A twin-boom aircraft has two longitudinal auxiliary spars, or "auxiliary booms" , that may contain ancillary components such as fuel tanks and/or provide a supporting structure for other items. Typically, twin tailbooms support the tail surfaces, although on some types such as the Rutan Model 72 Grizzly the booms run forward of the wing. The twin-boom configuration is distinct from twin-fuselage designs in that it retains a central fuselage.
Design The twin-boom configuration is distinct from the twin fuselage type in having a separate, short fuselage housing the pilot and payload. It has been adopted to resolve various design problems with the conventional empennage for aircraft in different roles.
Engine mounting For a single engine with a propeller in the pusher configuration or a jet engine, a conventional tail requires the propeller or exhaust to be moved far aft, requiring either a very long driveshaft or jet pipe and thus reducing propulsive efficiency. The twin-boom configuration allows a much shorter and more efficient installation. The Saab 21 was originally built as a pusher type and was later adapted to jet power as the 21R. In these designs, the tailplane (horizontal stabilizer) is typically high-mounted on twin tail fins to keep it clear of the engine wake. The Scaled Composites SpaceShipOne and SpaceShipTwo sub-orbital spaceplanes adopted twin booms with outboard tails or outboard horizontal stabilizers (OHS) to keep the airframe clear of the more widely-spreading rocket engine exhaust. Twin booms have also been adopted for twin-engined designs where the engine system includes bulky additional items such as turbochargers and heat exchangers, taking up a large volume of space. Examples include the Lockheed P-38 Lightning.
Field of view For a rear observation or gunnery position to have an unobstructed field of view, placing it at the rear of a conventional tail moves it so far aft that problems arise with the centre of mass and balancing the aircraft. Getting rid of the conventional empennage allows the rear position to be located more forward, resolving the balance problem. An example is provided by the Focke-Wulf Fw 189. However the twin booms and bridging tailplane still obstruct the field of view to some extent and guns in this position are especially restricted in firing to the side.
Transport access Loading and unloading large freight or cargo items such as vehicles and containers requires large access doors. In conventional designs these doors must be located at the nose or side of the fuselage, necessitating heavy reinforcement of the main structure. Side doors limit the length of an item to the width of the door and access may also be obstructed by engines or undercarriage. The twin-boom configuration allows a large door to be placed at the rear of the fuselage, free from obstruction by the tail assembly, as on the Armstrong Whitworth AW.660 Argosy. However access to the rear door remains limited, especially for trucks backing up to it, and a high-mounted conventional rear fuselage is often preferred.
Efficiency Twin booms typically offer greater drag than a conventional arrangement. They are also typically shallower than the fuselage and thus inherently less stiff, requiring additional reinforcement to maintain a rigid tail position in pitch. On the other hand, tip effects on the tailplane are avoided and it is supported at both ends, allowing it to be made smaller and lighter. Moreover, span loading along the wing can reduce the structural forces between the booms and thus overall weight. Some modern high-efficiency designs have twin booms which distribute the load along the wing span and/or stiffen the overall structure. Capable of flying non-stop round the world, the Rutan Voyager was a canard design with tractor propeller, in which the twin booms extended forwards to brace the foreplane as well as aft to support twin fins. The later Virgin Atlantic GlobalFlyer was jet propelled but with a similar range, still with large twin booms to accommodate the jet fuel in a lightweight span-loaded structure, but with a small conventional tail on each boom.
History
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