Finally got some video of the
Tornado running on smooth water. The videos are short and not great as I shot them while driving the model. I propped down to slow the model, but after some adjustment of the CG it now runs stably at full throttle. I will prop back up later to see how the model handles a higher speed.
Right now the model's top speed is well over the original's scale speed of 48 knots. It is quite stable at scale speeds and even at almost twice scale speeds it is not in trouble. I can fully believe that the original
Tornado may have performed as most sources noted, although clearly it is a smooth water only craft. I also wonder if it would have achieved 48 knots with a single Argus engine. Some sources state that the
Tornado used two jets and given the low static thrust of the Argus engines at that time (500 pounds static) that makes more sense to me. Regardless my model proves that the basic idea was sound. Still, I would not like to have been the in-cockpit driver!
http://youtu.be/C65C7CPGcrc
http://youtu.be/QxzdlF5GPN0
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