SYSTEM, APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR LONG ENDURANCE VERTICAL TAKEOFF AND LANDING VEHICLE

摘要

A vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft according to an aspect of the present invention comprises a fuselage, an empennage having an all-moving horizontal stabilizer located at a tail end of the fuselage, a wing having the fuselage positioned approximately halfway between the distal ends of the wing, wherein the wing is configured to transform between a substantially straight wing configuration and a canted wing configuration using a canted hinge located on each side of the fuselage. The VTOL aircraft may further includes one or more retractable pogo supports, wherein a retractable pogo support is configured to deploy from each of the wing's distal ends.

主权项

1. A vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft, comprising:
a fuselage having a nose end, and a tail end; an empennage located at the tail end of the fuselage; a canted wing, wherein the fuselage is positioned approximately halfway between the distal ends of the canted wing; and a plurality of engines, said plurality of engines comprising (1) a first tiltrotor positioned left of the fuselage on the canted wing, (2) a second tiltrotor positioned right of the fuselage on the canted wing, and (3) a fixed engine positioned on the fuselage aft of the canted wing in a vertical configuration,
wherein, during a first phase of takeoff, (i) said fixed engine generates thrust, thereby causing the tail end of the fuselage to become airborne, and (ii) each of said first tiltrotor and said second tiltrotor transition from a vertical configuration to a horizontal configuration until the fuselage achieves a predetermined angle, andwherein, during a second phase of takeoff, each of said first tiltrotor and said second tiltrotor is in the horizontal configuration and the aircraft is capable of wingborne flight.