Bubble canopy

Closeup of the front view of an F-16 Fighting Falcon showing the bubble canopy

A bubble canopy is a canopy made without bracing, which attempts to provide 360° vision to the pilot.

History

Bubble canopies have been in use since before World War II, with some experimental bubble canopy designs in the World War I era. The British had already developed the "Malcolm hood", which was a bulged canopy, but the British Miles M.20 was one of the first aircraft designs to feature a true bubble canopy. Although it never went into production the concept of the bubble canopy was utilised on other British aircraft, such as the Hawker Typhoon and Tempest. It was also fitted to the P-51 Mustang and P-47 Thunderbolt amongst others.^[1] A well-framed version of an all-around vision canopy was also used on the Mitsubishi A6M Zero Japanese naval fighter, and different designs with much less framing than the "Zero" had, were used on the Nakajima Ki-43 Oscar and Nakajima Ki-84 Frank Army fighter planes.

Purpose

The purpose of a bubble canopy is to give a pilot a much wider field-of-view than flush canopies, such as those seen on early models of the F4U, P-51 and P-47, which left a conspicuous blind spot behind the pilot that enemy pilots could take advantage of to sneak up on an aircraft.

The first combat aircraft had narrow fuselages, which often were not tall enough to block visibility to the rear. As planes became larger, heavier and faster, designs had to be made stronger, which often meant a taller rear fuselage, but designers tried to maintain the narrow fuselage for visibility.

However, as speed continued to increase, it became necessary to enclose cockpits – and this, in turn, streamlined aircraft so that they were faster. Increased "G-loading" during maneuvers forced pilots to wear tight, restrictive shoulder harnesses, and armor plating began to be installed to protect pilots from projectiles coming from behind.

Unfortunately, these changes denied a pilot the ability to twist around and look directly behind (known as "Checking Six," or looking at the "Six O'clock" position directly to the rear). Mirrors offered some help, but had a narrow field of view.

Prior to bubble canopies, some aircraft, such as the P-40 Warhawk, featured a hybrid flush canopy design, combining a narrow rear fuselage with a glass enclosure conforming to the shape of a full-width fuselage. This provided increased visibility while still allowing a pilot to keep the canopy closed for greater performance.

The Malcolm hood was another hybrid. While not offering as much visibility to the rear as the P-40 enjoyed, it allowed a pilot more visibility than a flush canopy would.

Examples

Restored Mitsubishi A6M Zero's well-framed clear-view canopy
Early-production Nakajima Ki-43 Oscar with bubble canopy (less framing than the Zero)
Miles M.20 showing the bubble canopy
F-86 Sabre in flight
View of a Su-30 MKI cockpit with IRST system
F-22 showing the frameless canopy and the 360° view for the pilot.
The twin bubble canopies of the Mil Mi-24 Hind helicopter.