I found a plane!

Urban exploration outside of the Ozarks area
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Sertile
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I found a plane!

Post by Sertile »

The area where I'm living here on the Cape used to be an old military base during WW2, and while almost nothing remains of the original camp, there are a few artifacts still lying around. I got a hot tip about a couple of old radio-controlled drones - one in the woods, the other on some dunes near the ocean - and the hunt was on!

So far I've found one, and it was pretty cool. The wings are broken off, but the engine is intact, along with all the radio equipment and what was left of the (wooden) propeller. An old feller explained that these drones were used to tow a target over the ocean, which anti-aircraft guns would use for target practice. Sometimes they hit the target, sometimes they hit the drone, and once (according to him) they hit a whale.

I'll be going out to look for the other this weekend (my second attempt) if the weather holds. Wish me luck!
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godfather
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Re: I found a plane!

Post by godfather »

Nice find, drones like that plaid a huge part in America building it's Air Force. They had a contest to see if aircraft could be more accurate on air targets than the anti-aircraft guns of the day. The Flyboys schooled the gunners something fierce, and now we have an amazing Air Force :mrgreen:

Good luck with locating the other. I would be interested in seeing any pics that you take of them.
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Re: I found a plane!

Post by Solliz138 »

I will be out on the cape in a few weeks. What part of the cape are these located?
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RE: I found a plane!

Post by Versatile »

Good find! See if you can get a photo of the data plate. If you can get ownership i might be able to set you up with someone to purchase it.
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Re: I found a plane!

Post by KansasCity »

That would be sweet to make a few bucks. Leaving it for others might be cooler.
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RE: I found a plane!

Post by Versatile »

A local museum would love to have it. A great coup for the original poster. I know guys that have searched for years and spent thosands and never found a thing. I have spent quite a few bucks my self. A definite feather in his cap! Good going. Look for more.
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Re: I found a plane!

Post by White Rabbit »

That's freaking cool.
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RE: I found a plane!

Post by Versatile »

Find out if it was a Navy base or Air Force. If it is Navy they will claim it as theirs and will come after you if you haul it outta there. The Air Force has walked away from their stuff and you might get ownership.
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Re: I found a plane!

Post by Versatile »

I think it is a Northrup AQM-57A Falconer.

Go to http://www.vectrorsite.net/twuav_01.html for a picture
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Re: I found a plane!

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Re: I found a plane!

Post by gimpface »

Wow, nice find!
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Re: I found a plane!

Post by Sertile »

Versatile wrote:I think it is a Northrup AQM-57A Falconer.

Go to http://www.vectrorsite.net/twuav_01.html for a picture
Wrong! I did some digging and found out it belonged to a base here called Camp Wellfleet. I think it was just the regular Army, not Air Force or anything. I also came across some actual photos of one of the two drones when it was still in use. It's a Radioplane OQ-19-D target drone:

Image

I've found some other stuff too, like a tennis court and some old equipment lying around, but mostly just barrels and concrete slabs.

The land currently belongs to the National Seashore, which means the planes are NPS property. I talked to the park historian, and he said he'd like to get one and put it on display someday, but they don't have any plans at the moment.

I still haven't found the other one, and I doubt I'll have time to make a third attempt.
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RE: I found a plane!

Post by Versatile »

Northrop (Radioplane) OQ-19/KD2R/MQM-33
The MQM-33 is a simple propeller-driven full-scale aerial target. In production in various versions for over 40 years, the MQM-33 family is one of the most successful targets ever built.

In 1945, Radioplane created the Model RP-19 by replacing the O-45 engine in the OQ-17 target with a higher-rated O-90 engine. The RP-19 was tested by the USAAF as the YOQ-19 in July 1945, and ordered into production in 1946 as the OQ-19A. The OQ-19A had a metal fuselage and wooden wings (later OQ-19As would use metal wings). Like all following members of the family, it could be launched from a catapult launcher, a rotary launcher, or from a zero-length launcher with the aid of a 9.6 kN (2160 lb) thrust solid-fueled booster rocket. The Air Force drones could also be air-launched, usually from DB-26C aircraft. The OQ-19s were controlled from the ground by a radio command link, which used an AN/URW-3 transmitter and an AN/ARW-26AY receiver. Recovery was by parachute, which was deployed by radio command or automatically after loss of vital systems. The OQ-19C was a derivative of the OQ-19A, which had metal wings from the beginning and a significantly modified vertical tail without a rudder. The OQ-19C used the same O-90 engine as the OQ-19A.


Photo: Northrop
OQ-19A




In 1950, the XOQ-19B was tested with metal wings, a more powerful O-100 engine, and a vertical gyro for out-of-sight operation. This model was produced as the OQ-19B and could be tracked by the out-of-sight operator using an X-band radar tracking system. The OQ-19D, first flown in April 1950, was similar to the OQ-19B, but lacked the out-of-sight operation capability, and was optically tracked using drone-mounted smoke flares or lights. The OQ-19B/D used the same rudder-less vertical tail as the OQ-19C. The OQ-19B/D was also used by the U.S. Army, and it is possible that one of these versions was designated XM23E1 by the Army.


Photo: Northrop
OQ-19B/D (MQM-33A/B) (exact version unknown)




Beginning in 1960, the U.S. Army flight-tested the OQ-19E (Radioplane Model RP-92), which was essentially a new aircraft with a new circular-section fuselage, reinforced wings and a McCulloch O-150-4 turbocharged engine. Although the OQ-19E showed good performance, no production order followed, and the program was terminated in 1961.

The U.S. Navy also used the OQ-19 family of drones, designating them in the KD2R Quail series. The initial Navy production version was the KD2R-1, identical to the OQ-19A. The KD2R-2 was similar to the -1, except for a 28V radio and a stabilization system. The NAMTC (Naval Air Missile Test Center) tested modified stabilization systems in the KD2R-2E. The KD2R-3 was identical to the OQ-19D, and the XKD2R-4 was a development of the -3 except for engine and stabilization system. It is possible that the XKD2R-4 was similar to the OQ-19E.


Photo: Sun 'n Fun
KD2R-3 (OQ-19D, MQM-33B)




The KD2R-5 Shelduck was an improved model, which was later redesignated as MQM-36A.

Between 1950 and 1960, the OQ-19/KD2R was built in very large numbers, including almost 20000 OQ-19s of all versions for the USAF and the Army. The target was used for anti-aircraft gunnery and surface-to-air missile training. By 1963, only the OQ-19B/D versions were still in use by the Army, and the Navy had discarded all models except for the KD2R-5. In June that year, the variants still in service were redesignated as follows:

Old Designation New Designation
OQ-19B MQM-33A
OQ-19D MQM-33B
KD2R-5 MQM-36A

In 1973, Northrop introduced a new G-band command and control system for the MQM-33 targets. When equipped with this system, the MQM-33A and MQM-33B became the MQM-33C and MQM-33D, respectively. Production of the MQM-33C for the U.S. Army National Guard continued until the late 1980s, but it's no longer in service with the Army.


Photo: via Jane's
MQM-33C




In the 1980s, the OQ-19 drone family was generally referred to as BTT (Basic Training Target), and more than 73000 drones of all BTT versions (OQ-19, KD2R, MQM-33, MQM-36) were built. Another derivative of the MQM-33 was the MQM-57 Falconer surveillance drone.

Specifications
Note: Data given by several sources show slight variations. Figures given below may therefore be inaccurate!

Data for OQ-19D (MQM-33B):

Length 3.73 m (12 ft 3 in)
Wingspan 3.48 m (11 ft 5 in)
Height 0.79 m (2 ft 7 in)
Weight 145 kg (320 lb)
Speed 370 km/h (230 mph)
Ceiling 7620 m (25000 ft)
Endurance 60 min.
Range 320 km (200 miles)
Propulsion McCulloch O-100-1 piston engine; 54 kW (72 hp)

Main Sources
[1] Richard A. Botzum: "50 Years of Target Drone Aircraft", Northrop, 1985
[2] Kenneth Munson: "World Unmanned Aircraft", Jane's, 1988
[3] Kenneth Munson (ed.): "Jane's Unmanned Aerial Vehicles and Targets, Issue 15", Jane's, 2000
[4] R.T. Pretty, D.H.R. Archer (eds.): "Jane's Weapon Systems 1972-73", Jane's, 1973
[5] Norman J. Bowman: "The Handbook of Rockets and Guided Missiles", Perastadion Press, 1963
[6] "Characteristics Summary OQ-19D", U.S. Air Force, 1954 & 1960



Back to Current Designations Of U.S. Unmanned Military Aerospace Vehicles
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Re: I found a plane!

Post by Sertile »

Shoot, that picture didn't work. It was from a Tripod site, and I forgot their policies on hotlinking. Here's where I got them. They're kind of small, but if you view the images directly they show up a lot bigger.

They're down at the bottom:
http://hotharky.tripod.com/
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Re: I found a plane!

Post by mjames »

Good find man!
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