The Rayador

[The Rat]

Borrowing (stealing...) shamelessly from Alvis' reposting idea, here's the 727 Ekranoplan for those who might not have seen it on Silly Week.

The RAYADOR



Argentine Air Force General Julio Mucholoco will long be remembered as the man who not only dragged his country into the Second Falklands War, but also created one of the world's more unusual aircraft. That is, if you consider something flying no more than a few metres high to be an aircraft.



On a liaison trip to the U.S. he was interested to see thousands of aircraft, obsolete and/or derelict, at many airports in the southwest, and his thoughts immediately went to the cold, dry Patagonian Desert of his own country. If he could persuade some airlines to fly aircraft there he could exercise the many dreams he had entertained during his academy courses in aerodynamics. Back home he convinced the government of his needs, and arrangements were immediately made through diplomatic and business channels. Within weeks he had airframes at his disposal, and all the technical expertise he required. Waves of aircraft were flying in over the storage airfield at Macho Grande.



Many airlines were still using Boeing 727s, one of the most common aircraft on the planet, but one which was becoming increasingly unwelcome in the days of jet engines with many times the power but with much less noise. There seemed no future for a plane which had once crowded the skies. But Mucholoco was about to give them a new lease on life.



Within a few months the first bizarre creation emerged from the hastily built factory. In order to maintain secrecy the trials were conducted only at night, an almost unnecessary precaution as it turned out. The concept and execution was so unexpected that there were no suspicions raised among any intelligence agency but one.



It was christened the Rayador, the Argentine name for the bird known in English as the Black Skimmer. And a skimmer this truly was, a Boeing 727, now barely recognizable, converted into a troop carrying Ekranoplan. The horizontal tailplanes were remounted as canards, with the numbers 1 and 3 engines attached to the tips. The outer wing panels were mounted as the outsize tailplanes dictated by the unusual characteristics of Ekranoplan aerodynamics. Floats were attached to the remaining stubs, mounted on large fences which reduced the drag of the now low aspect ratio wings. Capable of transporting 100 fully equipped troops, they were designed to be used in the roughest ways imaginable, charging across heavy seas for take-off and landing, and forcing their way onto shingle beaches to disgorge their soldiers quickly. The powerful reverse thrust would be used to back off the beach and return rapidly for re-supply. For self defence air to air missiles were slung on pylons under the canards.



Details of the coup that installed Mucholoco as dictator of Argentina are still sketchy, but in his lust for conquest he made two literally fatal errors. His first was to discount Chilean interest in Argentine affairs, as if they had forgotten about their old rival. His second was to commit his entire armed forces to the operations against Britain, with nothing left for domestic security. His personal guard was composed of retired reservists with more appearance than substance, and this left him extremely vulnerable.

Just a few days before operations were to begin the British government was contacted by Chile, and the news was shocking. An Argentine invasion of the Falklands was about to take place, with a swiftness that was unheard of in the history of combat. Casting aside diplomacy and legalities, the Prime Minister of Great Britain made an equally swift decision - get rid of Mucholoco immediately.



As the first Rayadors were streaking across the south Atlantic, three SAS bricks crossed the border from Chile to Argentina. Within hours they were well on their way to Buenos Aires, just as the first engagements began between Argentine and British forces on the Falkland Islands. Two Rayadors were engaged and destroyed en route, but five managed to land safely. Any hope of a successful invasion was short-lived however, as it soon became obvious that there was nothing but confusion at headquarters. Orders and counter-orders monopolized communications, until any semblance of an organized operation fell apart. It was plain that Mucholoco was no longer in command, and probably dead.

At 10 Downing Street the door to the Prime Minister's office flew open without the customary knock. "We have received a message from our operatives in the field Sir!" The Prime Minister looked up inquiringly. The General permitted himself a satisfied grin as he read the decoded message in his hand, "Operation Log-off successful, Latin Pimp has left the game."

[The Rat]

Construction

This started life as the Airfix Boeing 727-200, but don't ask me what section of my brain contributed the original idea. It was conceived as an entry in the South American group build as a Chilean coastal transport, but I ran out of time on that due to the problem of finding decals for LAN Chile or, alternately, Ladeco. So after being stuck with a chopped up kit that was half finished, the Argentine option came to mind.

Rearranging the flying surfaces was done as told in the story, and the floats came from a 1/72nd Cessna 172. The wing fences were made from one of my favourite materials – the plastic closures that I get off bread bags. Easy to work with and very cheap! The missiles and pylons came from an ultra-cheap Apache helicopter that my son got in a birthday party loot bag, which also donated something that is now stuck on top as a radar housing.

The hull construction was made easier with the use of Evergreen V-groove sheet styrene. The front area of the wing box was removed to make it easier to attach the new portion without trying to bend it around curves. After some rough measurements a long section was cut out to form the hull. The centre groove was scored, the entire sheet bent slightly, and a piece of sprue glued to the inside to brace it. The same technique was used to form the sidewalls. Test fitting showed that getting it around the wing box at the rear would present difficulties, so the new hull was shortened and the wing box left in place, since the test fit showed that the hull was the same width anyway, and the rear would need to be made from balsa.

The balsa sections for the nose and rear hull were made from a 1" square piece, grooved out to fit fairly snugly in place, and then secured with Squadron putty. A small 'step' was left at the rear of the nose section. This helps flying boats break free from the water. Carving wasn't too difficult, a few minor disasters ensued, but it was soon ready for painting.

That was the disastrous part. The primer I used took weeks to dry, so after a few abortive attempts it was stripped, and I took the excellent advice of my fellow rodent from Alberta – use Krylon! Baz, you're a genius! I decided on an overall black scheme, and decals were salvaged from a Hobbycraft F-86. The intake trunks were done in Model Master Radome Tan, and the bare aluminum was Humbrol #56.

The meaning of the final sentence will be understood by anyone who was participating on ARC during those dark days.

[Sentinel Chicken]

Good stuff, brilliantly executed and a fun story to boot.

By the way, I'll never get over Macho Grande.  

[The Rat]

Good stuff, brilliantly executed and a fun story to boot.

By the way, I'll never get over Macho Grande.

Yeah, I figured people would get that reference.    

[Sentinel Chicken]

Yeah, well, at least I don't think I'm Ethel Merman.  

[John Howling Mouse]

Jumping up and down over here in Dreadmonton, Alberta!
Love it!

Could also see this being used by Bruce Wayne, too!

Sleek!

Man, you pulled this off with style!!

     

[Alvis 3.1]

Just don't call me Shirley!


Alvis 3.1

[The Rat]

Now where's Mairfrog, our ekranoplan expert? I really wanted him to see this.    

[dexter059]

Sweet, and a funny backstory