Curtiss Model R

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Model R
Curtiss R-4L
Role Military utility aircraft
Designer
Curtiss
First flight 1915
Primary user United States Army, United States Navy
Number built ca. 290

The Curtiss Model R was a utility aircraft produced for the United States Army and Navy during

Liberty engines
. The Navy's Model R-3 floatplane had extended-span, three-bay wings, and was intended for use as a torpedo bomber. Some of these were later fitted with wheeled undercarriage and transferred to the Army as bombers under the designation Model R-9.

Operators

 United Kingdom
  • Royal Navy Air Service
 United States

Variants

A U.S. Navy R-6L dropping a torpedo.
A U.S. Navy R-9.
Model R
Prototype with highly-staggered, equal-span wings and with single long cockpit for pilot and observer. Powered by 160 hp (119 kW)
Curtiss V-X engine.[1]
Model R-2
Initial production version, fitted with uneven-span staggered wings and individual, widely-separated cockpits for pilot and observer. 12 built for US Army and 100 for
Royal Navy Air Service.[2][3]
Model R-2A
One-off version, with equal-span wings, which broke the American altitude record of 8,105 ft (2740 m) in August 1915. One built.[2]
Model R-3
Floatplane version for the US Navy, with increased wingspan (57 ft 1 in) wings. Two built.[4]
Model R-4
Improved version of R-2 for US Army, powered by 200 hp (149 kW)
Curtiss V-2-3 engine. At least 55 built.[5]
Model R-4L
Model R-4s refitted with Liberty L-12. Several converted plus 12 new build aircraft.[5]
Model R-4LM
Conversion of R-4L into
mailplane for US Army, with front cockpit converted to mail compartment with capacity for 400 lb (181 kg) of mail.[6]
Model R-6
Two-seat floatplane with long-span wings of R-3 but powered with Curtiss V-2-3 engine. 76 delivered to US Navy plus some floatplanes and landplanes for US Army. Used for torpedo-bomber trials post war.[7]
Model R-6L
Model R-6 with 360 hp (269 kW) Liberty L-12 engine.[8] 40 converted from R-6 plus 122 built new.[9]
Model R-7
Long range landplane built for The New York Times for an attempted to fly non-stop from Chicago to New York in 1916. It failed to complete the flight but still set an American distance record of 452 miles (727 km). Fitted with long-span wings as R-3 and R-6 and powered by Curtiss V-2-3 engine. One built.[10]
Model R-9
Two-seat bomber version for the US Navy, similar to R-6, but with crew positions reversed so pilot sat in front cockpit and observer in rear. 112 built for the US Navy, ten of which transferred to US Army.[11]
Pusher R
1916 pusher version, based on wings of R, with new fuselage nacelle accommodating two crew. One built.[12]
Twin R
One-off experimental twin-engined conversion of R-2.[12]

Specifications (R-2)

Data from Curtiss Aircraft 1907–1947[13]

General characteristics

Performance

  • Maximum speed: 86 mph (138 km/h, 75 kn)
  • Endurance: 6 hours 42 minutes
  • Time to altitude: 4,000 ft (1,200 m) in 10 minutes

See also

Related development

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Curtiss Model R.
  1. ^ Bowers 1979, pp. 120–121.
  2. ^ a b Bowers 1979, p. 122.
  3. ^ Thetford 1978, p. 384.
  4. ^ Bowers 1979, pp. 123–124.
  5. ^ a b Bowers 1979, p. 124.
  6. ^ Bowers 1979, pp. 125–126.
  7. ^ Bowers 1979, p. 126.
  8. ^ Bowers 1979, p. 128.
  9. ^ "Curtiss L-Z". Aerofiles, Retrieved 26 May 2011.
  10. ^ Bowers 1979, pp. 128–129.
  11. ^ Bowers 1979, p. 129.
  12. ^ a b Bowers 1979, p. 130".
  13. ISBN 0370100298
    .
  14. ^ Lednicer, David. "The Incomplete Guide to Airfoil Usage". m-selig.ae.illinois.edu. Retrieved 16 April 2019.
  15. ^ Angle, Glenn D. (1921). Airplane Engine Encyclopedia. Dayton, Ohio: THE OTTERBEIN PRESS.
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