As with most aircraft of the 1930s, the Lockheed Model 10’s design
anticipated operations from rough, unimproved surfaces. The tires were
large in proportion to the aircraft – 35 inches in diameter x 15 inches
wide – (by comparison, a typical pick-up truck tire is about 26x8)
and the massive landing gear legs were welded castings of chrome molybdenum
steel. Also, the aircraft’s conventional tailwheel landing gear arrangement
was less prone to nose-over accidents than today’s more prevalent tricycle
(nosewheel) configuration.
Perturbations in the landing surface of six inches or eight inches
would likely be uncomfortable and, if sharp, cause a blowout but should
not flip the aircraft or cause the gear to fail. A depression a foot
deep or more, on the other hand, would be a serious matter. |