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Boeing GA-1

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GA-1
Engineering Division/Boeing GA-1
Type Ground attack
Manufacturer Boeing
Designed by Issac W. Laddon
Maiden flight May 1921
Introduced 1921
Primary user USAAS
Number built 10

The Boeing GA-1 (company designation Model 10) were armored triplanes. Designed in 1919, it was powered by a pair of modified Liberty engines driving pusher propellors. The first of the Engineering Division's heavily-armored GAX series (ground attack, experimental) aircraft, the ponderous airplane was intended to strafe ground troops while remaining immune to attack from the ground as well as from other enemy aircraft. It was so well armored its five-ton weight proved excessive.

History

Origins

Soon after the end of WW I, the US Army sought to explore highly-armored and -armed specialist ground attack aircraft. This was a pet project of General William Mitchell. The Army Air Service Engineering Division issued requests for proposals to U.S. aircraft producers on October 15, 1919. There were no designs offered, so the Engineering Division ordered one of its engineers, Isaac W. Laddon, to attempt what the aviation industry clearly considered impossible. His design, designated GAX, first flew at McCook Field on May 26, 1920. The GAX was McCook Field Project P129 and wore AAS serial number 63272.[1]

Development

On June 7, 1920, Boeing was awarded a contract for 20 production models designated GA-1. Before the first was delivered in May 1921, the order had been reduced to 10. The production aircraft wore Boeing constructors numbers 200-209 and AAC serial numbers 64146-64155. Number 64146 was evaluated at McCook as project P187.[1]

Entry into service

The GA-1 were sent to Kelly Field, Texas, for service tests with the 3rd Attack Group. These tests showed the aircraft to be unacceptable. They had poor performance and visibility. The aircraft suffered from noise and vibrations caused by the 3/16-inch (4.75mm)-thick armor. Take-off runs were very long by the standards of the day. The GA-1s were extremely unpopular with the pilots conducting the evaluation.[1]

Design characteristics

Aerodynamic cleanliness was sacrificed to fields of fire for its guns. The sturdy structure was able to carry a heavy load of ammunition along with about 2,200 lb (998 kg) of armor plate. The result was an angular machine of wire-braced wooden construction with plywood and fabric covering. A rectangular-section fuselage carried the foward gunner in an open nose position, the pilot in a semi-enclsed cockpit with armored shutters for foward vision, and the rear gunner in an open dorsal position. The engines were carried in mid-wing nacelles. At the front of each nacelle was a gunner's position.[2]

Variants

GA-1
armored triplane, one pilot and 4 gunners, two Liberty L-12A Vee engines of 435 hp (324 kW), ten built
GA-2
biplane, one pilot and two gunners, 750 hp (559 kW) Engineering Division W-18 engine, one 37mm cannon and 6 0.3 in (7.62mm) machine guns, two built

Milestones

It was rumored the GA-1s survived until surveyed on January 14, 1926 so Kelly Field pilots could be threatened with being forced to fly them. All were scrapped in April 1926.[1]

Specifications (GA-1)

Data from "The Complete Encyclopedia of World Aircraft"[2]

General characteristics

  • Crew: 5
  • Length: 33 ft 7 in (10.25 m)
  • Wingspan: 65 ft 6 in (19.96 m)
  • Height: 14 ft 3 in (4.34 m)
  • Empty weight: 7,834 lb (3,553 kg)
  • Loaded weight: 10,426 lb (4,729 kg)
  • Powerplant: 2× Liberty L-12A Pusher, 435 hp (324 kW) each

Performance

Armament

1 x 37 mm Baldwin cannon, 8 x .30 cal. Browning machine guns. With some machine guns removed, 10 small fragmentation bombs could be carried.


References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Ray Wagner, 1968
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Eden & Moeng, 2002, page 314. Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name "world" defined multiple times with different content
  • Wagner, Ray. American Combat Planes. Garden City, NY: Hanover House, 1968. ISBN 0385041349
  • Eden, Paul, & Moeng, Soph, editors. The Complete Encyclopedia of World Aircraft. London: Amber Books Ltd., 2002. ISBN 0-7607-3432-1

External links

See also

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RecordsFlight airspeed record · Flight distance record · Flight altitude record · Flight endurance record · Most produced aircraft

Template:Lone designation Template:Boeing model numbers

v • d • e
Lists relating to aviation
GeneralTimeline of aviation · Aircraft · Aircraft manufacturers · Aircraft engines · Aircraft engine manufacturers · Airports · Airlines
MilitaryAir forces · Aircraft weapons · Missiles · Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) · Experimental aircraft
Notable incidents
and accidents		Military aviation · Airliners · General aviation · Famous aviation-related deaths
RecordsFlight airspeed record · Flight distance record · Flight altitude record · Flight endurance record · Most produced aircraft
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.
It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Boeing GA-1".


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