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Aviation History
1925
1925 - 0303.PDF
MAY 21, 1925 surprise of aviation experts, has equally shown itself to be avery good land type 'plane, even if it was to be used exclusively over land. Grover Loening, the inventor of the new 'plane, has been consistently working for a long time perfecting this type of aircraft. Loening, who is one of the most experienced aircraft designers and engineers in America, was awarded the Aero Club of America trophy, two years ago, for the greatest development in aviation, and is this year a prominent con- tender for the new Wright medal, which is to be awarded for the greatest current achievement in aviation. Many aviation experts believe that Loening's new type of amphibian, due to its very successful tests, represents one of the most practical and useful developments in aviation since the War, and one that is declared to be entirely original and with a wide field of use. The principal idea in the Loening Amphibian is the use of the inverted type of aircraft engine, placing the propeller thrust at the top of the body and thus including the entire body with the engine mount in the nose to form a compact unit hull, carrying passengers, load, petrol, and all equipment. The landing gear, which is mounted to this hull, folds into it by the operation of an electric motor, switched on by the pilot. This hull body is made exceptionally strong, entirely covered with metal, and so shaped as to give remarkable seaworthiness which has been proved by tests in rough water carried out this winter in the Atlantic Ocean off Norfolk, Virginia, by a special Board of Army and Navy Pilots, and representatives of the National Advisory Committee. The crew sit well back and in the upper part (if this unit body, where they are protected from spray and in a much safer position than has been, heretofore, found possible on flying boats. There exists, therefore, a very definite dis- tinction between the Loening type of amphibian, and other types of aeroplanes designed for land and water use, such as the Vickers Amphibian, etc., which, like two or three machines of that type in America, is, practically speaking, an orthodox type of flying boat, to which wheels have been added, but carrying the engine up above between the wings—in a com- paratively dangerous position in the event of an accident. In flying tests that have been made by the Army Air Service the past few months, the flying qualities of the new- machine were found to be quite remarkable, and to equal in every way the ordinary land type of aeroplane of the same weight and power—so that enthusiasts for the new Loening type point out that it will very likely render the old limited type of land machine obsolete, as, not only is there no loss in performance or manoeuvrability due to the new type, but there is a definite gain in strength against crashing, and verymuch more room, made available for added loads to be carried. Since this type of machine can also land with equalease on soft snow or hard ice by merely carrying retractable skis instead of retractable wheels, it becomes an ideal 'planefor Polar exploration, and, in fact, its development makes the A "close-up " of the Loening Model 34 Amphibian, showing the position of the pilot and the retracting undercarriage. present plans for the MacMillan Expedition extremely practical. The Loening Amphibian is fitted with an inverted 400 h.p. Liberty engine. It weighs 3,300 lbs. empty, and carries a load of 2,200 lbs., including pilot, observer, cameras, radio and 250 gallons of petrol, which is sufficient for a flight of over one thousand miles. In the test conducted at the Army Air Service Engineering Division at McCook Field, Dayton, Ohio, this 'plane has recently demonstrated a high speed of 122 miles an hour, and a ceiling of 14,000 ft. The machine is readily hoisted aboard a ship and launched in the water and may either be moored in a bav, or with its wheels down T nirTunsjr- lunnFT ^4 \MPHIBIAN : View, showing the machine flying over Langley Field,L55^SS»r52S5-e typeff "plane and the flying boat are, it will be seen, ingeniously blended together to form a new type. It is fitted with a 400 h.p. inverted Liberty engine. 303 c 2
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