U.S.A - 1918 Curtiss Model HA-2

The Flawed Dunkirk Fighter

Sometimes a design looks better on paper than in real life. This was the case with the Curtiss HA-2 float plane. This bulbous aircraft seemed to have a lot of good things going for it. A powerful Liberty V-12 engine and plenty of firepower supplied by four 0.30 in (7.62 mm) machine guns. Stability issues and unfortunate accidents slowed development. By the time the kinks had been worked out of the design the war ended along with a need for the aircraft.

Curtiss Model HA-2 - 1918

The Curtiss HA (sometimes Dunkirk Fighter) was an American biplane seaplane designed by Captain B.L. Smith of the United States Marine Corps, and built by Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company.

The HA was a two-seat biplane with a central float and balancing floats on the wingtips. The fuselage was wood with a fabric covering. The plane was powered by a Liberty 12 engine in the nose. The prototype was ordered in December 1917, and its first flight was on 21 March 1918. During testing the aircraft proved very unstable, with an overly heavy tailplane. The aircraft was destroyed in a crash.

Two more prototypes were ordered, designated HA-1 and HA-2. the HA-1 was constructed of salvaged parts from the original, but its tailplane and radiator were redesigned, and its wings were moved further aft. The HA-1 caught fire during a flight. The HA-2 had a wider wingspan, and performed better, but as the war was almost over, no production order was received.

References

1. Curtiss HA. (2010, August 20). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 03:54, January 16, 2011, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Curtiss_HA&oldid=380018984
2. Angelucci, Enzo (1987). The American Fighter from 1917 to the present pp 116-117. New York: Orion Books.

USA - 1914 Curtiss Model F-4

Good morning, I hope you are having a great weekend. For Americans this weekend marks a solemn observance of Memorial Day, honoring all those who fell in war defending what they held precious. Common men who through their sacrifices became heroes we should never forget. May their memory always burn bright, and may we make a better world in their honor.

Glenn Curtiss Changes the Aviation World

Glenn Curtiss was one of the most influential of all American aircraft designers. He designed many of the aircraft used by the US Air Force. His research into amphibious aircraft was a game changer. It extended air power well beyond coastal regions and created flexibility of operational roles. Flying boats would be used as fighters, reconnaissance aircraft and cargo carriers during the Great War..

The Curtiss Model F-4 flying boat came about because The Daily Mail offered a large monetary prize for an aircraft with transoceanic range in 1914 prompting a collaboration between British and American air pioneers, resulting in the highly successful Curtiss Model H.

America Develops the Curtiss Model F-4

American Curtiss Model F-4 - 1913

The Curtiss Models F made up a family of early flying boats developed in the United States in the years leading up to World War I. Widely produced, Model Fs saw service with the United States Navy under the designations C-2 through C-5, later reclassified to AB-2 through AB-5. Several examples were exported to Russia, and the type was built under license in Italy

In configuration, these were biplane flying boats powered by a single engine mounted amongst the interplane struts and driving a pusher propeller. The pilot and a single passenger sat side-by-side in an open cockpit. The wing cellule was derived from the Model E land plane and was of two-bay, unstaggered, equal-span construction with large ailerons mounted on the interplane struts and extending past the span of the wings themselves. The earliest examples of this design were built and sold by Curtiss in 1912 without any designation applied to them; the Model F name only coming into use the following year. Confusingly, Curtiss also used the designation Model E to refer to some early machines in this family, although these were quite distinct from Curtiss land planes that bore this same designation and all but identical to the Model Fs.

Model Fs built from 1918 featured a revised, unequal-span wing that incorporated the ailerons into the upper wing and sponsons on the sides of the hull to improve the aircraft's handling in water. These were known as the Model MF (for Modernized-F), and years later as the Seagull in the post-war civil market.

The US Navy initially purchased four of these aircraft in addition to the Freak Boat (C-1/AB-1) that it had already obtained and which was retrofitted to approximately the same design as the others. One of these, the C-2 became the first aircraft to fly under automatic control on 30 August 1913 when fitted with a gyroscopic stabilizer designed by Elmer Sperry. The same aircraft (by now redesignated AB-2) then became the first aircraft to be launched by catapult from a warship while underway when it took off from USS North Carolina on 5 November 1915. Her sister, AB-3, became the first US heavier-than-air aircraft to see military action when launched from USS Birmingham on 25 April 1914 on a scouting mission over Veracruz during the United States Occupation of Veracruz.

The US Navy bought another eight aircraft before the end of 1916, but orders in quantity only came following the type's selection as the Navy's standard flying-boat trainer in April 1917. An initial batch of 144 of the basic F model were ordered, followed by 22 MFs in 1918. Another 80 MFs were produced under license by the Naval Aircraft Factory. A small number of Model Es and Fs were also purchased by the US Army.

Russia Imports the Curtiss Model F-4

Russian Curtiss Model F-4 - 1913

The Russian Navy purchased two batches of Model Fs in 1913-14 and operated them as part of the Black Sea and Baltic Sea fleets until they were replaced by the Model K shortly thereafter.

Italy Begins Producing the Curtiss Model F-4

Italian Curtiss Model F-4 - 1913

In Italy, the Curtiss representative Enea Bossi secured rights for local license-production of the Type F by the Zari brothers, who built eight examples at their workshop in Bovisia, near Milan. The first of these was demonstrated to the Italian Navy on Lake Como on 22 September 1914.

References

1. Curtiss Model F. (2010, October 12). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 12:59, November 1, 2010, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Curtiss_Model_F&oldid=390334667
2. The Great War Society Aircraft of the A E F Curtiss F Boat Retrieved 12:59, November 1, 2010, from http://www.worldwar1.com/dbc/curtissf.htm
3. Virtual Aircraft Museum Curtiss Model F 1913 Retrieved 12:59, November 1, 2010, from http://www.aviastar.org/air/usa/curtiss_model-f.php
4. Aerofiles Those Curtiss Boats Retrieved 12:59, November 1, 2010, from http://aerofiles.com/curtiss-boats.html
5. Bowers, Peter M. (1979). Curtiss Aircraft 1907-1947. London: Putnam. ISBN 0 370 10029 8.
6. Taylor, Michael J. H. (1989). Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation. London: Studio Editions. pp. 193, 278.
7. The Curtiss Flyleaf. Hammondsport, New York: Glenn H. Curtiss Museum of Local History. 1987.
8. World Aircraft Information Files. London: Bright Star Publishing. pp. File 891 Sheet 43.

USA - 1915 Curtiss JN-4

Jenny Taught a Generation of Americans How to Fly

When we think of the rise of flight in the United States the much loved Curtiss JN-4 is at the top of the list. It ws the primary trainer aircraft and had a lifespan which extended long after the Great War ended.

Curtiss JN4d Jenny - 1915

The Curtiss JN-4 "Jenny" is a series of biplane aircraft built by the Curtiss Aeroplane Company of Hammondsport, New York, later the Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company. The Curtiss JN series (the common nickname was derived from "JN") was produced as a training aircraft for the U.S. Army although the "Jenny" became the "backbone of American post-war aviation."

Curtiss combined the best features of the model J and model N trainers, built for the Army and Navy, and began producing the JN or "Jenny" series of aircraft in 1915. Curtiss only built a limited number of the JN-1 and JN-2 biplanes. The design was commissioned by Glenn Curtiss from Englishman Benjamin D. Thomas, formerly of the Sopwith Aviation Company.

The JN-2, was a poor performer, particularly when climbing, because of its excessive weight. The JN-2 was an equal-span biplane with ailerons controlled by a shoulder yoke located in the aft cockpit. The improved JN-3 incorporated unequal spans with ailerons only on the upper wings, controlled by a wheel. In addition, a foot bar was added to control the rudder.

The Curtiss JN-4 is possibly North America's most famous World War I aircraft. It was widely used during World War I to train beginning pilots. The Canadian version was the JN-4 (Can), also known as the "Canuck", and was built with a control stick instead of the Deperdussin control wheel used in the regular JN-4 model, as well as usually having a somewhat more rounded rudder outline than the American version. The U.S. version was called "Jenny". It was a twin-seat (student in front of instructor) dual control biplane. Its tractor prop and maneuverability made it ideal for initial pilot training with a 90 horsepower (67 kW) Curtiss OX-5 V8 engine giving a top speed of 75 miles per hour (121 km/h) and a service ceiling of 6,500 feet (2,000 m). The Curtiss factory in Buffalo, NY was the largest airplane factory in the world.

The British used the JN-4 (along with the Avro 504) for their primary World War I trainer; Canadian Aeroplanes Ltd. produced them in Canada. Many Royal Flying Corps pilots earned their wings on the JN-4, both in Ontario and in Texas.

Most of the 6,813 built were unarmed, although some had machine guns and bomb racks for advanced training. None saw active service. After World War I, hundreds were sold on the civilian market, one to Charles Lindbergh as his first aircraft. The plane's slow speed and stability made it ideal for stunt flying and aerobatic displays in the barnstorming era between the world wars, with the nearly-identical Standard J-1 aircraft often used alongside it. Some were still flying into the 1930s.

Triplane Madness During 1917

A Trio of Failed Triplanes

German Empire - 1917

Albatros Dr.I - 1917

The profile started life about a year ago as a line drawing of an Albatros DVa. I used a couple of photographs to guide me when I added the wings and struts. I also saw another color profile of the Dr.I which matched my best guess on the finish.

The Albatros Dr.I is one of those planes that should have been good but wasn't. During the First World War, aviation was in its infancy and a number of interesting designs were flown, but never accepted for service. The Albatros Dr.I was one of those designs.

After the appearance of the Sopwith Triplane, manufacturers in Germany were requested to give thought to the triplane format. Built to try to improve climb performance, the Albatros Dr I had a DVa fuselage and power plant, serial D 1573/17 with wings of equal cord and span. All three wings had ailerons connected by vertical steel struts.

British Commonwealth - 1917

Blackburn Triplane - 1917

The first time I saw the Blackburn Triplane was over a year ago in a small color picture. It got me started looking for references to do a better job of it. I fund some photos and a line drawing for guidance. This current version is a year old and it is ripe for a replacement.

The Triplane was the third unsuccessful attempt at an anti-Zeppelin fighter that involved Blackburn. The first was Blackburn's own Twin Blackburn and the second the AD Scout, Blackburn building two of the four machines of this type to an Air Department of the Admiralty design. In 1916, the Scout's designer, Harris Booth moved to Blackburn where he created a heavily-revised aircraft, the Triplane.

The layout of both Scout and Triplane was determined largely by the Admiralty requirement to carry a quick-firing, recoilless Davis gun that used 2 lb (1 kg) shells. At the time, there was no way of synchronizing such a weapon with the propeller, or of mounting it elsewhere than the fuselage, so a pusher configuration was necessary, the pilot sitting in a nacelle with the gun in its nose.

United States of America - 1917

Curtiss Model S-3 - 1917

Sometimes I get in too big of a hurry. That was the case with this profile. I had the line drawings, I had the photographs, I just did not have the patience to nail it. There are a lot of parts which need refinement. The process is a matter of creating te new, and reinventing the old.

The Model S was Curtiss' first attempt at a fast and maneuverable single-seat fighter. The first variant, S-1, had disappointing performance. In March 1917, new wings were attached to the S-1 fuselage and the project was redesignated S-2. In 1917, the S-3 became the first triplane in service in the United States. In 1918 and 1919, Curtiss experimented with seaplane versions of the S-3, designated S-4 and S-5. The S-6 was intended to be an improved S-3, but performance was poor and of the 12 ordered by the USASC, only 1 was delivered.