See also Short Brothers and Harland
1953 First flight of the Sherpa.
The Sherpa was a test bed for the aero-isoclinic wing, invented by Professor Geoffrey Hill
The Sherpa was designed by Mr. Keith-Lucas, chief designer of Short Bros, and Harland, Ltd., who was long an advocate of the aero-isoclinic wing form for high-speed, high-altitude manoeuvrability.
The aero-isoclinic wing was designed to overcome the problems of flexure in the wings of high-speed jet aircraft. This was intended to maintain a constant angle of incidence regardless of flexure; it was fitted with rotating tips comprising approximately one-fifth of the total wing area which could act as elevators or ailerons. These rotary tips were expected to prove greatly superior to the flap-type of control surface at transonic speeds and provide greater manoeuvrability at high altitudes.
See Also
Sources of Information
- Flight 20 November 1953.