The IML Addax was a proposed multirole combat aircraft designed by the New Zealand IML Group. The aircraft came in 2 variants, the Addax 1 which would have been a ground attack aircraft and the Addax S which would have performed in

air superiority Aerial supremacy (also air superiority) is the degree to which a side in a conflict holds control of air power over opposing forces. There are levels of control of the air in aerial warfare. Control of the air is the aerial equivalent of c ...

roles. The project was cancelled after the team split up in 1982.

Development

The Aerospace Products Division of New Zealand company the IML Group was formed in 1980 around a private-venture project to design a fighter aircraft initially referred to as VAX. Designer David Williams began studies for the VAX fighter in the late 1960s. By the mid 1970s his automotive experience had led to a metal primary structure with plastic or composite skinning. This brought the VAX low production costs combined with a high load factor and potential STOL capability. Placing the engines in nacelles allowed for the installation of a variety of powerplants to meet the requirements of different buyers. Now at IML, the AX design crystallised around an integrated wing-body configuration with a broad, lifting fuselage to further maximise both aerodynamic efficiency and enclosed volume utilisation (EVU). Two variants, the AXA and AXM were offered in 1981, one as an agricultural utility type and the other for military COIN operation. AXM-1 evolved into AXM-2 and AXM-3, respectively subsonic and supersonic fighters with STOL capability. Following significant interest from various governments, the intent was to license the full development rights to a major contractor. In 1982 the project was re-named Addax, with AXM-2 becoming Addax-1 and AXM-3 becoming Addax-S. The Addax did not advance beyond the paper design stage, with no wind tunnel work or engineering evaluation carried out. The Addax resulted from prolonged study of existing combat aircraft to see how they would complete their mission with major components missing, and to make more efficient use of the so called "enclosed volume", the volume enclosed by the total length, wingspan and height of the aircraft. The Addax 1 was schemed as a twin-engined, single-seat

STOL A short takeoff and landing (STOL) aircraft is a conventional fixed-wing aircraft that has short runway requirements for takeoff and landing. Many STOL-designed aircraft also feature various arrangements for use on airstrips with harsh conditio ...

fighter/ground-attack aircraft. It was to have a swept wing with blown flaps with large

Leading-edge extension A leading-edge extension (LEX) is a small extension to an aircraft wing surface, forward of the leading edge. The primary reason for adding an extension is to improve the airflow at high angles of attack and low airspeeds, to improve handling an ...

s, and

twin tail A twin tail is a specific type of vertical stabilizer arrangement found on the empennage of some aircraft. Two vertical stabilizers—often smaller on their own than a single conventional tail would be—are mounted at the outside of the aircra ...

s, while the centre-section of the

fuselage The fuselage (; from the French ''fuselé'' "spindle-shaped") is an aircraft's main body section. It holds crew, passengers, or cargo. In single-engine aircraft, it will usually contain an engine as well, although in some amphibious aircraft t ...

, known as the SSA (Self Stabilized Aerofoil), was to act as a

lifting body A lifting body is a fixed-wing aircraft or spacecraft configuration in which the body itself produces lift. In contrast to a flying wing, which is a wing with minimal or no conventional fuselage, a lifting body can be thought of as a fuselage wi ...

, and was fitted with a large blown flap between the twin tail booms. Two

thrust vectoring Thrust vectoring, also known as thrust vector control (TVC), is the ability of an aircraft, rocket, or other vehicle to manipulate the direction of the thrust from its engine(s) or motor(s) to control the attitude or angular velocity of the v ...

turbofan The turbofan or fanjet is a type of airbreathing jet engine that is widely used in aircraft engine, aircraft propulsion. The word "turbofan" is a portmanteau of "turbine" and "fan": the ''turbo'' portion refers to a gas turbine engine which ac ...

engines, (either the Rolls-Royce Spey or General Electric TF34 were suggested) were mounted on the sides of the fuselage. A heavy cannon armament was fitted under the aircraft's nose, while a large internal weapons bay and external

hardpoints A hardpoint is an attachment location on a structural frame designed to transfer force and carry an external or internal load. The term is usually used to refer to the mounting points (more formally known as a weapon station or station) on th ...

could carry bombs and missiles. The pilot sat in an armoured cockpit under a bubble canopy. The concept was developed further into the Addax S, intended as a supersonic

fighter. The Addax S had a blended wing body configuration, with four, all-moving, tail surfaces in "X-configuration", and was powered by two

afterburning An afterburner (or reheat in British English) is an additional combustion component used on some jet engines, mostly those on military supersonic aircraft. Its purpose is to increase thrust, usually for supersonic flight, takeoff, and combat ...

turbofans of in underwing nacelles, while two or three small gas turbines located behind the cockpit supplied air to the flap-blowing system.

Variants

;AXA: Agricultural utility proposal. ;AXM-1: COIN proposal. ;Addax 1 (AXM-2):

Subsonic Subsonic may refer to: Motion through a medium * Any speed lower than the speed of sound within a sound-propagating medium * Subsonic aircraft, a flying machine that flies at air speeds lower than the speed of sound * Subsonic ammunition, a type o ...

ground attack proposal. ;Addax S (AXM-3): Supersonic air superiority proposal.

Specifications (Addax-1, Spey engines)

References

Citations

Bibliography

* * *{{cite magazine, url=https://www.flightglobal.com/pdfarchive/view/1982/1982%20-%200353.html, title=Kiwis Design a Tank-Killer for Farmers, magazine=

Flight International ''Flight International'' is a monthly magazine focused on aerospace. Published in the United Kingdom and founded in 1909 as "A Journal devoted to the Interests, Practice, and Progress of Aerial Locomotion and Transport", it is the world's oldes ...

, volume=121, issue=3797, date=13 February 1982, page=339, issn=0015-3710, archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20170812212608/https://www.flightglobal.com/pdfarchive/view/1982/1982%20-%200353.html, archivedate = 12 August 2017, url-status=dead, ref={{harvid, ''Flight International'' 13 February 1982

External links

IML Addax: New Zealand’s design for a superfighter
HushKit, 25 October 2016. Twinjets Cancelled aircraft projects STOL aircraft 1980s New Zealand aircraft New Zealand military aircraft