What Plane Was It?

[Midnight]

Does anyone know if the German plane (flying wing) that was going to be used to transport the Arc was a real plane, prototype, or whatever?

I watched "Raiders of the Lost Arc " over the weekend so it sparked my interest.

[AKS\/\/ulfe]

The one in the movie? That was a prop.
-SW

[ra]

It was a fake, not copied from anything real.  Sucks.

[SunKing]

I can only wish the BF-110 had a rear turret like that plane.

[Furious]

Kinda similar to this one.



from Luft '46 .  Actually a there are a few projects there that are similar.

[Gunslinger]

It did look alot like the designs from some of germany's secret prototypes.  I watched a really good show on DiscWings once about the secret aircraft of WWII.  All I can say after watching it was that it was a good thing we bombed the crap out of the axis.

[Octavius]

Spielberg talked about wanting a futuristic, high-tech (for the time) type of aircraft for that scene.  Not sure what kind of effect he was going for... maybe a 'technologically advanced type of nazi'.  If you have the DVD trilogy, you'll get a better explanation.

but no, it wasn't real

[Ripsnort]

Originally posted by Midnight
Does anyone know if the German plane (flying wing) that was going to be used to transport the Arc was a real plane, prototype, or whatever?

I watched "Raiders of the Lost Arc " over the weekend so it sparked my interest.

_____________________________ _________________
48 hours since I posted at AH-O-club... no shakes yet.

One day at a time.
_____________________________ _________________

So much for those 5-step programs

[Otto]

That was a 1930sh.. Movie Serial...  sort of... airplane.

[Stringer]

Originally posted by Ripsnort
______________________________________________
48 hours since I posted at AH-O-club... no shakes yet.

One day at a time.
_____________________________ _________________

So much for those 5-step programs

LOL, if you're going to try to make fun of someone, you really need to make sure you've got the right person.  Especially when you cross post from another board.

[majic]

Chuckle.

[rpm]

We did a "Guess The Plane" on that once at bop.us. Since Skuzzy STILL has vb code off I can't post the link. Here's what I had found at indygear.com:

"The futuristic Flying Wing was chosen by director Steven Spielberg to represent the ominous and advanced state of aeronautics in Hitler's Germany Production designer Norman Reynolds used a Northrop Corporation prototype of the Flying Wing and drawings by Ron Cobb to design for Raiders of the Lost Ark this strange plane that has no tail and no fuselage. The plane was built in England by Vickers Aircraft Company and painted at EMI Elstree Studios in London. In order to ship the elaborate prop to Tunisia for filming, it had to be disassembled and sent in parts, then rebuilt on location. In the film the Flying Wing is in Egypt (the Tunisian location) for the top secret mission of transporting the sacred Ark of the Covenant. But before the Ark is even aboard the plane, a series of dramatic events results in the fiery destruction of the Flying Wing."  

There are some cool plans, different prototypes (including a jet version) and models at indygear.com if you look.

[Elfie]

Originally posted by Gunslinger
It did look alot like the designs from some of germany's secret prototypes.  I watched a really good show on DiscWings once about the secret aircraft of WWII.  All I can say after watching it was that it was a good thing we bombed the crap out of the axis.

I saw that too, wonder how the airwar would have turned out if Germany would have had time to build that new Focke-Wulfe jet. Ta-192 or something like that. Wire guided missiles would have sucked bad for B-17 and B-24 crews.

And if Japan woulda had time to build that jet with the delta wing and forward canards.....Allies woulda been in trouble imo.


*edit* Also, saw the tail end of Iron Eagle 3 the other night, what plane was the bad guy flying at the end? Kinda resembles that Japanese jet.

[ra]

"I saw that too, wonder how the airwar would have turned out if Germany would have had time to build that new Focke-Wulfe jet."

I used to have 2 books on the futuristic German designs.  One was about fighters, the other about bombers.  It was full of neat drawings and artists renderings, but just about all of those designs never got past the basic drawing stage.  Most were never seriously considered for development, they were just concept drawings.  

The Germans had already developed the weapon they needed to turn the tide over fortress Germany:  the Me-262 with R4M's.  But they were too little too late.   The development of those other radical new aircraft designs was a waste of resources, IMHO.

ra

[AKS\/\/ulfe]

The Germans did build a flying wing - Horten 229, though, it never got past prototype stage.

Several versions flew under propellor power. While two versions flew with Jumo004B engines installed.

Next step would have been making it combat ready and testing it as an aerial gunnery platform. Then, production.

Just before the V13 got it's engines (they were going for something other than the Jumos I believe), the allies over ran where it was being developed.
-SW