Information about Drop Tank
The term drop tank is used to describe fuel tanks in both aeronautical and automotive fields.
An aeronautic drop tank is an expendable and often jettisonable external fuel tank carried by aircraft for long-range flights. It is designed to be discarded when empty or in the event of combat or emergency in order to reduce drag and weight.
The drop tank was first used during World War II (ca. 1942) to allow fighter aircraft to carry additional fuel for long-range escort flights without requiring a dramatically larger, heavier, less maneuverable fuselage. The German Luftwaffe began using external fuel tanks with the introduction of the ME-109 E7 and FW-190 A4 in mid-1942, after noting the disastrous range limitations of ME-109s in the Battle of Britain. The Allies commonly used them to allow fighters increased range and patrol time over continental Europe. Such tanks are now commonplace on military aircraft and occasionally for civilian use, although civilian aircraft are less likely to discard tanks except in the event of extreme emergency.
The primary disadvantage with drop tanks is that they impose a drag penalty on the aircraft carrying them. A rule of thumb is that only about half the capacity of a streamlined drop tank actually goes towards increasing the aircraft's overall range, the rest going to overcome the added drag and weight of the tank itself. The use of drop tanks also reduces the number of external hardpoints available for weapons, and increase the aircraft's radar signature, both problematic for modern tactical aircraft.
Some modern combat aircraft use conformal fuel tanks (CFTs) instead of or in addition to drop tanks. CFTs produce less drag and do not take up external hardpoints, however as a result some versions can only be removed on the ground.
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Aeronautic
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German leaflet of WW2 stating in German and Polish that a drop tank is not a bomb.
An aeronautic drop tank is an expendable and often jettisonable external fuel tank carried by aircraft for long-range flights. It is designed to be discarded when empty or in the event of combat or emergency in order to reduce drag and weight.
The drop tank was first used during World War II (ca. 1942) to allow fighter aircraft to carry additional fuel for long-range escort flights without requiring a dramatically larger, heavier, less maneuverable fuselage. The German Luftwaffe began using external fuel tanks with the introduction of the ME-109 E7 and FW-190 A4 in mid-1942, after noting the disastrous range limitations of ME-109s in the Battle of Britain. The Allies commonly used them to allow fighters increased range and patrol time over continental Europe. Such tanks are now commonplace on military aircraft and occasionally for civilian use, although civilian aircraft are less likely to discard tanks except in the event of extreme emergency.
The primary disadvantage with drop tanks is that they impose a drag penalty on the aircraft carrying them. A rule of thumb is that only about half the capacity of a streamlined drop tank actually goes towards increasing the aircraft's overall range, the rest going to overcome the added drag and weight of the tank itself. The use of drop tanks also reduces the number of external hardpoints available for weapons, and increase the aircraft's radar signature, both problematic for modern tactical aircraft.
Some modern combat aircraft use conformal fuel tanks (CFTs) instead of or in addition to drop tanks. CFTs produce less drag and do not take up external hardpoints, however as a result some versions can only be removed on the ground.
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Drop tanks on a F-16
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Drop tank operated on ground
Automotive
An automotive drop tank refers to an aftermarket fuel tank, which due to increased capacity and dimensions visible protrudes from the bottom of the vehicle. These tanks often reduce the clearance of the vehicle and as such are normally restricted to vehicles designed for racing. These tanks, unlike their aeronautical counterparts, are not able to be jettisoned from the vehicle.For other uses, see Tank (disambiguation).
A fuel tank is the part of an engine system in which the fuel is stored and released into the engine. Fuel tanks range in size and complexity from the small plastic tank of a butane lighter to the multi-chambered..... Click the link for more information.
aircraft is a vehicle which is able to fly through the air (or through any other atmosphere). All the human activity which surrounds aircraft is called aviation. (Most rocket vehicles are not aircraft because they are not supported by the surrounding air).
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Flight is the process by which an object achieves sustained movement either through the air by aerodynamically generating lift or aerostatically using buoyancy, or movement beyond earth's atmosphere, in the case of spaceflight.
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Combat, or fighting, is purposeful violent conflict intended to establish dominance over the opposition.
The term "combat" (French for "fight") typically refers to armed conflict between military forces in warfare, whereas the more general term "fighting" can refer to
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The term "combat" (French for "fight") typically refers to armed conflict between military forces in warfare, whereas the more general term "fighting" can refer to
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Allied powers:
Soviet Union
United States
United Kingdom
China
France
...et al. Axis powers:
Germany
Japan
Italy
...et al.
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Soviet Union
United States
United Kingdom
China
France
...et al. Axis powers:
Germany
Japan
Italy
...et al.
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fighter aircraft is a military aircraft designed primarily for attacking other aircraft, as opposed to a bomber, which is designed to attack ground targets, primarily by dropping bombs. Fighters are comparatively small, fast, and maneuverable.
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fuselage (from the French fuselé "spindle-shaped") is an aircraft's main body section that holds crew and passengers or cargo. In single engine aircraft it will usually contain an engine, although in some amphibious aircraft the single engine is mounted on a pylon attached
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1,963 total[4][5] 1,107 single-seat fighters
357 two-seat fighters
1,380 bombers
428 dive-bombers
569 reconnaissance
233 coastal
4,074 total.
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357 two-seat fighters
1,380 bombers
428 dive-bombers
569 reconnaissance
233 coastal
4,074 total.
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A military aircraft is any fixed-wing or rotary-wing aircraft that is in the current employ of a military power. General categories include:
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- Fighter aircraft
- Ground attack aircraft
- Bomber
- Tanker
- Trainer
- Transport
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A civilian under international humanitarian law is a person who is not a member of his or her country's armed forces. The term is also often used colloquially to refer to people who are not members of a particular profession or occupation, especially by law enforcement agencies,
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drag (sometimes called resistance) is the force that resists the movement of a solid object through a fluid (a liquid or gas). Drag is made up of friction forces, which act in a direction parallel to the object's surface (primarily along its sides, as friction forces at the
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hardpoint is any part of an airframe designed to carry an external load. This technical description includes mountings for engines, but most commonly the word is used to refer to the points on the wings of military aircraft where external stores - missiles, bombs, countermeasures,
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weapon is a tool used to injure, incapacitate, or kill an adversary.[1][2] Weapons may be used to attack and defend, and consequently also to threaten or protect. Metaphorically, anything used to damage (even psychologically) can be referred to as a weapon.
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Radar is a system that uses electromagnetic waves to identify the range, altitude, direction, or speed of both moving and fixed objects such as aircraft, ships, motor vehicles, weather formations, and terrain.
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Conformal Fuel Tanks (CFTs) are additional fuel tanks, fitted closely to the profile of an aircraft, which extend either range of an aircraft or time on station with little aerodynamic penalties compared to the same capacity carried in external drop tanks.
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