Introduced in mid-1916. Designed along very similar lines to the Gotha, the Friedrichshafen bomber, is one of the principal heavy bombing machines turned out by the Germans. Its makers have long specialized in the manufacture of seaplanes of the single and the twin-engine type, and the bombing machine resembles the latter, except for the sweep back of the wings, which is apparently a reversion to former practice. Continue reading
With a few differences, such as the fact that the Gotha is a pusher type, whereas the A.E.G. twin-motored bombing plane is a tractor, the latter machine is designed along essentially the same lines as the Gotha, which has been developed by the Germans especially for bombing service. Doubtless, machines of both these types have been employed in air raids. The name “A.E.G.” is taken from the initials of the builders, the Allgemeine ElectrizitÃ
Whether equipped with floats as a seaplane or with a landing gear, the Standard twin- motored seaplane is of a size that is commonly termed a battle plane. It has a total weight of 2 1/2 tons fully loaded and, at an economical speed, has a cruising range of 450 miles. The fuel tanks, carried in the body, have a capacity of 154 gallons, which at the maximum speed of 80 m.p.h. gives the machine an endurance of slightly over 2 Â
The chief distinguishing feature of the Gallaudet seaplane is the employment a four-blade propeller acting as a pusher in connection with a fuselage design similar in most respects to the tractor type. Continue reading
Perhaps the most remarkable achievement of 1912 was the Curtiss flying-boat. Glenn Curtiss, who won the James Gordon Bennett race in 1909, had succeeded in rising from the water in 1913 with a similar biplane fitted with a central pontoon float instead of a wheeled under-carriage. This he made into a genuine flying-boat, consisting of a proper hydroplane-boat, with wings and engine superimposed Continue reading
Coast Guard Dolphin in NYC
Aero Digest specs
East Boston (now Logan) airport in 1936.
The Douglas Dolphin was an amphibious flying boat. While fewer than 60 were built, they served a wide variety of roles: private ” air yacht”, airliner, military transport, and search and rescue. It began in 1930 as the twin-engine “Sinbad,” intended as a luxury aircraft. It was a high-wing monoplane, with two radial engines mounted above the wing. Its six to eight passengers looked out picture windows, and their baggage was stored in a 30-cubic-foot area. The Depression curtailed demand for such extravagance, so the Sinbad was sold to the United States Coast Guard.
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Looking at old airplanes, they seem incredibly archaic — with two wings, made of wood and cloth, open cockpits, struts and wires all over. But the 1933 Boeing Model 247 suddenly resembles modern aircraft. Not that I would expect to jump into such a machine if it pulled up to the gate at LaGuardia, but the 247 is recognizeably modern. While the Douglas DC-1 set the stage for the DC-3 to become the most widely used airliner of the Forties, the prototype of Boeing’s 247 flew on February 8, 1933, five months before the DC-1.
Burnelli Aircraft, Ltd., Keyport, New Jersey
Specifications from Aero Digest, April, 1935:
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Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation, Bridgeport, Conn.
Specifications from Aero Digest, April, 1935:
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Amelia Earhart was flying a Lockheed Electra 10E when she disappeared over the Pacific in 1937.
One of the first designs of the Lockheed company, the Electra was one of the first all-metal, passenger planes; its many innovations contributed to the design of the P-38 fighter. Continue reading