The Globe KDG Snipe was an American target drone, built by the Globe Aircraft Corporation for use by the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

. The KDG, and its modified version, the KD3G Snipe, served between 1946 and the early 1950s.

Design and development

The KDG Snipe was a small, mid-winged target drone,Grossnick and Armstrong 1997, p.669. operated by

radio control Radio control (often abbreviated to RC) is the use of control signals transmitted by radio to remotely control a device. Examples of simple radio control systems are garage door openers and keyless entry systems for vehicles, in which a small ...

. The Snipe was designed to be launched by use of a

catapult A catapult is a ballistic device used to launch a projectile a great distance without the aid of gunpowder or other propellants – particularly various types of ancient and medieval siege engines. A catapult uses the sudden release of stored p ...

system; if the aircraft was not destroyed during its mission, it would deploy a parachute for recovery.Parsch 2003 The KDG was powered by a McCulloch 4300 two-stroke engine; an improved version, designated KD3G, was powered by a

Kiekhaefer O-45 The Righter/Kiekhaefer O-45 was an air-cooled, two-stroke aircraft engine of flat-twin configuration, used extensively for powering target drones in the late 1940s.

opposed piston engine An opposed-piston engine is a piston engine in which each cylinder has a piston at both ends, and no cylinder head. Petrol and diesel opposed-piston engines have been used mostly in large-scale applications such as ships, military tanks, and f ...

Operational history

The Snipe entered service with the U.S. Navy in 1946; the KDG had been retired from service by 1950. The improved KD3G model remained in service through the early 1950s.

Variants

;KDG-1 :Basic model with McCulloch 4300 engine. ;KDG-2 :KDG-1 with 24-volt electrical system. ;KD3G-1 :KDG-1 with Kiekhaefer O-45-35 engine.Grossnick and Armstrong 1997, p.670. ;KD3G-2 :KD3G-1 with 28-volt electrical system.

Specifications (KD3G-2)

References

Citations

Bibliography

* * {{USN drones KD1G 1940s United States special-purpose aircraft Single-engined tractor aircraft Mid-wing aircraft Target drones of the United States Aircraft first flown in 1946