Video: Excellent Flying RC Model Of The WWII Era Miles M.39B

From 1943, the Miles M.39B Libellula

 I’ve been blessed with a lifetime of exposure to aircraft from all over the aviation landscape, but in my effort to generate interesting content for AirPigz, I continually come across airplanes I never knew existed.  For example, this British Miles M.39B Libellula.  It was preceded by the smaller single engine M.35 which also had a tandem wing configuration, but it had the forward wing on the fuselage top and the main wing at the bottom.  The M.39B as shown above was really a 5/8 scale proof of concept aircraft for what was meant to be a good sized bomber.  The M.35 first flew in 1942, and the M.39B made its first flight in 1943, but neither aircraft progressed beyond these two prototypes.

 While researching details about the airplane, I stumbled on to the UK video below from 2009 of a 29% sized (50 pound) RC model of the M.39B.  After some initial issues getting it set up properly, you can see in the video that the airplane appears very stable and in complete control... actually pretty impressive looking.  It’s also interesting to imagine a Long-Eze superimposed over the M.39B and realize that the aerodynamic basics are very similar.

 It’s just more cool stuff from the history of aviation, and from the work of modern aeromodelers.