The Curtiss-Wright KD2C Skeet is an American target drone produced by Curtiss-Wright for the United States Navy that began development in 1945. The KD2C-1 first flew in 1947; however, it was found unsatisfactory and the program was cancelled in 1949.
4-447: The KD2C was a target drone , powered by a pulsejet engine and intended for air-launch for use in fleet gunnery training. The KD2C-1 was powered by a Continental pulsejet engine, 14 inches (360 mm) in diameter; the KD2C-2 used a McDonnell J-9 or J-11 pulsejet of the same diameter. Control was provided by a radio command system, assisted by a gyrostabilizer . The KD2N could reach
8-499: A top speed of 335 miles per hour (539 km/h) and had an endurance of 30 minutes. Begun in August 1945, the first prototype KD2C flew for the first time in 1947. The Skeet's internally mounted pulsejet proved unsatisfactory, however, as it produced low speed and high fuel consumption in both wind tunnel and flight tests at the Navy's Missile Test Center at Point Mugu, California. As a result,
12-694: Is an unmanned aerial vehicle , generally remote controlled , usually used in the training of anti-aircraft crews. One of the earliest drones was the British DH.82 Queen Bee , a variant of the Tiger Moth trainer aircraft operational from 1935. Its name led to the present term "drone". In their simplest form, target drones often resemble radio-controlled model aircraft. More modern drones may use countermeasures , radar , and similar systems to mimic manned aircraft. More advanced drones are made from large, older missiles which have had their warheads removed. In
16-582: The KD2C program was cancelled in 1949, and the last of the produced aircraft were out of service by 1951. The U.S. Navy donated a surviving KD2C-2 to the National Air and Space Museum in 1971; it is on display in the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center . Data from General characteristics Performance Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era Related lists Target drone A target drone
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