An envelope made wholly or partly of flexible impermeable material, and adapted to enclose an aircraft, there being an access opening in the envelope, the envelope including a re-usable airtight fastener, operable to close and seal the opening against ingress of air into the envelope, the envelope also having apertures through which wheels of an aircraft can protrude, together with sealing means for sealing said apertures to parts of the aircraft's undercarriage, and valve means controlling an outlet for air from the interior of the envelope whereby suction may be applied to and maintained within the envelope to collapse said envelope into closely fitting engagement with the aircraft.
An apparatus and method for improving spin recovery characteristics of aircraft involves attaching the horizontal tail of the aircraft to the aircraft such that a gap remains between the root end of each horizontal tail section and the fuselage or vertical tail of the aircraft. The gaps measure between about 15% and 30% of the tail semispan. The gaps may be covered by fairings which are released or opened should a spin occur.
Apparatus is disclosed for protecting the exterior of an aircraft which comprises a plurality of elastomeric foam members; each substantially in the form of a sheet for covering a respective portion of the exterior of the aircraft. The invention additionally comprises straps for removably attaching the foam members to their respective portions of the exterior of the aircraft and air spaces for preventing moisture from building up between the foam members and their respective portions of the exterior surface of the aircraft.
An evacuateable bag is provided for use as a casing about articles to be stored. The bag is of thin flexible material having one end thereof provided with a large opening through which articles are inserted. After the bag is filled, the large opening is closed and the bag will partially conform to the shape of the article. Oral evacuation means is provided to remove entrapped air from the bag and cause the bag to substantially completely collapse about the article and more closely conform to its shape. After evacuation, seal means is provided on the oral evacuation means to maintain the bag in the evacuated condition.
A hard, semi-rigid cover for protecting vehicle surfaces from damage by esure to the elements or chemical warfare agents is disclosed. A typical surface to be protected by a cover of the invention is a helicopter transparent canopy. Key features of the invention are a seal that forms around the cover perimeter where it fits snugly against the vehicle's outer surface and an air gap that exists between the inside surface of the cover and the vehicle's exterior surface. The cover is made of a moldable polymer material.
A protective device for outer airplane surfaces is provided which includes a laminate to envelop, for example a portion of an airplane wing having a water-impervious dense outer layer and a less dense inner layer to provide impact resistance to prevent damage to the airplane wing and which is easily removed prior to flying.
