Page 15 - Bike Torque January 2022

The results are in …. world’s ugliest car and world’s worst airplane!
World’s Ugliest Car
Designed by Father Alfred Juliano (yes, a priest but also artistic and a bit of a visionary – a lot of people had
visions in those days) the Aurora prototype was built around a 1953 Buick. With no mechanical knowledge
Father Juliano built the car himself over a 4 year period. Whilst the aesthetics leave something to be
desired the car was innovative, and quite far ahead of its time:
- Fibreglass body to resist rust
- Built-in hydraulic jacks to facilitate maintenance
- Bubble shaped windscreen made of shatter proof resin to reduce head injuries
- No windscreen wipers because bubble screen would stay clear in the rain (like a motorcycle helmet
visor)
- Highly reinforced seats on pedestals that could rotate in case of an accident
- Front and rear seats fitted with seatbelts
- Roll cage, side impact bars, collapsible steering column, padded dashboard – all revolutionary ideas
at the time (remember Ralph Nader’s “Unsafe at any speed”?).

Unfortunately, Father Juliano had some bad luck, went bankrupt, got chucked out of the priesthood, and the
car rotted away until a restoration in the 1990s. The car cost about the same as a Cadillac Eldorado
Brougham so was unlikely to be a market success, but the Father’s ideas could have revolutionised car
design.
(Source: Cruzin, Issue 143, 2012)

World’ Worst Airplane
Here’s a strong contender for the world’s worst aircraft: the Bachem Ba 349 Natter. This was designed by
the Germans late in the second World War to be a missile-laden plywood rocketship built on the cheap by
former furniture makers working in home workshops. The aircraft, flown by minimally trained pilots who only
had to “fly” the craft during the last few seconds of flight, were to be launched en masse toward allied
bombers. After firing the two dozen high-explosive rockets carried in the airplane’s nose, the pilot would
bail out and then the airplane would crash. No complex landing manoeuvres, no airfields, no refuelling, no
maintenance. In 1939 and 1941, Werner von Braun pitched to the Luftwaffe’s Ministry of Aviation a concept
for a rocket-powered interceptor that would launch vertically, attack Allied bombers, then glide to a landing.
On both occasions the ministry responded with nein thanks. In mid 1944 with strategic supplies for the
German war effort extremely tight, the Ministry of Aviation called for designs for an inexpensive fighter to be
made of non-essential materials that, with the least expenditure of effort, would bring down enemy bombers
and defend important strategic targets. In August, Junkers, Heinkel, Messerschmitt and an engineer named
Bachem all submitted plans. Bachem’s concept for a rocket interceptor made of wood pieces nailed together
was laughed out of contention. But Bachem had connections and was able to pitch his idea directly to the
head of the Nazi SS, Heinrich Himmler. Himmler loved it and ordered 150. This forced the hand of the
Ministry of Aviation, and they reluctantly bought 50. So the Natter, German for viper, was born.

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