Forgotten Tech From WW1

Early piston technology was somehow forgotten since the First World War. This tech reduced fuel consumption and increased horsepower through a wide range of aircraft altitudes.

Advancement Of Piston Engines

Through the First World War and beyond, piston engines advanced rapidly. These engines were becoming powerful and for a time, reliable as well.

While most of these design features continued in modern times, some didn’t, like the over-compressed engine.

How Over-Compressing Worked

Over-compressing was used on normally aspirated engines, or engines without a forced induction device like a turbo or supercharger. It allows a normally aspirated engine to produce its full-rated power from sea level up to a higher altitude.

Later on, this was replaced by a forced induction – either a turbo or supercharger, which is why over-compressed engines have been forgotten.

Why It Died Out

While the technology worked, it did die out eventually. Supercharged engines were introduced in the 1920s, and while over-compressed engines could maintain power up to 6,000 ft. supercharged engines could not only make far more power, they can maintain rated power at very high altitudes – up to 20,000 ft. or much higher.

Thus, it wasn’t long before nearly all military and civilian airliners were supercharged.