Daily Archives: April 17, 2024

17 April 1944

Aviation, , , , , , , , , , , ,
Lockheed C-69 Constellation. (Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company)

17 April 1944: The first production Lockheed C-69 Constellation, 43-10310, was delivered to the Air Transport Command at National Airport, Arlington, Virginia. The new transport carried the markings of Transcontinental and Western Airlines (T.W.A.), and was flown by that company’s owner, Howard Robard Hughes, Jr., and T.W.A.’s president, William John (“Jack”) Frye.

Lockheed C-69 Constellation 43-10310 ready to depart Lockheed Air Terminal, 17 April 1944. (Image scanned from Queen of the Skies, by Claude G. Luisada. Schiffer Publishing Ltd., Atglen, Pennsylvania, 2014. Chapter 5, Page 76, Fig. 5–1.)

The C-69 departed Lockheed Air Terminal, Burbank, California, at 3:56:45 a.m., Pacific War Time. The other crew members were Edward T. Bolton, Navigator; R. L. Proctor, Flight Engineer; and Charles L. Glover, Radio Operator. Also on board were 12 passengers representing the Air Corps, T.W.A. and Lockheed.¹

The Dayton Herald reported:

Constellation Sets Record; To Be in Dayton Thursday

(BULLETIN)

     WASHINGTON, April 17.—(UP)—The giant transport Constellation landed at Washington National Airport at 1:59 p.m. EWT today, setting a new trans-continental airplane speed record.

     The huge four-motor transport made the crossing from Burbank, Calif., in approximately 7 hours and three minutes on the basis of unofficial timing. Howard Hughes, who set the previous record, piloted the plane here for delivery to the Army.

     The Constellation, Transcontinental and Western Airline’s (TWA) super transport, which left Burbank, Calif., today for delivery to the air transport command at Washington, will fly to Wright Field Thursday afternoon, Material Command officials said here.

Considered the largest land-based cargo plane in the country, the “Constellation” took off from Lockheed Air Terminal at 5:56 a.m., (Dayton time) today with veteran pilot Howard Hughes and Jack Frye, TWA president, co-designers of the plane, as pilot and co-pilot, respectively. It passed over Butler Mo., 50 miles south of Kansas City, at 10:20 a.m. (Dayton time).

     Materiel Command officials said the plane was expected to make the trip in nine hours. They estimated she could fly from Los Angeles, Calif., to Honolulu in 12 hours.

     Also aboard were Lt. Col. Clarence Shoop, resident Material Command inspector at the Lockheed Burbank plant, 17 Lockheed and TWA technical experts and a civilian air expert.

     The ship originally was designed to carry 57 passengers, TWA officials said. The airline company commissioned Lockheed to build the plane two years ago.

     Hughes described the trip as a “routine delivery mission” and would not say whether he would attempt to break any speed records or whether the flight would be non-stop.

     “It all depends on the performance of the Connie,” he said.

     The 40-ton ship, which has a cruising speed of 300 miles an hour, took off with enough gasoline for a non-stop trip. Cargo and airline planes in general use now cruise at around 180 miles an hour. Her takeoff was clocked by Larry Therkelsen, National Aeronautical Association timekeeper and official timer of the national air races before the war.

     The Constellation is powered by four, 2,000-horsepower Wright air-cooled, radial engines, with 18 cylinders each, the Materiel Command said. It has three-bladed Hamilton Standard propellers and is equipped with a pressurized cabin for stratosphere flights. Its service ceiling is from 20,000 to 35,000 feet.

—The Dayton Herald, Vol. 65, No. 91, Monday, 17 April 1944, Page 1, Columns 5 and 6

Lockheed C-69-LO Constellation 43-10310, c/n 049-1962, was the first production airplane. It had been flown to Las Vegas, Nevada, on the previous day, where T.W.A. personnel applied the company’s livery to the Army Air Corps-owned airplane. Flown by Lieutenant Colonel C. A. Shoup, it then returned to Burbank to prepare for the transcontinental flight.

Lockheed C-69-LO Constellation 43-10310, the first production airplane. (Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company)

The plan called for Howard Hughes to fly as pilot-in-command for the first half of the flight, with Captain Frye in the right seat. They would switch positions at the half-way point. Both men were experienced four-engine pilots but the Constellation was new to them. In the previous week, they had each made two training flights in the C-69, with Hughes flying 2.9 hours and Frye, 3.4.

Lockheed C-69 Constellation 43-10310 (c/n 1962), the first production airplane. (Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company via Burbank in focus pub00013)

Initially, the transport followed T.W.A.’s normal transcontinental route. It had climbed to 15,000 feet (4,572 meters) by the time it reached Kingman, Arizona. The night sky was “CAVU”—ceiling and visibility unrestricted—and there was a bright last-quarter moon shining. Passing north of Winslow, Arizona, the C-69 left the T.W.A. route and turned north to pick up a Great Circle course.

Flying over northern New Mexico, they encountered turbulence and thunderclouds. Hughes climbed to 17,500 feet (5,334 meters) to remain clear of the clouds. Light ice began forming on the airplane as they crossed over Kansas. They climbed into colder, drier air at 18,500 feet (5,639 meters).

Lockheed C-69 Constellation 43-10310 (c/n 1962). (Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company via Burbank in focus pub00019)

Over the eastern part of the state, Jack Frye took over as pilot command and he and Hughes switched places in the cockpit. The C-69 crossed over Butler, Missouri, 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Kansas City, at 10:20 a.m., Central War Time (8:20 a.m., P.W.T.).

—ST. LOUIS STAR-TIMES, Vol. 58—No. 168, Monday Evening, 17 April 1944, Page 1, Columns 5 and 6

The Constellation crossed overhead Cincinnati, Ohio, at 11:48 a.m., C.W.T. Stormy weather delayed their descent until after crossing the Ohio River.

The Constellation flew overhead National Airport at 1:54 p.m., Eastern War Time (10:54 a.m., P.W.T.). They circled overhead while traffic cleared the runway, then landed four minutes later.

The Lockheed C-69 Constellation, 43-10310, flown by Howard Hughes and Jack Frye, lands at National Airport, Arlington, Virginia, at 1:58 p.m., E.W.T., 17 April 1944. Image edited. (Original image: UNLV Digital Collection whh 001297).

The C-69’s log book showed the Burbank to overhead National Airport flight as having taken 6 hours, 56 minutes, 15 seconds.² The Aircraft Yearbook for 1945 gives the record time as “6 hours, 57 minutes and 51 seconds.” ³

Because of wartime security concerns, the Air Corps would not allow Lockheed or TWA to release specific information about the flight, other than to say that it had broken the existing transcontinental speed record. The Great Circle distance from Lockheed Air Terminal to Washington National is 2,000 nautical miles (2,302 statute miles/3,705 kilometers). Assuming that the route was flown without any deviations, the average speed of the C-69 would have been 288 knots (331 miles per hour/533 kilometers per hour).

Lockheed C-69 Constellation 43-10310 taxis to parking at National Airport, 17 April 1944. (UNLV Digital Collections whh001301)
Lockheed C-69 Constellation 43-10310 taxis to parking at National Airport, 17 April 1944. (UNLV Digital Collections whh001302)
Lockheed C-69 Constellation 43-10310, wheels stop. National Airport, 17 April 1944. (LIFE Magazine)

At the time, the only airplanes which were larger than the C-69 were the prototype Douglas B-19 long range bomber and the Martin Mars flying boat. A large crowd watched the arrival of the new airplane. Dignitaries meeting the flight were General Henry H. (“Hap”) Arnold, Chief the U.S. Army Air Forces, and Secretary of Commerce Jesse H. Jones, with Oswald Ryan and Josh Lee of the Civil Aeronautics Board.

Secretary of Commerce Jesse Holman Jones, Howard Hughes and Jack Frye. “She performed perfectly marvelously,” said Frye. “She handled like a pursuit ship and flies like a dream.” (UNLV Digital Collections whh001313)
Flight crew and passengers of transcontinental flight. Howard Hughes is 8th from left.  (UNLV Digital Collection whh01324)
Lockheed C-69 Constellation 43-10310 at National Airport, Arlington, Virginia, 17 April 1944. (UNLV Digital Collections whh001317)

After the arrival ceremonies, the new Lockheed C-69 Constellation was handed over to the Air Corps Air Transport Command and taken to Wright Field, Dayton, Ohio, to begin its military flight tests.

Lockheed C-69 Constellation 43-10310 after rollout at Lockheed Burbank, August 1943. (Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company)

As stated above, 43-10310, c/n 1962, was the first production C-69 Constellation, following the XC-69 prototype, 43-10309, c/n 1961. It had been designed and built by the Lockheed Aircraft Corporation at Burbank, California, for Transcontinental and Western Airlines. The C-69 made its first flight in August 1943, and remained with Lockheed for manufacturer’s tests.

The Constellation was operated by a flight crew of five: two pilots, a navigator, flight engineer and radio operator. It could carry up to 81 passengers. The airplane was 95 feet, 1 3⁄16 inches (28.986 meters) long with a wingspan of 123 feet, 0 inches (37.490 meters), and overall height of 23 feet, 7⅞ inches (7.210 meters). It had an empty weight of 49,392 pounds (22,403.8 kilograms) and maximum takeoff weight of 86,250 pounds (39,122.3 kilograms).

Lockheed C-69 Constellation. (Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company)

The C-69 was powered by four air-cooled, supercharged, 3,347.662-cubic-inch-displacement (54.858 liter), Wright Aeronautical Division R3500–35 (Cyclone 18 711C18BA2) engines. Also known as the Duplex Cyclone, these were a two-row, 18-cylinder radial engines with a compression ratio of 6.85:1, which required 100/130-octane aviation gasoline. They were rated at 2,000 horsepower at 2,400 r.p.m., and 2,200 horsepower at 2,800 r.p.m. for takeoff (five minute limit), The 745C18BA2 was 6 feet, 4.26 inches (1.937 meters) long, 4 feet, 7.78 inches (1.417 meters) in diameter and weighed 2,707 pounds (1,228 kilograms). The engines drove 15 foot, 2 inch (4.623 meter) diameter, three-bladed Hamilton Standard Hydromatic 43E60 constant-speed propellers through a 0.4375:1 gear reduction. Wright produced 58 of these engines between August 1942 and October 1944.

The C-69 had a cruise speed of 313 miles per hour (504 kilometers per hour) and a range of 3,995 miles (6,429 kilometers). Its service ceiling was 25,300 feet (7,711 meters).

Lockheed C-69-1-LO Constellation 43-10314. (Lockheed Martin)

During the War, Lockheed Constellations were operated for the War Department by T.W.A. and Pan American Airways.

On 31 March 1947,  War Assets Administration sold 43-10310 for spare parts. It was salvaged to repair other C-69 and L-049 airplanes.

In 1952, Lockheed rebuilt -310 for Inter-National Airways, Inc., which leased it to Flying Tiger Line. It was assigned civil registration NC38936.

NC38936 was destroyed by fire after landing accident during training/certification flight at Burbank, 22 January 1953.

Lockheed Martin C-69-1-LO Constellation 43-10314. (Lockheed Martin)

The Los Angeles Times reported:

Fire Destroys Huge Plane on L.A. Test Hop

     A rebuilt, four-engine Constellation was destroyed by fire last night seconds after it landed at Lockheed Air Terminal. Ten persons aboard the aircraft escaped without injury.

     The huge craft, owned by Inter-Continental Airways, Inc., had made its second test landing for two Civil Aeronautics Authority inspectors when the main landing-gear section burst into flames which quickly spread to the fuselage and other parts of the ship, according to airport tower observers.

     The plane’s landing gear apparently failed to function properly as the ship touched down and caused the plane to skid on its belly with the propellers scraping the runway, according to the observers.

Changes in Plane

     The Constellation was the second in the C-69 series built by Lockheed Aircraft and during the last two years had undergone changes in construction prior to being chartered by Flying Tiger Lines from the Inter-Continental Airways, according to William Sosnow, purchasing agent for the latter company.

     Burbank and Lockheed Fire Departments fought the fire and kept the flames from spreading to nearby hangars and other aircraft. Fire officials said the plane, valued at $1,000,000, was a total loss.

Final Checkout

     Sosnow said the plane had received CAA partial approval Wednesday and that last night’s pilot training flight was to complete the inspection routine. It was to have flown to Oakland today for its first pay passengers, he said.

     Aboard the plane, Lockheed officials said, were CAA Inspectors M.H. Griffith and Sam Chandler, Senior Pilot C.G. Fredericks, Pilots Lawrence Raab, Sheldon Eichel, August Martin and Leo Gardner; Flight Engineers Frank Lutomski and Robert R. Jackson and Radioman Morris H. Sherry.

     All the crewmen were employed by Inter-Continental.

—Los Angeles Times, Vol. LXXI, Friday Morning, 23 January 1953, Part 1, Page 1, Column 3

The Bureau of Aircraft Accidents Archives, (BAAA, or B3A) data base states:

“The crew was engaged in a local test flight. On final approach, during the last segment, the crew inadvertently raised the gears. The four engine aircraft belly landed and slid for dozen yards before coming to rest in flames. While all five crew members were unhurt, the aircraft was lost.”

Lockheed C-69-1-LO Constellation 43-10314. (Lockheed Martin)

¹ LCOL Clarence A. Shoop USAAC. TWA: Lawrence J. Chiappino, Test Pilot; Leo Baron, Robert L. Loomis, pilot; Ed J. Minser, Chief Meteorologist; Orville R. Olson, chief clerk, Kansas City traffic department; Lee Spruill, Richard De Campo, Flight Engineer. Lockheed: Rudy L. Thoren, Chief Flight Test Engineer; Richard Stanton; Thomas Watkins. S.J. Solomon, Chairman, Airlines Committee for Aviation Policy

² TDiA checked with the National Aeronautic Association, which does not have any information about this flight.

³ The AIRCRAFT YEAR BOOK For 1945, Howard Mingos, Editor. Aeronautical Chamber of Commerce of America, Inc., Lanciar Publishers, Inc., New York. Chapter IV, Page 123.

© 2020, Bryan R. Swopes

Victoria Cross, Acting Squadron Leader John Dering Nettleton, Royal Air Force

Aviation, , , , , , , , ,

Squadron Leader John Dering Nettleton, V.C., Royal Air Force. (Imperial War Museum CH 5669)

Operation Margin: Just over a month after the first combat missions flown by the new Avro Lancaster B Mk.I very long range heavy bomber, Acting Squadron Squadron Leader John Dering Nettleton, RAF, commanding No. 44 (Rhodesia) Squadron, lead one of two formations of six Lancasters from RAF Waddington and RAF Woohall Spa, in Lincolnshire, England, on a very low altitude daylight penetration of enemy territory to attack the Maschinenfabrik Augsburg-Nürnberg AG (MAN) diesel engine factory at Augsburg, Bavaria, in the south of Germany. The factory was a source of diesel engines for Nazi Germany’s U-boat fleet. It was a target of high military importance, and the daylight attack was very dangerous.

Each Lancaster carried four 1,000 pound (454 kilogram) bombs. The two formations (the other was from No. 97 Squadron) crossed the English Channel at an altitude of just 50 feet (15 meters) in an effort to evade detection by enemy radar.

During the flight across France and into Germany, Nettleton’s flight was under almost constant attack by enemy fighters. Only two 44 Squadron Lancasters made it to the target and dropped their bombs, but one of those was almost immediately shot own. Only Nettleton’s bomber, Lancaster B. Mk.I R5508, KM B, survived to return to England.

The other flight, led by Squadron Leader John Sherwood, flew a different route and all six arrived at Augsburg. After bombing the factory, Sherwood’s Lancaster was hit by antiaircraft fire, caught fire, crashed and exploded. Only Sherwood survived. Another was hit but was able to drop its bombs on the target before crashing. Another Lanc was badly damaged, but dropped its bombs and made it away.

Of the twelve Lancasters that had set out, just five returned. All were damaged, one of them beyond repair.

Of the 85 airmen on the mission, 49 were listed as missing in action.

Seventeen 1,000 pound bombs had made direct hits on the factory, but only twelve detonated. Though the target suffered significant damage, production of U-boat engines continued.

Post-strike photograph of the MAN factory at Augsburg, Germany, 18 April 1942. (Royal Air Force)

Squadron Leader Nettleton was awarded the Victoria Cross. Flight Lieutenant David Jackson Penman, DFC, of No. 97 Squadron was awarded the Distinguished Service Order. Flt Lt Brian R. W. Hallows, Acting Flt Lt Charles S. C. McClure, Acting Flying Officer Ernest W. Rodley, Pilot Officer Patrick A. Deverill DFM, Plt Off Patrick A Dorehill, Plt Off Gilbert C. Hooey, Plt Off Edward L. Ifould, and Plt Off Desmond O. Sands were awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. Flight Sergeant Frank H. Harrison, Flt Sgt Brian G. Lough, Flt Sgt Leonard H. Mutter, Sergeant Charles F. Churchill, Sgt Thomas H. Goacher, Sgt Donald N. Huntley, Sgt Ronald P. Irons, Sgt Kenneth O. Mackay, Sgt Douglas L. Overton, and Sgt John T. Radcliffe were awarded the Distinguished Flying Medal.

“Lancaster B Mark I, L7578 ‘KM-B’, of No.97 Squadron RAF, piloted by Squadron Leader J D Nettleton of No. 44 Squadron RAF, flying at low-level over the Lincolnshire countryside during a Squadron practice for the low-level attack on the M.A.N. diesel engineering works at Augsburg, which took place on 17 April 1942. 97 Squadron lent L7578 temporarily to 44 Squadron, who repainted the aircraft with Nettleton’s unit code-letters. Nettleton actually flew R5508 on the operation, for the leadership of which he was awarded the Victoria Cross. L7578 did not participate in the raid and was returned to 97 Squadron at Woodhall Spa.” (Imperial War Museum HU 91969)
“The Acting Commanding Officer of No. 44 Squadron RAF, Squadron Leader J D Nettleton (sitting, second from left) and his crew, photographed on their return to Waddington, Lincolnshire, after leading the low-level daylight attack on the M.A.N. diesel engineering works at Augsburg on 17 April 1942. For his courage and leadership during the raid Nettleton was gazetted for the award of the Victoria Cross on 28 April. He later commanded No. 44 Squadron, but was killed on 13 July 1943 while returning from a raid on Turin.” Imperial War Museum HU 92988)

John Dering Nettleton was born 28 June 1917 at Nongoma, Zululand, Union of South Africa. He was the son of John Hennah Nettleton and Ethel Maud Barker Nettleton, and the grandson of Admiral Alfred Thomas Dering Nettleton, Royal Navy. Nettleton was educated at the Western Province Preparatory School, an Anglican Church school in Claremont, a suburb of Cape Town.

S.A.T.S General Botha at Simon’s Town Harbor, Western Cape, South Africa. (Leaves From My Logbook)

In 1930, at the age of 13, Nettleton went aboard the South African training ship, S.A.T.S. General Botha (formerly, H.M.S. Thames) as a cadet. After graduating three years later, he served as third officer of the 6,919 ton merchant ship, S.S. Mattawin.

Elder Dempster Lines’ S.S. Mattawin at Cape Town. (Andrey Nelogov)

He was appointed a midshipman, Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve (South African Division), 3 September 1935. He rose to the rank of lieutenant, RNVR.

Following his time at sea, Nettleton returned to Cape Town where he became an apprentice civil engineer.

Nettleton sailed with his mother, Mrs. Nettleton, from Durban, South Africa, aboard the Union-Castle Mail Steamship Company liner, S.S. Winchester Castle, arriving at Southampton, England, 11 April 1938.

The S.S. Winchester Castle at Cape Town, South Africa, circa 1938.

While in England, Nettleton joined the Royal Air Force, and began flight training at the No. 8 Elementary and Reserve Flying Training Squadron at Reading. He was given a Short Service Commission as a Pilot Officer in the Royal Air Force, 14 December 1938 ¹ and reported to No. 12 FTS at RAF Grantham in Lincolnshire, but within two weeks was reassigned to No. 11 FTS at RAF Shawbury, in Shropshire. He graduated 22 July 1939.

Nettleton was appointed an Acting Pilot Officer (41452) on probation, with effect 3 September 1939—the same day that the United Kingdom and France declared war on Germany, following that country’s invasion of Poland.² He was assigned to No. 207 Squadron, an operational training unit for the Fairey Battle, a single-engine light bomber powered by a Rolls-Royce Merlin engine, based at RAF Cottesmore in the East Midlands of England.

Fairey Battle (Aircraft of the Fighting Powers Vol.I)

Pilot Officer Nettleton was soon reassigned to No. 98 Squadron at RAF Hucknall, Nottinghamshire, which was also equipped with the Battle. In November 1939, he returned to Cottesmore for transition training to the Handley Page HP.52 Hamden twin-engine medium bomber, with No. 185 Squadron.

Handley Page HP.52 Hamden (Tangmere Military Aviation Museum)

Pilot Officer Nettleton was promoted to the rank of Flying Officer, 3 September 1940.³

This Day in Aviation was unable to confirm the date of Nettleton’s promotion to Flight Lieutenant, but Wikipedia states that it occurred in February 1941.

On 26 June 1941, Flight Lieutenant Nettleton joined No. 44 (Rhodesia) Squadron at RAF Waddington in Lincolnshire. This squadron was the first to completely convert to the Avro Lancaster, with the first “Lanc” arriving on Christmas Eve, 24 December 1941.

Flight Lieutenant Nettleton was promoted to Acting Squadron Leader, 17 July 1941.

Flight Officer Nettleton was promoted to Flight Lieutenant (War Substantive), 3 September 1941.⁴

Squadron Leader Nettleton, Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve, was Mentioned in Despatches, 24 September 1941.⁵

On 11 June 1942, Squadron Leader (acting) J.D. Nettleton, VC, was Mentioned in Despatches.⁶

Squadron Leader John Dering Nettleton married Section Officer Betty Isobel Havelock, Women’s Auxiliary Air Force, of Paignton, Devon, at Lincoln, Lincolnshire, England, 1 July 1942. They would have one son, John Dering Nettleton, born 19 February 1944.

Squadron Leader Nettleton was next posted to No. 44 Conversion Flight. In November 1942, he was assigned to No. 1661 Heavy Conversion Unit, also at RAF Waddington.

Squadron Leader Nettleton was promoted to Wing Commander (acting), 4 January 1943, and returned to combat operations with No. 44 Squadron.

Squadron Leader Nettleton was promoted to the rank of Wing Commander (War Substantive), Reserve of Air Force Officers, 2 June 1943.⁷

At 10:23 p.m., 12 July 1943, Wing Commander Nettleton took off from RAF Dunholm Lodge, Lincolnshire, in Lancaster KM Z (ED331), as on 295 Lancasters sent to attack Turin, Italy. ED331 never returned. The bodies of Nettleton and his crew, Flt Lt Dennis Cramp, Flt Lt Ian Milne Wood, Fg Off Fred irving Calcutt, Fg Off Kenneth Stanly Juniper, Fg Off Arthur Ronald Ludlow, Plt Off John Edward Money, and Flt Sgt Dennis Ernest Arthur Seager, were never recovered.

Wing Commander Nettleton was just 26 years old. His name is listed on Panel 118 of the Runnymede Memorial at Englefield Green, Surrey.

Avro Lancaster B Mk.I R5727 over Montreal, Canada, 1942. (Royal Air Force)

The Avro Lancaster made its first flight 9 January 1941, and flew its first combat mission (with No. 44 Squadron) on 3 March 1942. The Lancaster B Mk.I was operated by a crew of seven: pilot, flight engineer, navigator/bombardier, radio operator and three gunners.  It was a large, all-metal, mid-wing monoplane with retractable landing gear. It was 68 feet, 11 inches (21.001 meters) long with a wingspan of 102 feet, 0 inches (31.090) meters and an overall height of 19 feet, 6 inches (5.944 meters). The Mk.I had an empty weight of 36,900 pounds (16,738 kilograms) and its maximum takeoff weight was 68,000 pounds (30,909 kilograms)

Early production Lancasters were equipped with four liquid-cooled, supercharged, 1,648.96-cubic-inch-displacement (27.01 liter), Roll-Royce Merlin XX single overhead camshaft (SOHC) 60° V-12 engines, which were rated at 1,480 horsepower at 3,000 r.p.m. to 6,000 feet (1,829 meters). The Merlins drove three-bladed, 13 feet, 0 inch (3.962 meters), de Havilland Hydromatic quick-feathering, constant-speed airscrews (propellers), through a 0.420:1 gear reduction.

The Mark I had a maximum economic cruise speed of 267 miles per hour (430 kilometers per hour) at 20,800 feet (6,340 meters), and a maximum speed of 286 miles per hour (460 kilometers per hour) at 20,000 feet (6,096 meters) at a gross weight of 45,300 pounds (20,548 kilograms). Its service ceiling was 20,000 feet (6,096 meters) at 64,500 pounds (29,257 kilograms). It had a range of  2,530 miles (4,072 kilometers) with a 7,000 pound (3,175 kilogram) bomb load.

The Lancaster was designed to carry a 14,000 pound (6,350 kilogram) bomb load, but modified bombers carried the 22,000 pound (9,979 kilogram) Grand Slam bomb.

For defense, the standard Lancaster had eight Browning .303-caliber Mark II machine guns in three power-operated turrets, with a total of 14,000 rounds of ammunition.

According to the Royal Air Force, “Almost half all Lancasters delivered during the war (3,345 of 7,373) were lost on operations with the loss of over 21,000 crew members.”

Only two airworthy Avro Lancasters are in existence.

Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum’s Victory Aircraft-built Lancaster B Mk.X, FM213, civil registration C-GVRA, shown with markings KB726, VR A. (Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

¹ National Library of Scotland, UK, British Air Force Lists 1919–1945

² The London Gazette, Issue 34705,10 October 1939, Page 6796

³ The London Gazette, Supplement 34989, 12 November 1940, Page 6494

⁴ The London Gazette, Number 35309, 14 October 1941, Page 5968

⁵ The London Gazette, Number 35284, 24 September 1941, Page 5572

⁶ The London Gazette, Number 35586, 11 June 1942, Page 2519

⁷ The London Gazette, Supplement 36113, 30 July 1943, Page 3443

© 2023, Bryan R. Swopes

17 April 1941

Aviation, , , , , , ,
Igor Sikorsky piloting his pontoon-equipped VS-300, 17 April 1941. (Sikorsky Historical Archives)
Igor Sikorsky piloting his pontoon-equipped VS-300, 17 April 1941. (Sikorsky Historical Archives)

17 April 1941: Igor Sikorsky’s Vought-Sikorsky VS-300 helicopter went through various rotor configurations during development as he searched for a combination that would give stability, anti-torque control, as well as lateral and yaw control. By April 1941, the VS-300 was configured with a single main rotor for lift and three smaller tail rotors to provide anti-torque and directional control.

This was not the ultimate solution, but he had the aircraft fitted with three inflatable pontoons and on 17 April, made a successful water landing, demonstrating that the helicopter could be a practical amphibious aircraft. During a lecture to the Rotating Wing Section of the Tenth Annual Meeting of the Institute of Aeronautical Sciences, Igor Sikorsky gave a brief description of the flight:

Igor Ivanovich Sikorsky 1888–1970. Sikorsky Archives)
Igor Ivanovich Sikorsky (Sikorsky Archives)

“On April 17 the helicopter, mounted on rubber floats, was repeatedly taken off from water and landed on water and then landed on ground, demonstrating for the first time a direct lift aircraft with excellent amphibian characteristics on which no adjustments whatsoever are needed when going from water to land and vice versa.”

The VS-300 had a welded tubular steel airframe and used a 28-foot (5.34 meters) diameter, fully-articulated, three-bladed main rotor, which turned clockwise (as seen from above) at 260 r.p.m. (The advancing blade was on the left. This would later be reversed.) The main rotor had collective pitch control for vertical control, but cyclic pitch (Sikorsky referred to this as “sectional control”) for directional control would not be developed for another several months.

The tail “propellers” (what we now consider to be rotors—one vertical and two horizontal) each had two blades with a diameter of 7 feet, 8 inches (2.337 meters) and turned approximately 1,300 r.p.m. The vertical rotor provided “torque compensation” (anti-torque) and the blade pitch was fully reversible. The horizontal rotors were mounted on 10-foot (3.048 meters) outriggers at the aft end of the fuselage. For lateral control, the pitch on one rotor was increased and the other decreased. For longitudinal control, the pitch of both rotors was increased or decreased together.

Igor Sikorsky banks the VS-300 through assymetric pitch of the horizontal tail rotors. (Sikorsky Historical Archives)
Igor Sikorsky banks the VS-300 through assymetric pitch of the horizontal tail rotors. (Sikorsky Historical Archives)

The VS-300 was originally equipped with an air-cooled, normally-aspirated 144.489-cubic-inch-displacement (2.368 liter) Lycoming O-145C-3 four-cylinder horizontally-opposed engine which was rated at 75 horsepower at 3,100 r.p.m. According to Mr. Sikorsky, “early in 1941,” the Lycoming engine was replaced by an air-cooled, normally-aspirated 198.608 cubic inch (3.255 liter) Franklin 4AC-199-E, a four-cylinder horizontally-opposed overhead valve (OHV) direct-drive engine with a compression ratio of 7:1, rated at 90 horsepower at 2,500 r.p.m. It is not known if this change was made prior to 17 April.

© 2019, Bryan R. Swopes

16–17 April 1935

Aviation, , , , , ,
Pan American Clipper NR823M over San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, en route to Hawaii on the first survey flight, 1935. Photographed by Clyde Herwood Sunderland, Jr. (1900–1989). (National Air and Space Museum SI-90-3001)

16 April 1935: At 3:42 p.m. Pacific Standard Time (23:42 Greenwich Mean Time), Pan American Airway’s Sikorsky S-42 Clipper, NC823M, pulled away from the dock at Alameda, California, on a survey flight to determine the feasibility of long range passenger flights across the Pacific Ocean.

After a 30 second takeoff run of about 1,700 feet (518 meters), the S-42 lifted from the waters of San Francisco Bay at 3:50 p.m., Pacific Standard Time (23:50 G.M.T.).

Crew of the first Pan American Airways Sikorsky S-42 survey flight in Hawai’i , 7 April1935. Left to right: Radio Officer Wilson Turner Jarboe Jr.; Junior Officer Harry R. Canaday; First Officer Robert Oliver Daniel (“Rod”) Sullivan; Captain Edwin Charles Musick; Navigator Fred Joseph Noonan; Engineer Officer Victor A. Wright. (SFO Museum)

The Clipper’s crew were Captain Edwin Charles Musick; First Officer Robert Oliver Daniel (“Rod”) Sullivan; Fred Joseph Noonan, navigator; Victor A. Wright, flight engineer; Harry R. Canaday, junior flight officer; and Wilson Turner Jarboe, Jr., radio operator.

The airplane carried 150 pounds (68 kilograms) of mail and two tons (1,814 kilograms) of mechanical and engineering equipment for Pan Am’s base in Hawaii. Postage for the approximate 10,000 letters varied from $1.00 to $2.50. ($22.80 – $56.99 in 2024 U.S. dollars). The Clipper carried 3,000 gallons (11,356 liters) of gasoline and 300 gallons (1,136 liters) of oil.

The flight was made at altitudes varying from 4,000 to 8,500 feet (1,219 to 2,591  meters).

Pan American Airways’ Sikorsky S-42 NC832M passes Diamond Head on the island of Oahu, Territory of the Hawaiian Islands, in 1935. (Smithsonian Institution National Air and Space Museum PP-1-8-013/Hawaii State Archives)

NC823M arrived overhead Diamond Head, Territory of the Hawaiian Islands, at 7:05 a.m., Hawaii Standard Time (17:35 G.M.T.), 17 April.  [In 1935, Hawaii Standard Time was G.M.T. + 10 hours, 30 minutes] The S-42 was joined by an escort of five patrol planes from the U.S. Navy Patrol Squadron 10 (VP-10) and ten “pursuit” planes. (These were not not specified in contemporary newspaper articles, but the Navy planes were probably Consolidated P2Y-1s, while the “pursuits” were most likely U.S. Army Boeing P-26 monoplanes.)

The Clipper circled the city at about 1,000 feet (305 meters). It spent 52 minutes circling the city, Waikiki Beach, the Ewa plantation, and the U.S. Army’s Schofield Barracks.

A U.S. Navy Consolidated P2Y-1 of Patrol Squadron 10, circa 1934. (U.S. Navy)

The S-42 touched down at Pearl Harbor at 7:57 a.m., H.S.T., 17 April, (10:27 a.m., P.S.T./17:27 GMT.) after a flight of 17 hours, 45 minutes.¹ Flying a Great Circle Route, the total distance flown was approximately 2,090 nautical miles (2,405 statute miles/3,870 kilometers).² The average speed was about 117.75 knots (135.5 miles per hour/218 kilometers per hour).

This image depicts the Great Circle Route from the Alameda Naval Air Station (NGZ) to Honolulu International Airport. (Great Circle Mapper)

After landing, the flying boat shut down two of its engines and taxied to the seaplane ramp at Ford Island.

Pan American Clipper NR823M at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, 17 April 1935. (Pan Am Historical Foundation)

NC823M was only the twelfth airplane to successfully fly from California to Hawaii. The first was the U.S. Army’s Atlantic-Fokker C-2, Bird of Paradise, on 29 June 1927.³  For reference, VP-10s six P2Y-1s had taken 24 hours, 45 minutes to reach the islands in 1934.

The Sikorsky S-42 was a four-engine long-range flying boat built for Pan American Airways by the Vought-Sikorsky Aircraft Division of United Technologies at Stratford, Connecticut. It was 67 feet, 8 inches (20.625 meters) long with a wingspan of 114 feet, 2 inches (34.798 meters). The S-42 had an empty weight of 18,236 pounds (8,272 kilograms) and gross weight of 38,000 pounds (17,237 kilograms). It could carry up to 37 passengers.

The S-42 was powered by four air-cooled, supercharged, 1,690.537-cubic-inch-displacement (27.703 liters) Pratt & Whitney Hornet S1E-G nine-cylinder radial engines with a compression ratio of 6.5:1. The S1E-G had a Normal Power rating of 750 horsepower at 2,250 r.p.m., to 7,000 feet (2,134 meters), and 875 horsepower at 2,300 r.p.m., for Takeoff. The engines drove three-bladed Hamilton Standard constant-speed propellers through a 3:2 gear reduction. The S1E-G was 4 feet, 1.38 inches (1.254 meters) long, 4 feet, 6.44 inches (1.383 meters) in diameter, and weighed 1,064 pounds (483 kilograms).

The S-42 had a cruise speed 165 miles per hour (266 kilometers per hour) and maximum speed of 188 miles per hour (303 kilometers per hour) at 5,000 feet (1,524 meters). The service ceiling was 16,000 feet (4,877 meters). It could maintain 7,500 feet (2,286 meters) with three engines. Its range was 1,930 miles (3,106 kilometers).

Ten Sikorsky S-42, S-42A and S-42B flying boats were built for Pan Am. None remain in existence.

¹ “Flight time” is generally defined as from the time the aircraft first moves under its own power for the purpose of flight until it comes to rest after landing. In this case, the flight time commenced when the S-42 pulled away from the dock in Alameda, not the time it actually lifted from the water of San Francisco Bay.

² In actuality, the S-42 taxied on San Francisco Bay before taking off, then flew west over the Golden Gate Bridge before turning on its course to Hawaii. It arrived overhead Diamond Head on the island of Oahu before landing on the waters of Pearl Harbor. The actual distance flown is therefore an approximation.

³ Please see This Day in Aviation at https://www.thisdayinaviation.com/28-29-june-19/

© 2024, Bryan R. Swopes

17 April 1923

Aviation, , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Lieutenant Harold R. Harris, United States Army Air Service, 1922.
First Lieutenant Harold Ross Harris, Air Service, United States Army, 1922.

17 April 1923: At Wilbur Wright Field, Dayton, Ohio, First Lieutenant Harold Ross Harris set two Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) World Speed Records, flying a modified de Havilland XDH-4L powered by a Hall-Scott Liberty 375 engine. Lieutenant Harris averaged 184.03 kilometers per hour (114.35 miles per hour) over a 1,500 kilometer (932.1 miles) closed circuit,¹ and 183.82 kilometers per hour (114.22 miles per hour) over a 2,000 kilometer (1,242.7 mile) course. ²

Harold R. Harris was an important figure in the development of aircraft following World War I. He served as Engineering Officer for the U.S. Army at McCook Field and flew many experimental aircraft, setting records for speed and altitude, and worked on the development of airplanes, engines and other equipment. Harris was the first man to use a parachute to escape an airplane during an actual in-flight emergency.

In civil aviation, Harris was an executive with the company that would become Pan American World Airways. During World War II, he was chief of staff of the Air Transport Command, retiring with the rank of brigadier general, and then returning to commercial aviation as a vice president of Pan Am and later president of Northwest Airlines.

de Havilland XDH-4L A.S. 64593, FAI World Speed record holder. (FAI)

The XDH-4L was a variant of the Airco DH.4, designed by Geoffrey de Havilland. It was a two-place, single-engine biplane intended as a bomber, but the type served in virtually every capacity during World War I and the years following. At McCook Field, American-built DH-4s were commonly used as test beds for engines and other aeronautical equipment.

The standard Airco DH.4 had a crew of two. It was 30 feet, 8 inches (9.347 meters) long with a wingspan of 43 feet, 4 inches (13.208 meters) and height of 11 feet (3.353 meters). Empty weight was 2,387 pounds (1,085 kilograms) and loaded weight was 3,472 pounds (1,578 kilograms). British-built DH.4s were powered by a 1,240.54-cubic-inch-displacement (20.33 liter) liquid-cooled Rolls-Royce Eagle overhead cam 60° V-12 engine which produced 375 horsepower. A gear-reduction system kept propeller r.p.m. below engine speed for greater efficiency.

American-built DH.4 airplanes were produced by the Boeing Airplane Company, Dayton-Wright Airplane Company, Fisher Body Corporation, and Standard Aircraft Corporation. Most were powered by the Liberty L12 engine.

Major Henry H. Arnold standing beside the first Liberty 12 aircraft engine turned out for war use. “Hap” Arnold would later hold the 5-star rank of General of the Army and General of the Air Force. (U.S. Air Force)

The Liberty L12 aircraft engine was designed by Jesse G. Vincent of the Packard Motor Car Company and Elbert J. Hall of the Hall-Scott Motor Company. It was a  water-cooled, normally-aspirated, 1,649.336-cubic-inch-displacement (27.028 liter) Liberty L-12 single overhead cam (SOHC) 45° V-12 engine with a compression ratio of 5.4:1. The Liberty produced 408 horsepower at 1,800 r.p.m. The L-12 as a right-hand tractor, direct-drive engine and it turned turned a two-bladed fixed-pitch wooden propeller. The Liberty 12 was 5 feet, 7.375 inches (1.711 meters) long, 2 feet, 3.0 inches (0.686 meters) wide, and 3 feet, 5.5 inches (1.054 meters) high. It weighed 844 pounds (383 kilograms). This engine was produced by Ford Motor Company, as well as the Buick and Cadillac Divisions of General Motors, The Lincoln Motor Company (which was formed by Henry Leland, the former manager of Cadillac, specifically to manufacture these aircraft engines), Marmon Motor Car Company and Packard. Hall-Scott was too small to produce engines in the numbers required.

Following World War I, many DH-4s were rebuilt by Boeing and Atlantic Aircraft. An improved version, the DH-4M, used a tubular steel framework instead of the usual wood construction. DH-4s remained in service with the United States Army as late as 1932.

De Havilland XDH-4L, U.S. Army Air Service  serial number A.S. 64593, was used for engineering tests at McCook Field. It carried project number P193 painted on its rudder. At the time of the world speed records, it was powered by a Hall-Scott Liberty 375, a 375 horsepower version of the Liberty V-12 engine. The rear cockpit was faired over and a 185 gallon (700.3 liter) fuel tank installed for long range flights.

¹ FAI Record File Number 9318

² FAI Record File Number 9319

© 2019, Bryan R. Swopes