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As World War II drew to a close, Boeing, realizing that its huge Wichita factory would be out of work at war's end, began working on a light personal airplane.
It nabbed the contract for what became the L-15 Scout despite the plane's third-place finish in a 1946 U.S. military liaison aircraft competition. Although the aircraft ultimately was not mass produced, Boeing's engineers created proposals for both military and civilian follow-ups.
This book tells for the first time the full story of the L-15--the competition and the competitors, the evolution of Boeing's entry into the prototype XL-15, the plane's specifications, the rivalry between the U.S. Army and Air Force, and the government's decision to adopt a different plane instead.
List of contents
Table of ContentsPreface
Introduction
Abbreviations
¿1.¿Post-World War II Outlook for Personal Aviation
¿2.¿Boeing Looks at a Light Personal Airplane
¿3.¿XL-15 Liaison Aircraft Competition
¿4.¿Boeing's Winning Entry
¿5.¿XL-15 Testing and Design Refinement
¿6.¿Performance
¿7.¿Airframe
¿8.¿Propulsion
¿9.¿Landing Gear
10.¿Systems
11.¿Weights
12.¿Ground Handling and Maintenance
13.¿Boeing Pilot Comments on the YL-15
14.¿USAF YL-15 Accelerated Service Test
15.¿The Army, the Air Force, and the L-15
16.¿Boeing's Projected Follow-on L-15 Versions
Appendix: L-15 Design Patent
Chapter Notes
Bibliography
Index
About the author
Mal Holcomb is retired from a 45-year engineering career in the general aviation industry specializing in aerodynamics, aircraft design, and flight testing and has written many technical papers as well as historical journal and magazine articles. He lives in Mountain Home, Arkansas.
Summary
Tells for the first time the full story of the L-15 - the competition and the competitors, how Boeing’s entry evolved into the prototype XL-15, the plane’s full specifications, the rivalry between the US Army and Air Force, and why the government adopted a different plane instead.
