And what country can preserve its liberties if their rulers are not warned from time to time that their people preserve the spirit of resistance? Let them take arms. The remedy is to set them right as to facts, pardon and pacify them. What signify a few lives lost in a century or two? The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants.
Wednesday, July 29, 2026
1931 Macchi-Castoldi MC-72 at the Italian Air Force Museum Rome. 440 MPH on floats, a world record never bettered.
Technically these are contra-rotating props as they are on the same axis. The P38 Lightning had counter-rotating props, the left rotated counter-clockwise and the right clockwise. The contra-rotating props prevent the plane rolling opposite the prop rotation which would cause one float to create more drag than the other which could cause many problems on takeoff. Al_in_Ottawa
Engine problems so it never raced against the Supermarine planes in the Schneider Trophy. Those only (eventually) got up to just over 400 mph so this would have cleaned their clocks.
Counter rotating props?
ReplyDeleteTechnically these are contra-rotating props as they are on the same axis. The P38 Lightning had counter-rotating props, the left rotated counter-clockwise and the right clockwise. The contra-rotating props prevent the plane rolling opposite the prop rotation which would cause one float to create more drag than the other which could cause many problems on takeoff.
ReplyDeleteAl_in_Ottawa
Thanks for the counter vs contra explanation.
DeleteEngine problems so it never raced against the Supermarine planes in the Schneider Trophy. Those only (eventually) got up to just over 400 mph so this would have cleaned their clocks.
ReplyDelete