Unique Aircraft Design of the 1970s

The overall layout of the airframe provides some distinct benefits that would have equipped either company with plenty to feature in their marketing material. Chiefly among them is the completely unobstructed view from the cabin. Unlike the existing high and low-wing aircraft of the period, the unique pusher design places the cockpit well ahead of the wing, eliminating the traditional blind spots.

Boarding would have been more straightforward than other types that require climbing atop a wing or crouching beneath one. Additionally, the twin-boom tail layout effectively creates a protective boundary around the propeller, protecting ground personnel from the hazard it presents while running.

Of course, neither the Cessna nor the Beechcraft concept would come to fruition in the form of a production aircraft, and examining some of the drawbacks to the design reveals a possible explanation. By placing the passenger cabin well forward of the wing, the center of gravity (CG) would have varied substantially as passengers boarded and disembarked. With the engine behind the CG, it would have been challenging to prevent the aircraft from tipping back onto its tail when empty.

While moving the main gear aft would alleviate this tendency, doing so would also produce undesirable landing characteristics. With the main gear positioned well behind the aircraft’s center of rotation, a pilot who pitches up during the landing flare to arrest a high rate of descent would forcefully drive the main gear into the ground. This characteristic is prevalent in the Boeing 727 and has earned it a reputation for being more challenging to land consistently well than comparable types.

In short, the most successful aircraft designs tend to place the area with the most variation in weight, such as fuel tanks and passenger cabins, as close to the CG as possible. The farther forward or aft these areas are positioned, the more variation there is in the CG, and the more challenging it is to load the aircraft properly. It also becomes more difficult to ensure the aircraft is within safe balance limits for flight.

Of the three most serious explorations of the design, only Anderson Greenwood saw any success, and it was limited at that. A total of five of the company’s AG-14s were manufactured, and accounts from owners indicate that the design’s propensity to tip onto its tail when empty was indeed a challenge with which they have to contend from time to time. An AG-14 parked outside in a winter climate, for example, would soon assume this stance as heavy, wet snow accumulates on the horizontal stabilizer:

Whether this was a serious issue or an annoyance, Anderson Greenwood remains the only company that achieved certification and production of the two-seat, twin-boom, pusher design. Today, four examples remain active on the FAA registry.