Special Features
The most unique aspect of the aircraft is its ability to perform Vertical Takeoff and Landing (VTOL). This ability allows the aircraft to be versatile and useful for busy and tight cities as well as remote areas where landing strips are unavailable. The VTOL manoeuver is possible by utilizing a tiltrotor design that implements some tilt-wing aspects as well. The thrust created by the propeller will be highly affected by the fixed section of the wing which reduces thrust. Tilting the other section of the wing allows for more efficient use of the propeller. Part of the wing would rotate with the engine to allow more free-flowing airflow from the propeller.
Secondly, the aircraft is also capable of amphibious landing which allows it to land on any water body or land anywhere in the world. This feature was considered to be important especially considering that most of the world is covered with water. This aircraft is intended to be used in rural areas and coasts of Canada. This aircraft is also intended to be used in island regions such as South East Asia where there are countless small islands habited and inhabited that are popular for tourist attractions. The amphibious design however also impacted the aircraft negatively. The aircraft's lower fuselage must be reinforced with a safety margin along with separated compartments for floatation. The separated watertight compartments are required as suggested by the FAA handbook in order to ensure that the aircraft can still float in case of emergencies [1]. These operating requirements add weight that would otherwise not have been required. This special feature also meant that the bottom of the hull must be shaped to be optimized for hydrodynamic which may not be efficient for aerodynamic efficiency. It especially added extra surface area which produces parasitic drag by the way that the fuselage is shaped and curved along with the abrupt step towards the center of gravity of the aircraft which can be seen in Figure 1. This feature is necessary in order for the aircraft to perform water take-off conventionally [2]. This step is also a big source of eddy currents in the aerodynamic aspect of the aircraft. It induces extra parasitic drag from the low pressure it creates as airflow separates at higher speed.
Figure 1, Abrupt breaks in the shape flow which form the "step".
In order to help with mobility, the aircraft's vertical stabilizer and rudder are split into two to form an H-tail configuration. This was deemed to be beneficial especially when the rudder is placed right behind the prop-wash of the aircraft as it adds mobility to the aircraft while it's manoeuvering on water [1]. This aircraft would also utilize a higher fraction of composite materials for its construction in order to save weight. This decision was considered to be necessary considering the size of the aircraft and the weight. The aircraft is considerably heavy for its size especially after considering the VTOL requirement. The VTOL requirement forces the use of two separate turbine engines which meant that more fuel is also needed to be stored in the aircraft.
References
[1] U.S Department of Transportation Federal Aviation Administration, “Seaplane, Skiplane, and Float/Ski Equipped Helicopter Operations Handbook,” Civil Aviation: Standards and Liabilities, 2004, doi: 10.4324/9781003123187-21.
[2] “GUDMUNDSSON-GENERAL AVIATION AIRCRAFT DESIGN APPENDIX C3-DESIGN OF SEAPLANES 1.” [Online]. Available: www.elsevier.com,