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Travel Air 2000, 3000 and 4000
The Travel Air 2000/3000/4000 (originally, the Model A, Model B and Model BH)[1] and later marketed as a Curtiss-Wright product under the names CW-14, Speedwing, Sportsman and Osprey), were sports aircraft produced in the United States in the late 1920s.
Contents
Overall design features
The types shared a common structure of a conventional single-bay biplane with staggered wings braced by N-struts. The fuselage was of fabric-covered steel tube and included two open cockpits in tandem, the forward of which could carry two passengers side-by-side.
Like other aircraft in the Travel Air line, it was available with a variety of different, interchangeable wings, including a wing shorter and thinner than the rest known as the "Speedwing" designed, as the name suggests, for increased performance. Travel Air entered a specially-modified Model 4000 (designated 4000-T) in the Guggenheim Safe Aircraft Competition of 1930, but it was disqualified.
Curtiss-Wright production
Following Travel Air's purchase in August 1929[2] by Curtiss-Wright, the Model 4000 continued in production into the early 1930s as the CW-14, and the range was expanded to include a military derivative dubbed the Osprey. This was fitted with bomb racks, a fixed, forward-firing machine gun, and a trainable tail gun. These aircraft were supplied to Bolivia and used during the Gran Chaco War, which eventually led to Curtiss-Wright's successful prosecution for supplying these aircraft in violation of a U.S. arms embargo.
Travelair survivors
In 2007, a small number of Travel Air 2000/3000/4000s remain flying along with numerous examples that are preserved in museums. Exhibited examples include those at the National Air and Space Museum, the EAA AirVenture Museum, the Reynolds-Alberta Museum, and the Virginia Aviation Museum.[3]
Variants
- Model B - Travel Air Model A fitted with a Wright J-6 piston engine.
Like other Travel Air aircraft, Model 4000 variants were distinguished by letters prefixed (or occasionally affixed) to the basic designation to denote different engine and wing fits. These letter codes included:
- A - original wing with "elephant-ear" ailerons
- A - Axelson engine
- B - "standard wing" with Frise-type ailerons and three fuel tanks
- C - Curtiss engine
- D - "speedwing"
- E - revised "standard wing" with a single fuel tank
- K - Kinner engine
- L - Lycoming engine
- Travel Air 2000 - first production model
- SC-2000 - powered by a 160-hp (119-kW) Curtiss C-6 engine
- Travel Air 3000 - powered by a 150-hp / 180-hp (112-kW / 134-kW) Hispano-Suiza Model A or Model engine.
- A-4000 - powered by a 150-hp (112-kW) Axelson engine
- B-4000 - powered by a 220-hp (164-kW) Wright J-5 engine
- BC-4000 - floatplane version
- B9-4000 - powered by a 300-hp (224-kW) Wright J-6-9 engine
- C-4000 - powered by a 170-hp (127-kW) Challenger engine
- E-4000 - powered by a 165-hp (123-kW) Wright J-6 engine
- K-4000 - powered by a 100-hp (75-kW) Kinner K5 engine
- SBC-4000 - floatplane version
- W-4000 - powered by 110-hp (82-kW) Warner Scarab engine
Curtiss-Wright models built included:
- CW-14C Sportsman - version with Curtiss Challenger engine (1 built)
- CW-A14D Deluxe Sportsman - three-seat version with Wright J-6 engine and NACA cowling (5 built)
- CW-B14B Speedwing Deluxe - version with Wright J-6 engine (2 built)
- CW-B14R Special Speedwing Deluxe - single-seat racer built for Casey Lambert with supercharged Wright R-975 engine (1 built)
- CW-C14B Osprey - militarized version with Wright R-975E engine
- CW-C14R Osprey - militarized version with Wright J-6-9 engine
- CW-17R Pursuit Osprey - CW-B14B with uprated engine; possibly not built
Specifications (CW-A14D)
References
- Notes
- Bibliography
- Ogden, Bob (2007). Aviation Museums and Collections of North America. Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd. ISBN 0-85130-385-4.
- Simpson, Rod (2001). Airlife's World Aircraft. Shrewsbury: Airlife Publishing Ltd. ISBN 1-84037-115-3.
- Taylor, Michael J. H. (1989). Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation. London: Studio Editions, 288.
- World Aircraft Information Files. London: Bright Star Publishing, File 891 Sheet 54.
- NASM website
- AirVenture Museum website
- Virginia Aviation Museum website
See also
Lists relating to aviation | |
|---|---|
| General | Timeline of aviation · Aircraft · Aircraft manufacturers · Aircraft engines · Aircraft engine manufacturers · Airports · Airlines |
| Military | Air forces · Aircraft weapons · Missiles · Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) · Experimental aircraft |
| Notable incidents and accidents | Military aviation · Airliners · General aviation · Famous aviation-related deaths |
| Records | Flight airspeed record · Flight distance record · Flight altitude record · Flight endurance record · Most produced aircraft |
Template:Curtiss-Wright aircraft
Lists relating to aviation | |
|---|---|
| General | Timeline of aviation · Aircraft · Aircraft manufacturers · Aircraft engines · Aircraft engine manufacturers · Airports · Airlines |
| Military | Air forces · Aircraft weapons · Missiles · Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) · Experimental aircraft |
| Notable incidents and accidents | Military aviation · Airliners · General aviation · Famous aviation-related deaths |
| Records | Flight 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 "Travel Air 2000, 3000 and 4000". |
