Katherine Stinson in the cockpit of her Curtiss-Stinson Special
The Curtiss-Stinson Special was built by the Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company, especially for Katherine Stinson. It was a single-place, single-engine, two-bay biplane intended for exhibition flights. The Special used the fuselage of a Model 10 Speed Scout fighter, new wings, and the tail surfaces of the JN-4 “Jenny.” It was powered by a water-cooled, normally-aspirated, 567.45-cubic-inch-displacement (9.299 liters) Curtiss OXX-6 single-overhead-camshaft (SOHC) 90° V-8 engine, rated at 100 horsepower at 1,400 r.p.m.
Stinson flew between North Island and the Presidio, a straight line distance at 461 miles (742 km).
A replica of this one-of-a-kind airplane is in the Alberta Aviation Museum, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
In 1915, Curtiss designed a twin-engined landplane bomber (the first twin-engined Curtiss landplane designed) based on its Curtiss Model H flying boat that had been designed for an attempt to fly across the Atlantic Ocean non-stop, and was in production for Britains’s Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS). The RNAS was interested in Curtiss’s design, and placed an order for a single prototype. As Curtiss’s Hammondsport and Buffalo, New York factories were busy building JN trainers and H-4 flying boats, it was decided to give responsibility for the new bomber, the C-1, to Curtiss’s new Canadian subsidiary, Canadian Aeroplanes Ltd., based at Toronto, giving rise to the name Curtiss Canada.
Curtiss C-1 Canada bomber built and first flown in Toronto, Canada. In the cockpit are chief engineer at Canadian Aeroplanes Ltd. F.G. Erickson (right) and pilot/engineer J.A.D. McCurdy.
The Canada used the uneven span biplane wings and 160 hp (119 kW) Curtiss V-X engines of the H-4 flying boat, but the rest of the design was new. The fuselage was a long nacelle attached to the lower wing, with two gunners sitting side-by-side in an open cockpit in the nose of the nacelle, with the pilot sitting alone in a separate cockpit at the rear of the nacelle, behind the wings. The tail surfaces, with had a single vertical fin, were carried on twin tailbooms extending from the rear of the engine nacelles, with a third, lower, tailboom from the rear of the fuselage nacelle. It had a conventional landing gear with twin, tandem mainwheels and a tailskid. An early form of autopilot, the Sperry stabilizer, was fitted to improve stability for bombing.
Construction of the prototype started in May 1915, and was first flown on 3 September 1915, powered by two 90 hp (67 kW) Curtiss OX-5 engines as the planned V-Xs were unavailable. The C-1 Canada was tested at Long Branch near Toronto, in the Lakeshore area of Etobicoke. Further orders were placed for 102 production aircraft for the RNAS, and another prototype and ten production aircraft for the Royal Flying Corps.
The first Curtiss Canada was delivered by ship to Britain in late 1915, being reassembled at Farnborough for the RFC and received RNAS serial 3700, flying again in January 1916. It was damaged in a crash in February, being rebuilt with modified wings. The wing overhang was now braced with struts instead of the original wires and the C-1 was the first aeroplane to fly with the new streamlined interplane wires (actually tie-rods), developed by the Royal Aircraft Factory, that came to be known as RAF Wires. When tested in April, its performance proved to be poor.
3700 at Farnborough
The adverse report led to the contract for the 100 RNAS aircraft (serials 9500-9599) was cancelled.
While the ten production aircraft for the RFC were delivered un-assembled to Farnborough by July 1916, the RFC had abandoned the Canada, and these aircraft were never re-assembled. The RNAS received one prototype, cancelling its orders as the greatly superior Handley Page O/100 was coming into service.
Powerplant: 2 × Curtiss OX-5 inline, 90 hp each Upper wingspan: 75 ft 10 in (23.11 m) Lower wingspan: 48 ft (15 m) Length: 33 ft 4 in (10.17 m) Height: 15 ft 6 in (4.72 m) Empty weight: 4,700 lb (2,132 kg) Gross weight: 6,300 lb (2,858 kg) Maximum speed: 90 mph (145 km/h; 78 kn) Range: 600 mi (521 nmi; 966 km) Crew: 3 Armament: 2× .303 in (7.7 mm) Lewis guns
The Curtiss CS (or Model 31) was a reconnaissance and torpedo bomber aircraft used by the United States Navy during the 1920s. It was a large single-engine biplane with single-bay unstaggered wings, the design conventional in all respects other than that the lower wing was of greater span than the upper. The CS was built to allow its undercarriage to be quickly and easily interchangeable between wheeled, tailskid undercarriage, and twin pontoons for operation from water. Provision for the carriage of a torpedo was semi-recessed into the underside of the fuselage, blended in behind an aerodynamic fairing. The pilot and gunner sat in tandem open cockpits, while accommodation inside the fuselage was provided for a third crewmember who served as bombardier and radio operator. This station was also provided with a dorsal hatch aft of the gunner’s position, and a ventral blister aft of the torpedo recess, which was used for aiming bombs or torpedoes.The aircraft was originally designed by the Navy Bureau of Aeronautics. Curtiss won the contract to produce this aircraft, which became the Curtiss CS in the 1922-23 system, standing for Curtiss Scout.
First flying in 1923, Curtiss produced six CS-1 prototypes for the Navy in 1923 powered by 530 hp (395 kW) Wright T-2 engine, which were mostly used for engine tests. Two examples of the improved CS-2 improved version with 600 hp (448 kW) Wright T-3 engine and more fuel were built the following year and set a number of world speed, distance, and endurance records for seaplanes in its class. They were delivered in April 1924 and served with Squadron VT-1. The CS-2 were one converted from CS-1 and two new-built aircraft by Curtiss.
The Navy ordered both the CS-1 and CS-2 into production, but when Curtiss tendered with a price of $32,000 per aircraft, Martin undercut them with a tender of $25,200 for each CS-1 and $19,863 for each CS-2 and won the contract. Curtiss refused to provide full sets of drawings and data to Martin, so Martin-built machines were in part reverse-engineered from a Curtiss-built CS-1 provided by the Navy. These aircraft entered service with squadrons VT-1, VT-2 and VS-1. By the time the Martin-produced aircraft were delivered in 1925–26, the Navy’s designation system had changed, and they entered service as the SC-1 (35 built) and SC-2 (40 built). Martin-built SC-2s suffered from poor handling characteristics and soon earned the nickname “Sea Cow”. The Martin T2M was an alternative designation for the Martin built SC series. Meanwhile, the Naval Aircraft Factory made extensive modifications to the two Curtiss CS-2s leading them to be re-designated CS-3. Curtiss modified a CS-2 with a geared engine, as the CS-3, which formed the basis of the Martin T3M. The Martin XSC-6 was a conversion of an SC-1 with a 730 hp (545 kW) Packard 1A-2500 engine.
Further development of the design was carried out by Martin as the T3M and T4M building 124, and eventually by Great Lakes as the TG.
The XSC-7 was a conversion of a CS-1 with a T-3A engine and increased gross weight.
In all. 83 were built.
In 1924, the CS-2 was used to break numerous world records for seaplanes in its class in three long-range flights. The first of these took place overnight between 22 and 23 June, when Lt Frank Wead and Lt John D. Price set five records – distance (963.123 mi, 1,544.753 km), duration (13 hours, 23 minutes, 15 seconds), speed over 500 km (73.41 mph, 117.74 km/h), speed over 1,000 km (74.27 mph, 119.12 km/h) and speed over 1,500 km (74.17 mph/118.96 km/h).[1] Between 11 and 12 July, the same pilots would break the distance and duration records again (994.19 mi/1,594.58 km over 14 hours, 53 minutes, 44 seconds).[1] On October 10, these same two records would be exceeded by Lt Andrew Crinkley and Lt Rossmore Lyon in a flight of 1,460 mi (2,342 km) in 20 hours, 28 minutes. While these would have been new world records, the flight was not officially timed, and was therefore not recognized as such.
On September 23, 1925, the U.S. Navy flew 23 Curtiss CS-1 floatplanes to Bay Shore Park on the Chesapeake Bay, 14 miles SE of Baltimore, Maryland, on a Friday with the intention of an air show demonstration before the 1925 Schneider Cup Race on Saturday, but that night gale-force winds broke three-inch mooring and anchor ropes on 17 of the biplanes and they were blown onto shore or dashed against seawalls, destroying seven and damaging ten. The next afternoon’s Baltimore Evening Sun had the headline “Plane Disaster in Harbor Called Hard Blow to Navy” and quoted General William “Billy” Mitchell, who called the loss of the CS-1s “staggering” and blamed it on Navy mismanagement of its aviation program.
By the middle of 1927 CS/ SC were still in use with VT-2B, which had a mix of the Martin produced SC-1s and SC-2s. In addition they were used by VN-3D8 training squadron at Pensacola, which operated 15 SC-1s and 15 SC-2s.
Variants:
Curtiss CS-1 Engine: 525hp Wright T-2 Crew: 3 6 built
Curtiss CS-2 Engine: Wright T-3 2 built
Martin SC-1 35 built
Martin SC-2 Engine: Wright T-3, 585 hp (436 kW) Wingspan: 56 ft 7 in (17.25 m) Wing area: 856 sq ft (79.5 sq.m) Length: 37 ft 9 in (11.51 m) Height: 14 ft 8 in (4.47 m) Empty weight: 5,007 lb (2,271 kg) Gross weight: 8,422 lb (3,820 kg) Maximum speed: 103 mph (166 km/h; 90 kn) at sea level Range: 1,018 mi (885 nmi; 1,638 km) Service ceiling: 8,000 ft (2,400 m) Time to 2,000 ft (610 m): 10 minutes Armament: 1 × rearward-firing machine gun in ring mount Bombload: 1 × 1,618 lb (734 kg) torpedo Crew: 3 40 built
Martin CS-3 CS-2 conversion Engine: geared Wright T-3
CS-4 / CS-5 Naval conversions
XSC-6 Martin SC-1 (A6835) Engine: 730hp Packard 1A-2500
SC-6 The second Martin SC-1 (A6824) Engine: Packard 1A-2500
A Curtiss N2C-2 at the National Museum of Naval Aviation
The Fledgling was designed by Theodore Paul Wright in response to a 1927 Navy requirement for a new primary trainer, and was selected after evaluation in competition with fourteen other submissions. The Fledgling was a conventional biplane design with two-bay, staggered wings of equal span braced with N-struts. The pilot and instructor sat in tandem, open cockpits, and the fixed tailskid undercarriage could be easily swapped for a large central pontoon and outrigger floats under the wings for seaplane training. The Navy ordered two batches of the Fledgling, each powered by different versions of the Wright Whirlwind engine, both of which were built under the Curtiss designation Model 48.
In 1928 Curtiss’ XN2C-1 Fledgling trainer was evaluated by the Navy and won the competition for a new primary trainer beating out 14 other competing designs. The original design was powered by the 165 horsepower Curtiss Challenger engine, but in ordering 31 of the aircraft, the Navy specified the 220 horsepower Wright Whirlwind engine in 30 of the aircraft, leaving one aircraft, the only one in naval service, to be powered by the unique Challenger engine that featured twin rows of six cylinders each.
Curtiss XN2C-1 floatplane
In the United States Navy service they were known as the N2C. The Navy ordered 31 N2C-1s and 20 N2C-2 versions of the airplane. Though trainers, they were not assigned to Naval Air Station (NAS) Pensacola, but instead were operated by Naval Reserve units around the country. By the late 1930s, surviving N2Cs were modified with tricycle landing gear and turned into radio-controlled drones used as targets for anti-aircraft gunners. One drone was used to execute an attack on a target ship, a precursor of today’s anti-ship missiles.
Curtiss N2C-2 NAF drone 1938-39
Believing the design to have commercial potential, Curtiss developed the Model 51 as a civil equivalent powered by the less powerful Curtiss Challenger engine. The company operated 109 of these aircraft in its own air taxi service, the Curtiss Flying Service during the 1930s. A number of these aircraft were experimentally fitted with the same Wright engines used in their military counterparts as the J-1 and J-2, but these were not produced in quantity.
Curtiss Fledgling J-2 (Model 51) Wright Whirlwind J-6 Series
Another experimental variant, the reduced-wingspan Fledgling Junior was produced to the extent of a single prototype only.
First flying in 1927, about 160 of all models were built.
A number of Model 51s were exported to foreign military services for evaluation: four to Canada and one to Czechoslovakia, but these did not lead to any purchases. Curtiss also delivered at least seven N2C-1 kits to Turkey in 1933, as part of an agreement to produce the Curtiss Hawk Model 35 under licence in Turkey. These N2C-1s were used as trainers and liaison aircraft by the Turkish Air Force until 1945. At least one N2C-1 is thought to have been given to Iran as a gift from the Turkish Air Force.
Brasil
Variants:
Model 48 XN2C-1 Navy prototypes (3 built) N2C-1 Navy version powered by Wright J-5 Whirlwind (31 built) N2C-2 Navy version powered by Wright J-6-7 Whirlwind (20 built)
Model 51 Fledgling commercial version with Curtiss Challenger engine (109 built) J-1 commercial version with Wright J-6-5 Whirlwind engine (four converted) J-2 commercial version with Wright J-6-7 Whirlwind engine built to N2C-2 standard (two converted)
Fledgling Junior reduced wingspan version (one built)
N2C-1 Engine: 1 × Wright J-5, 220 hp (160 kW) Propeller: 2-bladed fixed pitch propeller Wingspan: 39 ft 2 in (11.93 m) Wing area: 365 sq ft (33.9 sq.m) Length: 27 ft 4 in (8.33 m) Height: 10 ft 4 in (3.14 m) Empty weight: 2,135 lb (968 kg) Gross weight: 2,832 lb (1,285 kg) Maximum speed: 108.7 mph (175 km/h; 94 kn) Cruise speed: 87 mph (140 km/h; 76 kn) Range: 366 mi (318 nmi; 589 km) Service ceiling: 15,100 ft (4,600 m) Rate of climb: 695 ft/min (3.53 m/s) Crew: 2
Designed by Robert R. Osborn and Theodore Paul Wright, the Curtiss Model 54 Tanager was an aircraft constructed in 1929 as Curtiss’ entry in the Guggenheim Safe Aircraft Competition organized by Daniel Guggenheim. The purpose of this competition was to create a civilian aircraft with a specific speed range, which allowed at low speeds to avoid accidents with a stall into a tailspin.
In accordance with the requirements of the competition, the minimum safe speed was to be 35 mph (56 km / h) but the requirements also indicated a maximum speed of at least 110 mph (177 km / h). Other specifications included a take-off distance from the starting point to a height of 35 feet (10 meters), not exceeding 500 feet (152 meters), the ability to carry two people for three hours and a payload of at least 5 pounds per horsepower (2, 26 kg / hp).
First flying on 12 October 1929, the Model 54 was a conventional biplane design with a highly streamlined fuselage with a closed cockpit that contained a pilot and two passengers. The wings were fitted with a variety of high-lift devices, including automatic leading edge slots on the upper wing, flaps that extended along the entire span of the upper wing, and “floating” ailerons on the lower wing that, in the absence of pilot input, automatically adjusted themselves parallel to the airflow over the wing. To ensure the possibility of flying at minimum speed, the rear edges of both wings were fully occupied by flaps, and the front edges were fully occupied by Handley Page automatic slats. These devices added 33% and 50% to the total lift coefficient, respectively. The combination of these devices gave the Tanager a stall speed of just 31 mph (50 km/h) and allowed it to land in only 90 ft (27 m). The main landing gear had a large shock absorber designed to absorb loads during rough landings and a reinforced fuselage frame in the cabin.
Only the Tanager and the Handley Page Gugnunc passed the qualifying round of the competition, and ultimately, the Tanager was to beat its rival by only one point to claim the $100,000 (£20,000) prize, the Gugnunc failing to achieve a minimum speed below 38 mph. Even before the competition was decided, however, Handley Page was suing Curtiss for the unlicensed use of the leading-edge slot. Curtiss claimed they were using the slots experimentally and would apply for a license for any commercial use. Curtiss counter-sued Handley Page for infringements of six of their patents in the Handley Page machine. They also cited a ruling that the British machine was not permitted to be imported into the US.
Following the competition, the only Tanager built was destroyed in a fire when sparks from its engine set the grass alight.
Engine: 1 × Curtiss Challenger, 185 hp (138 kW) Wingspan: 43 ft 10 in (13.35 m) Wing area: 333 sq.ft (30.93 sq.m) Length: 26 ft 8 in (8.12 m) Height: 11 ft 4 in (3.45 m) Empty weight: 1,958 lb (888 kg) Gross weight: 2,841 lb (1,289 kg) Maximum speed: 112 mph (180 km/h) Cruise speed: 95 mph (153 km/h) Service ceiling: 12,500 ft (8,810 m) Rate of climb: 700 ft/min (3.6 m/s) Range: 535 miles (861 km) Crew: one pilot Capacity: two passengers
The Curtiss Twin JN (retrospectively called the Model 1B and also known as the JN-5) was an Experimental aircraft built by the Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company for the United States Army Air Service. It was a biplane, designed for observation missions.
Based on the successful Curtiss JN-4, the Twin JN used the same wing structure, but the wingspan was extended by enlarging the center section. Lateral control was achieved with the tail of a Curtiss R-4. The Twin JN was powered by a pair of 90 hp (67 kW) Curtiss OXX-2 engines located between the wings.
Eight were built in 1916, and one aircraft was evaluated by the United States Navy as a twin-float seaplane.
Engines: 2 × Curtiss OXX-2 water-cooled V-8, 90 hp (67 kW) each Wingspan: 52 ft 9⅜ in (16.08 m) Wing area: 450.3 ft2 (41.83 m2) Length: 29 ft 0 in (8.83 m) Height: 10 ft 8⅜ in (3.26 m) Empty weight: 2,030 lb (921 kg) Gross weight: 3,110 lb (1,411 kg) Maximum speed: 80 mph (129 km/h) Service ceiling: 11,000 ft (3,350 m) Crew: two
The 1916 Model 18 MF (Acronym was for “Modernized F”) was first powered by the 100hp Curtiss OXX-3. Later motors included 150hp K-6 and 400hp K-12.
Twenty-two were built; A2345-2350, A4403-4418, of which many were modified after WW1 by Cox-Klemin Co for civil use. Post-war production version became the Seagull.
Developed in 1925, the Curtiss Model 41 Lark biplane was based on the Curtiss Carrier Pigeon, a purpose-built aircraft for airmail operations. The Lark also had a longer-span lower wing, similar to the Carrier Pigeon. Some models were converted to floatplane configuration with a central mounted pontoon and wing-mounted floats.
It was a four-seater biplane of a mixed design, equipped with a Curtiss C-6 engine with a power of 160 hp. The biplane was made of welded tube with fabric covering. It was available with three engine choices, the Curtiss C-6, the Wright J-4 Whirlwind, and the Wright-Hisso E. All four wing panels were interchangeable, giving the aircraft its unusual longer lower wings.
Lark with J-4 motor Whirlwind
A 200 hp Wright J-4 variant was tested for the United States Navy with two floats. This installation proved superior in performance to the Curtiss engined model. This version eventually became the basis for the Curtiss Fledgling series of aircraft.
Patrica Airways operated a Lark for early bushplane operations. The aircraft flew with floats in warm weather, and skis in the winter. The aircraft was pressed into service as an early hearse once, with the cargo needing to be seated upside down in the open seat and secured with haywire.
Florida Airways operated a Curtiss Lark Miss Tallahassee on its CAM-10 U.S. airmail route between Miami and Atlanta. The aircraft was bought to take the place of two lost Stout 2-AT Pullman aircraft that could not operate out of the poorly prepared airstrips.
Colonial Air Transport owned the first Curtiss Lark C1052 which was one of the first aircraft to be registered using the new Underwriters Laboratories all-letter system (1921 to 1923). This Lark, a single place special mailplane, registered as N-AABC, was used on the CAM-1 U.S. airmail route.
Engine: 1 × Curtiss C-6, 160 hp (120 kW) Wingspan: 30 ft 7.5 in (9.335 m) Wing area: 264.3 sq ft (24.55 sq.m) Length: 22 ft 2.5 in (6.769 m) Height: 8 ft 11 in (2.72 m) Empty weight: 1,579 lb (716 kg) Gross weight: 2,708 lb (1,228 kg) Maximum speed: 99 kn; 183 km/h (114 mph) Cruise speed: 84 kn; 156 km/h (97 mph) Stall: 48 mph Range: 382 nmi; 708 km (440 mi) Ferry range: 330 nmi; 612 km (380 mi) Absolute ceiling: 13,100 ft Service ceiling: 12,500 ft (3,800 m) Rate of climb: 860 ft/min (4.4 m/s) Crew: one
Engine: Wright J-4 Whirlwind, 160 hp Wing span: 9.34 m Length: 6.77 m Height: 2.72 m Wing area: 24.55 sq.m Empty weight: 692 kg MTOW: 1228 kg Maximum speed: 188 km / h Cruising speed: 163 km / h Range: 611 km Rate of climb: 244 m / min Ceiling: 3993 m Crew: 1 Passengers: 3
The sole 1913 Curtiss A-3 was a two place, open cockpit biplane, becoming a USN patrol land/hydroplane. Powered by a pusher engine, it was later re-designated AH-3.
In 1920 the American oil millionaire S.Cox had two specialised racing monoplanes built for him by the Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company to take part in the Gordon Bennett Trophy race to be held in France in September 1920. The two aircraft, named Texas Wildcat and Cactus Kitten, were single-engined, braced, high-wing monoplanes powered by a 427 hp (318 kW) Curtiss C-12 inline piston engine. They had streamlined wooden fuselages with the pilot sitting in an enclosed cockpit towards the rear of the fuselage, under a forward sliding canopy. The wing, which had a special double camber airfoil section, was high-mounted, and was braced by struts to the mainwheels of the fixed conventional landing gear. The V-12 engine drove a two-bladed tractor propeller, and was cooled by radiators mounted on the side of the fuselage between the cockpit and the wings.
The Texas Wildcat was briefly tested in the United States before shipment, being fitted with a different wing with a more conventional airfoil for operation out of the confined Curtiss Field. First flying on July 25, it demonstrated a speed of 183 mph (295 km/h), with a speed of 215 mph (346 km/h) expected when fitted with the high speed racing wing. Both aircraft were then sent by ship to France, with no testing carried out on the high speed wing and Cactus Kitten unflown before sailing. Texas Wildcat was reassembled at the Morane-Saulnier factory with the high speed wing, but was found to be unstable at high speeds when flown by test pilot Roland Rohlfs. A set of biplane wings were therefore quickly designed and fitted to Texas Wildcat. Texas Wildcat was wrecked in a landing accident when being flown to Étampes prior to the race.
Although the Cactus Kitten was taken to France it remained unflown and was returned to the United States. It was then rebuilt with a set of short-span triplane wings modified from those of a Curtiss 18T, with the enclosed cockpit replaced by a more conventional open cockpit.
Cactus Kitten
Thus modified, it was entered into the 1921 Pulitzer Trophy Race, where, flown by Clarence Coombs at an average speed of 170.3 mph (274.1 km/h), it gained second place behind a Curtiss CR piloted by Bert Acosta. It was later sold to the United States Navy as a trainer for high-speed racing aircraft.
Engine: 1 × Curtiss C-12, 435 hp (324 kW) Wingspan: 20 ft (6.1 m) Wing area: 175 sq ft (16.3 m2) Length: 19 ft 3 in (5.87 m) Gross weight: 2,406 lb (1,091 kg) Maximum speed: 196 mph (315 km/h; 170 kn) Crew: one
All Aero 