Bell XV-15 TRRA
Over twenty years after they began work on the XV-3, Bell received a contract to begin work on their 13,000 lb Research Tilt Rotor aircraft, which was designated XV-15. The 42 ft fuselage housed side-by-side pilot seats. At each tip of the 35 ft span wings, a 1,550 shp Lycoming T53-LTC1K-4K turboshaft engine powered a 25 ft diameter three-bladed rotor. The engines and rotors tilted through 90° and were cross-linked in the event of engine failure. The rotors were semi-rigid stainless steel with a high twist and no flapping hinges. Control at low speeds was by cyclic and collective blade angle adjustments.
The first hover of the joint Army/NASA XV-15 was performed on 3 May 1977. The first aircraft was later tested extensively in the wind tunnel. Aircraft number two made its first hover on 23 April 1979. It made the first conversion to horizontal flight on 24 July 1979. In the next several years, the XV-15 conducted extensive tests, shipboard landings, and achieved a maximum speed (in a dive) of 397 mph. By 1986, it had made 1,500 conversions in 530 flight hours. The aircraft was flight tested aboard the USS Wasp in 1990 to evaluate shipboard compatibility issues of the tilt rotor concept.
Ship 2 is in the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum (Udvar-Hazy Center).
Source: AHS V/STOL Wheel
Overview
Data on design, manufacture and statusDesign authority: Bell Helicopter Textron, Inc.
Primary manufacturer: Bell Helicopter Textron, Inc.
Parent type: Bell XV-15
Aircraft status: No longer flying
Configuration
Primary flight and mechanical characteristicsVTOL type: Convertiplane
Compound type: N/A
Lift devices: 2 in Tilt rotor/prop configuration
Crew required: 2 in Side-by-side arrangement
Landing gear: Wheels (all retractable)
Key Characteristics
Data on key physical featuresAircraft Details
Data on aircraft configuration, weights, flight performance and equipmentReferences
References and sources usedNASA SP-2000-4517, Monographs in Aerospace History # 17, The NASA Histories Series, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Office of Policy and Plans, NASA History Division, Washington D.C., 2000
Website
Very comprehensive and detailed report including dimensions, powerplant and performance. Also covers the design and development history of earlier tilt rotor projects.
.jpg "Bell XV-15 lands on its final flight to the National Air and Space Museum - Photo courtesy of the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum by Chuck Moore (image reduced in size from original and straightened) (Image permission of National Air and Space Museum)")
