Minor made it impossible to follow the buried engine design exactly; the engines were too large and had to be mounted externally, resulting in an aircraft similar in layout but differing in aerodynamics. The X Minor first flew in February 1942, providing Miles with useful data for several years. A larger scale prototype of the X transport was planned but never built.

Specifications (M.30 X-Minor)

Data from Miles aircraft since 1925 [1]

General characteristics

  • Crew: 2
  • Length: 26 ft 3 in (8.00 m)
  • Wingspan: 33 ft (10 m) 38 ft 6 in (11.73 m) when extended later
  • Height: 9 ft (2.7 m)
  • Wing area: 200 sq ft (19 m2)
  • Aspect ratio: 5.4
  • Empty weight: 2,710 lb (1,229 kg)
  • Gross weight: 4,240 lb (1,923 kg)
  • Powerplant: 2 × de Havilland Gipsy Major 4-cyl inverted in-line air-cooled piston engine, 130 hp (97 kW) each
  • Propellers: 2-bladed fixed-pitch propellers

Performance

  • Wing loading: 21.2 lb/sq ft (104 kg/m2)
  • Power/mass: 0.0613 hp/lb

See also

Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era

Related lists

References

Notes
  1. Brown, Don L. (1970). Miles aircraft since 1925 (1st ed.). London: Putnam & Company Ltd. pp. 202–204. ISBN 0-370-00127-3.

Bibliography
  • Amos, Peter. and Brown, Don Lambert. Miles Aircraft Since 1925, Volume 1. London: Putnam Aeronautical, 2000. ISBN 0-85177-787-2.
  • Brown, Don Lambert (1970). Miles aircraft since 1925 (1st ed.). London: Putnam & Company Ltd. pp. 202–204. ISBN 0-370-00127-3.
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