Landships II

Centurion · Legend

Mutilated Morane

theburk · Captain

id imagine it is a pusher, on battlefeild.ru they mention vehicles similar to this (though purpose made and not canibalized) for use in siberia, typicaly they had skids in front, i dont know why but i seem to remember something about similar vehicles being used in the desert somewhere. anyway, it looks like there are control cables going down to the front set of wheels (assuming the end with the engine is the back)

d_fernetti · Hero

Probably a Morane Saulnier G... I have a Cross and Cockade magazine issue with this picture... I'll try to find out more. The practical value of this vehicle must have been little, but I would dare say it was great fun to "drive" it, probably a good primer on how to operate those pesky rotary engines without risking a probaby fatal crash... As to steer it, you can see that the rear wheels have a sort of steering mechanism probably linked to whatever controls the partially cropped fuselage has.
BTW, I've also seen a railway car fitted with an aviation engine and propeller used to transport troops in the Palestine front.

alfisherjr · Colonel

Weren't 'mutilated' aircraft used to train new pilots in the intracies of taxing a/c before they were trusted with the real thing?

Al

d_fernetti · Hero

Yes, they were called "penguins" but they usually consisted on clipped wing airframes or in the case of Spads, only the upper wing present. This one seems a much more involved conversion.

Ironsides · Legend

Hi, can't see how you would use this as an ambulance whatever the caption says...�I suspect it was used for gunnery training...does anyone know the direction the engine would rotate as this would indicate the the direction of travel....

Cheers

d_fernetti · Hero

Ambulance is what is needed after driving one of these. Guess it was concocted just for joyrides, it's of little practical value.

d_fernetti · Hero

Here's something else, from Cross and Cokade Journal, Vol 4 #4 Witer 1970 (hey we're lucky! see post on the Propeller driven flatcar) The same photo with the caption:" The crash wagon! It consisted of a steerable half fuselage (minus wings and tail) and was used to rush help when a crash occurred. There were no fire trucks available -in fact there were no autos of any sort in supply. Personnel are not identified."
This photo is in an article on the experiences of Alexander Riaboff, who flew for the Tsarist Air Service, so we can be pretty certain of the description given.
So it was no ambulance, no joyride "peng�in"... it was an improvisation!