chek Posted May 23, 2015 Share Posted May 23, 2015 I've just been watching the BBC program "Jets - When Britain Ruled the Skies" which dealt with the story of the DH Comet I's initial success, then downfall due to the then unrecognised problem of metal fatigue on pressurised fuselages. However the Comet 4 resolved those issues by means of thicker skins and rounded cut-outs in the fuselage structure. What I'm not sure about is why the tail surfaces remained unswept, when contemporaries (military and civilian) usually mated swept wings with swept tails. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Jennings Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 The Comet wasn't designed to be as fast as later jet transports. Just that simple. And when the Comet was being designed, little was known in the UK about swept wings. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
markmarples Posted May 24, 2015 Share Posted May 24, 2015 and dont forget until 3 years ago the comet was still in service as the Nimrod! so they cant of got it that badly wrong Quote Link to post Share on other sites
chek Posted May 24, 2015 Author Share Posted May 24, 2015 It was a very advanced early design as Jennings points out, with good longevity as Mark says. I can't help thinking that as the Comet 4 was a major improvement, a few more degrees of sweep on the wings and tail in conjunction with the Avons might have closed the gap on the 80-100 mph speed advantage that the B707 and DC-8 had. Still, it's a beautiful and classic design by any standard. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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