AS-40 Aeroliner

AS 48 and AS 47 (click to enlarge).

AS 40 Airliner Overview

The AS 40 is a six-engined airliner developed by Megacity Aerospace Systems. It served extensively during the early fifties and sixties in a military transport role, but was primarily a civilian airliner.

The designation AS40 was used by MAS when developing the AS40 as a large, six engined type to complement its forthcoming Type 9 jet propelled flying wing design. It was intended to fulfil PanCon Airways and Stavrinel Air Lines requirement for a long-range high capacity passenger airliner. The AS-40E (E stands for experimental) emerged as a 124-passenger airliner with a fuselage of unusually wide cross-section for its day and two jet engines mounted at the base of its single tail fin.

The AS40 E first flew on June 7, 1954, and was used by MAS for test flights. An augmentation to allow it to land on short runways was the air brake mounted in the bulge containing the jet engines fuel tank. The type proved to be ahead of its time – the jet engines were complicated to maintain and uneconomical to operate. The sponsoring airlines decided to ask instead for a smaller and simpler derivative but before the definitive AS40 could enter service the outbreak of the Second civil insurgence in 1958 meant production was channelled to the ZMAF and ZMDF, in specific the newly formed parashock divisions, and the type was given the military designation A-54. Additional versions used by the ZMN were designated AV-33.

Production

The AS40 had a notable innovation in that its nose-wheel landing gear allowed it to introduce a fuselage of constant cross-section. This lent itself to easy stretching into the later AS50 and AS60. 1,163 AS-40s were built for the ZMI military forces between 1958 and 1972 and 2,329 were built for civilian use. MAS continued to develop the AS40 during the period until the cease of production on may 4th 1974.

Derivatives

• AS-48 Post 1962 passenger model. This civil model could carry up to 186 passengers.
• AS-47 Post 1962 freight model.

Specifications

• Designation: AS40/49/47/A-54/AV33
  
• Crew: 4
  
• Capacity: Up to 186 passengers
  
• Length: (48.6 m)
  
• Wingspan: (55.8 m)
  
• Height: (16.38 m)
  
• Empty: (23,640 kg)
  
• Loaded: (48,800 kg)
  
• Maximum takeoff: (51,050 kg)
  
• Powerplant: 4 × MAS 5050 reciprocating, (3,734 kW), 2 X MAS Dalk 40 Jet Turbine, (6,340 kW)
  

Performance

   * Maximum speed: 550 km/h
   * Cruising speed:  485 km/h
   * Range: 7,840 km
   * Service ceiling: 8,800 m