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The Lockheed Model 33 Little Dipper, also known as Air Trooper, was an American single-seat monoplane, designed by John Thorp and built by Lockheed at Burbank, California. Flown in 1944 and offered to the Army as a "flying motorcycle", it was evaluated as a potential entry for Lockheed into the civilian market, but the program was cancelled before the second prototype was completed.

Model 33 Little Dipper
Role	Single-seat utility monoplane Type of aircraft
National origin	United States
Manufacturer	Lockheed
Designer	John Thorp
First flight	August 1944
Number built	1
Developed into	Thorp T-211

Design and development

The design of the Model 33 originated with a private venture for a two-seat light aircraft by John Thorp, a Lockheed engineer.[1] In April 1944, the company agreed to build the aircraft as the Lockheed Model 33.[1] Due to wartime restrictions on materials,[1] the company gained the interest of the United States Army in the aircraft as an "aerial flying motorcycle" to equip a "flying cavalry" under the name Air Trooper.[2] The Army, willing to entertain the concept, authorized Lockheed to build two prototypes of the Model 33.[1]

The Model 33 was of ordinary light-aircraft design, with a low-mounted cantilever monoplane wing and conventional empennage; powered by a 50 hp (37 kW) Franklin 2A4-49 engine, it was fitted with a fixed tricycle landing gear and proved to have STOL performance.[1]

Operational history

The Model 33 prototype first flew in August 1944.[1] The handling characteristics of the aircraft were considered satisfactory,[3] but the Army had lost interest in the concept,[1] despite the prototype demonstrating its performance by landing and taking off again in the courtyard of the Pentagon.[4] Lockheed had intended to market the type as an inexpensive light aircraft on the civilian market as the Little Dipper; with the military interest having evaporated, the prototype and the partially completed second aircraft were scrapped in January 1947 for tax reasons.[1]

Thorp, the aircraft's designer, would go on to develop the Thorp T-211 with lessons learned from the Little Dipper project.[5]

Specifications

Data from Francillion 1982[1]

General characteristics

• Crew: One (pilot)
• Length: 17 ft 6 in (5.33 m)
• Wingspan: 25 ft 0 in (7.62 m)
• Height: 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m)
• Wing area: 104 sq ft (9.7 m²)
• Empty weight: 425 lb (193 kg)
• Gross weight: 725 lb (329 kg)
• Powerplant: 1 × Franklin 2A4-49 two-cylinder air-cooled horizontally opposed piston engine, 50 hp (37 kW)

Performance

• Maximum speed: 100 mph (161 km/h, 87 kn)
• Cruise speed: 91 mph (146 km/h, 79 kn)
• Range: 210 mi (340 km, 180 nmi)
• Service ceiling: 16,000 ft (4,900 m)
• Rate of climb: 900 ft/min (4.6 m/s)
• Takeoff run: 100 feet (30 m); with clearance of 50-foot (15 m) obstacle, 400 feet (120 m).

See also

Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era

• Beecraft Wee Bee
• Mooney M-18 Mite
• Piper PA-8
• Ercoupe 415

References

Citations

Bibliography

External links

• Little Dipper project on YouTube

На других языках

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- [en] Lockheed Little Dipper

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[fr] Lockheed Little Dipper

Le Lockheed Little Dipper (aussi connu sous le nom d'Air Trooper) était un prototype de monoplan monoplace ultraléger conçu par Lockheed dans les années 1940.

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