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WEDNESDAY, JULY 26, 2023 EAA.ORG/AIRVENTURE TOP STORY
PAGE 52
PHOTO BY BERNIE KOSZEWA
THE OFFICIAL NEWSPAPER OF EAA AIRVENTURE OSHKOSH
SUPER
GUPPY! PHOTO BY AJ RICCOBONO
there are dazzling, sleek, sharp aircraft. NASA’s Super Guppy is not among them. But you might not find anything in Oshkosh this week that’s as cool. Designed in the 1960s by Aero Spacelines Industries (ASI) and based on the Boeing C-97J Stratocruiser, the Super Guppy is one of the oddest-looking airplanes flying today, and NASA brought the only airworthy example to AirVenture.
“It’s probably the most interesting airplane I’ve ever flown,” NASA pilot Brett Pugsley said. “She flies how she looks. You put a control input in, and it takes a little while for her to respond. It’s got a little bit of a lag, which can lead to getting into some pilot-induced oscillations, definitely on the runway.” The Super Guppy is designed to carry oversized cargo, leading to wild dimensions for the fuselage and a crazy look, kind of like a mutant oversized guppy fish that had a really big dinner. The cargo hold is 111 feet, 6 inches long and has a maximum height of 25 feet, 6 inches and a 25-foot
diameter. Powered by four Allison T56 turboprop engines, the airplane has a maximum takeoff weight of 170,000 pounds and can carry a 48,000-pound payload, with a cruise speed of 290 mph at 25,000 feet. It has a hinged nose that opens 110 degrees, allowing for frontal cargo loading. Cargo is transported on pallets with a system of rails within the cargo hold. NASA’s Super Guppy — officially a Super Guppy Turbine (SGT) — was acquired from Airbus in 1997. Initially, Aero Spacelines built the original Pregnant Guppy based on the KC-97, which was used to carry the second stage of the Saturn
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rocket for the Apollo program. ASI followed up with the Super Guppy in 1965, which they owned and operated until 1979, when NASA purchased it. Four upgraded Super Guppys, SGTs, were built by ASI and purchased by Airbus to ferry A300 fuselage sections before they were retired and NASA acquired SGT No. 4. NASA’s Super Guppy is based in El Paso, Texas, and is used in support of the space program as well as by the Department of the Defense and government contractors to move aircraft and other large components. The Super Guppy is scheduled to be at AirVenture until Thursday morning.
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