Essential vocabulary:

1. obvious – явный, очевидный

2. latter- последний

3. offset torque– смещенный вращающий момент

4. tail boom– подъем хвостовой части

5. spinning- вращение

6. clutch– сцепление, фиксатор

7. to engage– занимать, задействовать

8. skids- салазки

9. wheeledlandinggear– колесное устройство для приземления (шасси)

10. cockpit- кабина

11. retractable- втягивающийся

12. accoutrement- снаряжение

13. to accomplish- выполнять

14. ambulance – скорая помощь, санитарный

15. intensive-care accessories – средства (оборудование) первой необходимости

16. gatherer- приемник

17. appropriate– подходящий, соответствующий, уместный

18. to derive- заимствовать

19. composite– сложная конструкция, устройство

20. improvement- улучшение

21. stick controller- штурвал

22. throttle- дроссель

23. to fold– сгибать, складывать, свертывать

24. to stow- укладываться

25. stub wing – короткое (обрубленное) крыло

26. todelay– задерживать, тормозить (развитие)

27. to impose – навязывать, налагать

28. to imped– сопротивляться, препятствовать

29. to assess- оценивать

30. to confer- присуждать

31. oildrillingrigs– оснащение для бурения нефтяных скважин

32. irreplaceable- незаменимый

I. Answer the following questions:

1. What is the main difference in the construction of an aircraft and a helicopter?

2. How did the first helicopters look like?

3. How are the modern helicopters equipped?

4. What is the modern usage of some helicopters?

5. What peculiarities in construction of a helicopter were derived from other composites?

6. What is the most important improvement in the operation of a helicopter?

7. What rotor configurations does a rotor design of a helicopter include?

8. Is a development of a helicopter design still going on or has just already stopped? Why?

II. Find the English equivalents of the following phrases in the text:

• явное различие в конструкции

• полностью оборудованный

• передавать энергию

• простота в системе контроля полета

• дополнительная сила (мощь)

• в целом

• взлет и посадка

• относительно трудный для управления (контроля)

• одно из наиболее важных усовершенствований

• оценка дополнительных преимуществ

• возможность вертикального полета

• оборудованный полным набором средств первой необходимости

• иксообразный винт

• популярность указывает

• дополнительная цена

• обыкновенный самолет (с крыльями)

III. Look at the words listed below. Find the odd word.

1. a) throttle b) engine c) rotor d) fuselage

2. a) advantage b) equipment c) accessory d) accoutrement

3. a) takeoff b) power c) landing d) flight

4. a) landing gear b) fuselage c) pilot d) cockpit

5. a) tail b) wing c) blade d) equipment

6. a) force b) function c) operation d) work

7. a) clutch b) wing c) rotor d) transmission

Civil aircraft

All nonmilitary planes are civil aircraft. These include private and business planes and commercial airliners.

Private aircraft are personal planes used for pleasure flying, often single-engine monoplanes with nonretractable landing gear. They can be very sophisticated and may include such variants as:

• “warbirds,” ex-military planes flown for reasons of nostalgia, ranging from primary trainers to large bombers;

• “homebuilts,” aircraft built from scratch or from kits by the owner and ranging from simple adaptations of Piper Cubs to high-speed, streamlined four-passenger transports;

• antiques and classics, restored older aircraft flown, like the warbirds, for reasons of affection and nostalgia;

• aerobatic planes, designed to be highly maneuverable and to perform in air shows.

Business aircraft are used to generate revenues for their owners and include everything from small single-engine aircraft used for pilot training or to transport small packages over short distances to four-engine executive jets that can span continents and oceans. Business planes are used by salespeople, prospectors, farmers, doctors, missionaries, and many others. Their primary purpose is to make the best use of top executives' time by freeing them from airline schedules and airport operations. They also serve as an executive perquisite and as a sophisticated inducement for potential customers. Other business aircraft include those used for agricultural operations, traffic reporting, forest-fire fighting, medical evacuation, pipeline surveillance, freight hauling, and many other applications. One unfortunate but rapidly expanding segment of the business aircraft population is that which employs aircraft illegally for transporting narcotics and other illicit drugs. A wide variety of similar aircraft are used for specialized purposes, like the investigation of thunderstorms, hurricane tracking, aerodynamic research and development, engine testing, high-altitude surveillance, advertising, and police work.

Commercial airliners are used to haul passengers and freight on a scheduled basis between selected airports.They range in size from single-engine freight carriers to the Boeing 747 and in speed from below 200 miles per hour to supersonic, in the case of the Anglo-French Concorde.