Curtiss-Reid Courier
Curtiss-Reid Courier | |
---|---|
Role | Mail plane |
National origin | Canada |
Manufacturer | Curtiss-Reid |
Designer | R.N. Bell |
First flight | Mid-January 1932 |
Number built | 1 |
The Curtiss-Reid Courier was designed in
Design
The Reid Aircraft co. was established in February 1928 by W.T. Reid in
The Courier (Courrier in French) was a
The wing was braced to the lower
The Courier was powered by a 120 hp (89 kW)
The Courier had split-axle, tailskid landing gear with its bent axles articulated from a small pyramid of steel tubes from the fuselage underside centre-line and with drag struts back to the centre-line. Another, longitudinal, tube from the drag struts' meeting point braced the pyramid. Long-travel oleo struts to the upper fuselage, medium pressure tyres and a track of 6 ft (1.8 m) assisted landings on rough ground. The wheels were enclosed in fairings and equipped with brakes. Its tailskid, which protruded from the extreme fuselage tail, also had an oleo shock absorber.[2][3] The Courier could also be flown as a floatplane after replacing the main gear with a pair of Edo single-stepped floats.[1]: 243 [2]
Operational history
The Courier was flown for the first time in mid-January 1932 from Cartierville by Pete Vachon. An attempt to interest Canadian Airways, the biggest airmail carrier, failed and Curtiss-Reid had to abandon hopes of production. Efforts to interest the Royal Canadian Air Force also failed, though the sole prototype was flown to Ottawa where official air force performance tests were conducted. For unknown reasons, their speeds were about 10% slower than the manufacturer's.[1]: 244–5
Though the Courier handled well, as demonstrated on a long flight to
Specifications
Manufacturer's figures. Their speeds were higher than those determined in RCAF tests.
Data from Molson and Taylor[1]: 245
General characteristics
- Length: 21 ft 1.5 in (6.439 m)
- Wingspan: 30 ft 0 in (9.14 m)
- Height: 7 ft 4 in (2.24 m)
- Wing area: 144.6 sq ft (13.43 m2)
- Empty weight: 1,080 lb (490 kg)
- Gross weight: 1,752 lb (795 kg)
- Fuel capacity: 30 imp gal (36 US gal; 140 L)[2]
- Powerplant: 1 × de Havilland Gipsy III 4-cylinder air-cooled inverted inline, 120 hp (89 kW) at 2,300 rpm
- Propellers: 2-bladed
Performance
- Maximum speed: 137 mph (220 km/h, 119 kn) . RCAF: 124 mph (200 km/h; 108 kn)
- Cruise speed: 118 mph (190 km/h, 103 kn) at 2,000 rpm. RCAF: 105 mph (169 km/h; 91 kn)
- Range: 550 mi (890 km, 480 nmi)
- Service ceiling: 15,000 ft (4,600 m)
- Rate of climb: 820 ft/min (4.2 m/s) with full load
- Wing loading: 12.1 lb/sq ft (59 kg/m2)