So the reasons geodetic airframes were abandoned were because the skin would ripple at high airspeed? Why didn't they just use a metal skin over a fabric skin?
Were there any other reasons why geodetic airframes were abandoned?
It may not be
the reason and the story may well be apocryphal, but I always understood that when a Wellington was tested as a potential glider tug for D-Day, it worked well. However, when they measured the fuselage on its return ....... they found it to be considerably longer and somewhat slimmer than before the test.
Roger