Not all STOL airliner projects of the late 1960s and early 1970s were jets. In the late 1950s, Charles #Breguet worked on a four engine transport that not only utilized the propwash to "blow" the wing surface and its flaps, but had turboprop engines that were cross linked by a drive shaft to minimize impacts from engine failure. The ultimate development over a series of prototypes resulted in the #Breguet941. The increase in air travel in the 1960s meant that STOL airliners were one way of increasing airport capacity. Some airports even had STOL runways (LGA and DFW, for example). City center "STOLport" facilities were envisaged as helping offload airport traffic. McDonnell Aircraft obtained a license to market and build the aircraft for the US market as the McDonnell 188. Both #American #Airlines and #Eastern Air Lines tested the concept on a very limited basis particularly in the US Northeast corridor. The #McDonnell188 had four abreast seating with accommodation for 57 passengers using less than 1000 feet of runway to fly 500 miles. The fuselage was square section, so it was not pressurized. McDonnell did have plans for a pressurized version, the McDonnell 188E. The 188 was much smaller than the previous STOL airliner concepts I've posted, seating only 1/3 to 1/2 as many passengers as the previous designs I talked about. But it would have been ready for production before its jet STOL competitors. Passenger appeal wasn't great and the innovative cross shaft system added weight and maintenance complexity which in turn raised seat-mile costs. No orders resulted and the aircraft ended up with the French Air Force which withdrew them from use in 1974 due to the aircraft being maintenance intensive. Now I've got one more jet design and one more turboprop design to discuss, but keep in mind that these concepts were the focus of considerable effort by many companies at the same time the #BAe146 began development as the Hawker Siddeley HS.146. #avgeek #aviation #aircraft #planeporn #instaplane #McDonnellDouglas #instagramaviation #splendid_transport #instaaviation #aviationlovers #flight #AvgeekSchoolofKnowledge #AvGeekNation https://www.instagram.com/p/CfIijbmLRZ-/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=
