Curtiss-Wright CW-22

The Curtiss-Wright CW-22 was a 1940s American general-purpose advanced training monoplane aircraft built by the Curtiss-Wright Corporation. It was operated by the United States Navy as a scout trainer with the designation SNC-1 Falcon.

Design and development

Developed at the Curtiss-Wright St. Louis factory, the CW-22 was developed from the CW-19 via the single-seat CW-21 light fighter. The prototype first flew in 1940. With less power and performance than the CW-21, the two-seat, low-wing, all-metal CW-A22 had retractable tailwheel landing gear, with the main gear retracting rearwards into underwing fairings.

The CW-22 was seen as either a civilian sport or training monoplane or suitable as a combat trainer, reconnaissance and general-purpose aircraft for military use. The prototype CW-A22 Falcon (US civilian registration NC18067) was used as a company demonstrator and is one of four of the type still in existence.

Operational history

File:Curtiss SNC-1 Pensacola FL 15.12.02R.jpg

Curtiss SNC-1 Falcon exhibited at the US Naval Museum at Pensacola, Florida, in December 2002

The main customer for the Wright R-975 Whirlwind radial engine-powered aircraft was the Royal Netherlands East Indies Army Air Force and 36 were exported. The aircraft had to be delivered to the Dutch in Australia due to the advancing Japanese forces. A developed version, the CW-22B was sold to Turkey (50) and the Netherlands East Indies (25) and in small numbers in South America. Some of the Dutch aircraft were captured and operated by the Japanese air force. The CW-22 and CW-22B were armed with two machine guns, one fixed.

An unarmed advanced training version (CW-22N) was demonstrated to the United States Navy. The Navy bought 455 aircraft and designated them the SNC-1 Falcon.

Variants

CW-A22

Prototype

CW-22

Production armed variant for the Royal Netherlands East Indies Army Air Force, 36 built.

CW-22B

Improved armed variant, approx 100 built.

CW-22N

Advanced trainer variant, sold to the United States Navy as the SNC-1.

SNC-1 Falcon

United States Navy designation for the CW-22N, 455 built.

Operators

Template:BOL

Template:Country data Netherlands Dutch East Indies

• Royal Netherlands East Indies Army Air Force

Template:Country data Japan

• The Imperial Japanese Army Air Force operated captured ex-Dutch aircraft.

Template:PER

Template:TUR

Template:USA

• United States Navy

Template:URU

• Uruguayan Air Force

See also

Designation sequence
Curtiss-Wright CW-21 • CW-22 • Curtiss-Wright CW-24 • Curtiss-Wright CW-25 Related lists

• list of military aircraft of the United States (naval)

References

Bibliography

• Andrade, John. U.S. Military Aircraft Designations and Serials since 1909. Hinckley, UK: Midland Counties Publications, 1979. ISBN 0-904597-22-9.
• Donald, David, ed. The Encyclopedia of World Aircraft. Etobicoke, Ontario: Prospero Books, 1997 ISBN 1-85605-375-X.
• The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft (Part Work 1982-1985). London: Orbis Publishing, 1985.

External links

• Curtiss-Wright CW-22 Falcon SNC
• Curtiss-Wright CW-22R/C-22B CW-22R (Siyah Falconlar-Black Falcons) from Turkish Air Force

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Curtiss-Wright CW-22".