TheCurtiss Falcon was a family of militarybiplane aircraft built by the American aircraft manufacturerCurtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company during the 1920s. Most saw service as part of theUnited States Army Air Corps as observation aircraft with the designationsO-1 andO-11, or as the attack aircraft designated theA-3 Falcon.
U.S. Navy variants were used initially as fighter-bombers with the designationF8C Falcon, then as the firstU.S. Marine Corpsdive bombers with the nameHelldiver. Two later generations of Curtiss dive-bombers were also namedHelldiver.
The type was introduced in 1925 and saw first-line service in the United States until 1934. Curtiss Falcons fought in theConstitutionalist Revolution of 1932 inBrazil, used by the forces ofSão Paulo.
TheFalcon XO-1prototype was evaluated by the USAAC along with eleven other prototypes in 1924 and theDouglas XO-2 was declared the winner of that competition. So Curtiss re-engined the prototype with thePackard 1A-1500 for the 1925 trials, which it won. The engine failed to live up to expectations and theO-1 ordered by the Army was fitted with the 435 hp (324 kW)Curtiss V-1150 (D-12) engine.[1]
The aircraft was a conventional unequal-span biplane design with wooden wings, while thefuselage was built usingaluminum tubing with steel tie rod bracing.[2] Thelanding gear was fixed and thetail included abalanced rudder with a rear skid originally, later changed to a tailwheel.[citation needed]
The initial A-3 Falcon order was placed in the winter of 1927 and delivery of the first plane was in October 1927. A total of 76 A-3s were received. Later, six aircraft were modified as pilot trainers with dual controls and redesignated A-3A. A second batch of 78 improved A-3Bs, based on the Curtiss O-1E, was purchased beginning in 1929.[citation needed]
Reasonably successful as an observation aircraft, Falcons flew primarily in the1st, 5th and 99th Observation Squadrons of the9th Observation Group,Mitchel Field,New York. The A-3 Attack Falcon saw considerable use, in first-line service with the 8th, 13th and 19th Attack Squadrons of the 3rd Attack Group,Barksdale Field,Louisiana, and the 26th Attack Squadron inHawaii from 1928 to 1934 and second-line service with reserve units until 1937.
The U.S. Navy introduced the F8C-1 and F8C-3 Falcon as a shipboard fighter in 1927–1928. They were later redesignated OC-1 and OC-2 for Marine Corps use as an observation/bomber. The F8C-4 Helldiver variant initially saw service with the Navy, and the first production batch of 25 was transferred in 1931 to the Marine Corps. A total of 34 F8Cs redesignated as O2C-1 observation aircraft were also transferred to the Naval Reserve in 1931, serving with squadrons VN-10RD9, VN-11RD9, and VN-12RD9. Most of the 63 newer F8C-5/O2C-1 Helldivers also served with the Marines, remaining in service until 1936. The type was featured in multiple Hollywood films:Flight (1929),Hell Divers (1932) andKing Kong (1933). Two non-flying replicas were built forKing Kong (2005)
Model 46, one O-1E converted into a basic trainer for the USAAC.
XO-1
Liberty 12A powered Prototype, later modified to use a Packard 1A-1500, one built.
O-1
Model 37A, two-seat observation aircraft, the first production model, ten built. One converted into theO-1 Special VIP transport.
O-1A
Two-seat observation aircraft, powered by the Liberty piston engine, one built.
O-1B
Model 37B, first major production version, powered byCurtiss D-12D (V-1150-3) engine; 45 ordered, 25 built and 20 diverted on the production line to the A-3.
O-1C
Four O-1Bs converted into VIP transports.
O-1E
Model 37I, variant powered by 435 hp (324 kW)Curtiss D-12E (V-1150-5) piston engine; 41 built.
O-1F
Model 37J, one O-1E converted into VIP transport.
O-1G
Model 38, final O-1 variant, powered by a 712 hp (531 kW)Wright R-1820F-2 Cyclone engine; 30 built for USAAC.
XO-11
Two O-1 modified as O-11 prototypes.
O-11
O-1 airframe powered by the Liberty V-1650 piston engine; 67 built concurrently with the O-1s.
XO-12
One XO-11 prototype redesignated XO-12.
XO-13
O-1 fitted with 720 hp (540 kW) Conqueror engine for the 1927National Air Races.
XO-13A
Second XO-13, fitted with wing skin radiators.
O-13B
One O-1C fitted with a Conqueror engine, tested as an observation aircraft, and provided to Secretary of War.
YO-13C
Three O-1Es re-engined with 600 hp (450 kW) direct-drive Conqueror engines.
YO-13D
One O-11 fitted with supercharged Conqueror engine.
Marine Corps Curtiss OC-2 Falcon, c. 1929The XF8C-2 prototypeThe XF8C-4 prototypeCurtiss F8C-5 Formation, circa 1930The XF8C-7
A-3 Helldiver
Registry name of XF8C-8, not adopted by USN.
A-4 Helldiver
Civil version of XF8C-8 for use by Assistant Secretary of NavyDavid Ingalls. Later redesignated XF8C-7.
XF8C-1
Model 37C variant developed from XO-12; two built for the U.S. Navy.
F8C-1 Falcon
Model 37C powered by the 420 hp (310 kW)Pratt & Whitney R-1340 Wasp radial piston engine; four built in 1928 for theU.S. Marine Corps as light bombers, fighters and observation aircraft, later redesignatedOC-1.
XF8C-2
Model 49, one prototype for F8C Helldiver. Original crashed on first factory flight and was replaced by Curtiss with a second bearing identical sn.
F8C-3 Falcon
Second production batch of Navy Falcons; 21 built for USN/USMC in 1928, later redesignatedOC-2.
XF8C-4
Second Helldiver prototype, modified tail skid assembly.
F8C-4 Helldiver
Model 49B, production dive-bomber variant for the USN/USMC; 25 built, later designatedO2C.
F8C-5 Helldiver
Model 49B with ring cowling; 63 built in 1930–31, later designated O2C-1.
XF8C-6
Two F8C-5s modified with superchargers, slats, and wing flaps; one later modified as O2C-2.
XF8C-7
Redesignation of A-4 Helldiver, later redesignated XO2C-2.
XF8C-8
Two prototypes built with canopy-enclosed front cockpit, later redesignatedO2C-2.
O2C-1 Helldiver
Redesignation of 63 F8C-5; 30 production O2C-1s in 1931.
O2C-2 Helldiver
Redesignation of XF8C-8s and one XF8C-6.
XOC-3
One XF8C-1 prototype fitted with a Chieftain engine.
XF10C-1
O2C-2 re-engined with a R-1510 engine, also temporary designatedXS3C-1.
20 civil versions: ConquerorMail plane; D-12 Mailplane;Lindbergh Special, sold toCharles Lindbergh; Liberty Mailplane, 14 single-seat mailplanes, powered by a Liberty piston engines, sold toNational Air Transport.
Export Falcon
alsoSouth American D-12 Falcon. One seaplane version of the O-1B was sold toColombia, followed by an order for 15 more. Another 10 Model 35Fs were sold toPeru.[5]
Colombia Cyclone Falcon
Model 37F fitted with the 712 hp (531 kW)Wright Cyclone radial piston engine. 100 built for Colombia.
Chilean Falcon
O-1E design built under license inChile, 10 later sold toBrazil. One example ended up in Paraguay as passage fee for the remaining aircraft. It operated mostly as a VIP transport, but made at last one reconnaissance flight over the Chaco war fields armed with two 7.7 mm (0.303 in) machine-guns from a Potez.
Bolivia Cyclone Falcon
Similar to Colombian Falcon, it was fitted with the 712 hp (531 kW)Wright SR-1820F-2 Cyclone radial piston engine. A total of nine were built for Bolivia in some odd variants from the Colombian ones. Bolivian Cyclone Falcons mounted one frontal .30 MG and most also one rear .30 MG instead of the two wing-mounted ones. Two had semi-cockpit canopies over pilots cockpit; two had windscreens instead of canopy in both cockpits, these two had no ring mount for rear machine gun.
^abcSwanborough, Gordon; Bowers, Peter M. (1964).United States military aircraft since 1909 (New ed.). New York: Putnam. p. 179.ISBN0-85177-816-X.
^abEden, Paul; Moeng, Soph, eds. (2002).The complete encyclopedia of world aircraft. London, NI 9PF: Barnes & Noble Books. p. cover.ISBN0-7607-3432-1.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location (link)
^Hagedorn, Dan; Sapienza, Antonio Luis (2000).Aircraft of the Chaco War. Schiffer Pub. p. 144.ISBN0-7643-0146-2.
^Corum, James S. (3 February 2003)."O Poder Aéreo na Guerra do Chaco" [Air Power in the Chaco War].Air & Space Power Journal (in Portuguese). Archived fromthe original on 18 February 2017. Retrieved12 April 2019.
Curtiss FalconsArchived 2017-07-01 at theWayback Machine History and specifications from the reference bookAmerican Combat Planes of the 20th Century by Ray Wagner
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