The Fleetwings BQ-2 was an early expendable

unmanned aerial vehicle An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), commonly known as a drone, is an aircraft without any human pilot, crew, or passengers on board. UAVs are a component of an unmanned aircraft system (UAS), which includes adding a ground-based controller ...

— referred to at the time as an " assault drone" — developed by

Fleetwings Fleetwings, later Kaiser-Fleetwings, was an American aircraft company of the 1930s and 1940s. History Fleetwings started in 1926 (under a different name) as a business based on a patented mechanical timing device, which proved particularly suit ...

during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

for use by the

United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

. Only a single example of the type was built; the aircraft was deemed too expensive for service and was cancelled after a brief flight testing career.

Development

Development of the BQ-2 began on July 10, 1942, under a program for the development of "aerial torpedoes" – unmanned

flying bomb A flying bomb is a manned or unmanned aerial vehicle or aircraft carrying a large explosive warhead, a precursor to contemporary cruise missiles. In contrast to a bomber aircraft, which is intended to release bombs and then return to its base for ...

s – that had been instigated in March of that year. Fleetwings was contracted to build a single XBQ-2 assault drone,Werrell 1985, p.30. powered by two Lycoming XO-435

horizontally opposed A flat engine is a piston engine where the cylinders are located on either side of a central crankshaft. Flat engines are also known as horizontally opposed engines, however this is distinct from the less common opposed-piston engine design, wh ...

piston engines, and fitted with a fixed landing gear in tricycle configuration; the landing gear was jettisonable for better aerodynamics. The BQ-2 was optionally piloted; a single-seat cockpit was installed for ferry and training flights; a fairing would replace the cockpit canopy on operational missions.Parsch 2005 The BQ-2 was intended to carry a

warhead A warhead is the forward section of a device that contains the explosive agent or toxic (biological, chemical, or nuclear) material that is delivered by a missile, rocket, torpedo, or bomb. Classification Types of warheads include: * Explosiv ...

over a range of at ; the aircraft would be destroyed in the act of striking the target. A single BQ-1 was to be constructed as well under the same contract.

Flight testing

The XO-435 engines were dropped from the design of the XBQ-2 before completion, being replaced by two Lycoming R-680

radial engine The radial engine is a reciprocating type internal combustion engine configuration in which the cylinders "radiate" outward from a central crankcase like the spokes of a wheel. It resembles a stylized star when viewed from the front, and is ca ...

s, with the aircraft being redesignated XBQ-2A.Andrade 1979, p.60. Following trials of the television-based

command guidance Command guidance is a type of missile guidance in which a ground station or aircraft relay signals to a guided missile via radio control or through a wire connecting the missile to the launcher and tell the missile where to steer to intercept its ...

system using a PQ-12

target drone A target drone 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 operationa ...

, the XBQ-2A flew in mid 1943; following flight trials, the design was determined to be too expensive for operational use, and the program was cancelled in December of that year.

Specifications (XBQ-2A)

References

;Notes ;Bibliography * * * {{US unmanned aircraft BQ-2 1940s United States bomber aircraft Unmanned aerial vehicles of the United States World War II guided missiles of the United States Cancelled military aircraft projects of the United States High-wing aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1943 Twin piston-engined tractor aircraft

Development

Flight testing

Specifications (XBQ-2A)

See also

References