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{|{{Infobox aircraft begin
|name = AITC-14
|image = File:VVA-14.PNG
|caption =
}}{{Infobox aircraft type
|type = Amphibious {{wp|Anti-submarine warfare|anti-submarine}} {{wp|seaplane}}
|national origin = [[Aztapamatlan]]
|manufacturer = [[Axinitlan|Axinitlan corporation]]
|designer = [[Micol Aketzalli]]
|first flight = 17 September 1977
|introduced =
|retired =
|status = In service
|primary user =
|more users =
|produced =
|number built = 221
|variants with their own articles =
}}
|}


The '''Aketzalli Axinitlan AITC-14''' ''Atl-Iohui Tlamanicuiztli'' ({{wp|Seaplane|Seajet}} {{wp|Ground-effect vehicle|Surface Glider}}) is an [[Aztapamatlan|Aztapaman]] {{wp|Anti-submarine warfare|anti-submarine}} aircraft in service with the [[Aztapaman Navy]]. It is notable for its unorthodox design created by the Aztapaman aeronautic engineer [[Micol Aketzalli]], which is primarily intended to operate within the {{wp|Ground effect (aerodynamics)|ground effect}} above land and especially over the surface of the ocean. While in the ground effect, the AITC-14 can reach speeds in excess of 750 kilometers per hour, cruise at 650 km/h and carry a payload of more than 20,000 kilograms. Unlike other Aztapaman {{wp|Ground-effect vehicle|surface glider}} designs, it is also capabale of conventional flight outside of the ground effect albeit with reduced speed and range with a service cieling of roughly 8,000 meters (26,000 ft). The main feature of surface gliders, and the principal advantage of the AITC-14 design created by Aketzalli is the capability to carry a heavy payload comparable to that of a ship at speeds competing with those of aircraft due to the aerodynamic advantages of traveling within the ground effect. The AITC-14 was the first military surface glider design and the first ground effect vehicle to reach wider success, demonstrating the viability of such a craft and the ambitious prosals of Micol Aketzalli for other uses to Axinitlan and other manufacturers.
==Development==
Micol Aketzalli was a strong proponent of the potential of surface glider vehicles since his graduation from [[Tzopilopan Polytechnic Institute]] in 1967, but was unable to secure any interest to help develop his concept. This changed in 1971 when Aketzalli made a new proposal with military applications to the [[Axinitlan|Axinitlan corporation]], a prominent Aztapaman aircraft manufacturer that had until that point focused on civilian designs but was looking to expand into the lucrative market for military contracts. The design would consist of a cental fuselage connected to two large pontoon structures on either side by large {{wp|airfoils}} inside of which would be mounted a series of downward facing turbofan engines to allow the craft to take off vertically, while forward propulsion would be allocated to just two jet engines mounted on top of fuselage at the rear of the craft. Thanks to additional lift and reduced drag experienced in the ground effect, this would be more that sufficient to propell the large craft at high speeds. The design would lack landing gear, using its pontoons to land on water, marsh, sand, snow or other soft ground surfaces, and utilize its {{wp|VTOL|vertical take-off}} capabilities to operate without a runway or the equivalent aquatic take-off run required by conventional seaplanes. The final weaponized model would be equipped with {{wp|Depth charge|depth charges}}, {{wp|Naval mine|mines}}, {{wp|Aerial torpedo|aircraft torpedoes}} and would also be capable of carrying a payload of conventional {{wp|aircraft bomb|aircraft bombs}}. To detect the advanced submarines that would be its primary targets, it is equipped with a {{wp|magnetic anomaly detector}}, deployable {{wp|Sonobuoy|sonobuoys}}, and an advaned trailing dipped {{wp|hydrophone}}.
The AITC-14 was considered an enormous gamble for Axinitlan due to the significan jump in the company's technological capabilities that its design would require, including computerized {{wp|fly-by-wire}} controls necessary to operate its VTOL system, the complex turbofan engines, and the general unorthodoxy of the revolutionary design which would require extensive development and testing. The chief of Axinitlan was also personally skeptical when he met Aketzalli, who revealed to him much more ambitious plans to develop much larger designs such as a truely colossal surface glider that could serve as airborne {{wp|aircraft carriers}} that could travel at three or four times the speed of contemporary warships. However, the design would go ahead after Aketzalli presented the design to representatives of the Aztapaman Navy aviation corps on his own initiative and was able to impress the officials, who expressed their interest for the design directly to Axinitlan. This convinced the manufacturer that a succesful development of the AITC-14 would be financially worthwhile.
Development began in 1972 and would last until the final prototype was presented to the Aztapaman Navy for trials in 1977. While the main engines for forward propulsion were simple modifications of Axinitlan's existing turbofan designs for jet airliners, difficulties were encountered almost immedeately with the VTOL turbofan engines which the Axinitlan engineers were not experienced in designing or building. Issues were also encountered with the pontoons, which were originally intended to be inflatable using the exhaust from the turbofan engines and used to optionally land on water while the original design would be equipped with landing gear. The landing gear would later be scrapped and the design would go ahead relying only on its pontoons for landing and take-off.
==Service History==

Latest revision as of 18:06, 20 November 2022

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