| F5L | |
|---|---|
 Curtiss F5L patrol plane atPensacola Naval Air Station | |
| General information | |
| Type | Military flying boat |
| National origin | United Kingdom |
| Manufacturer | Naval Aircraft Factory (137) Curtiss Aircraft (60) Canadian Aeroplanes Limited (30) |
| Designer | |
| Primary users | United States Navy |
| Number built | 227 |
| History | |
| Introduction date | November 1918 |
| First flight | 15 July 1918[1] |
| Retired | 1928 |
| Developed from | Felixstowe F.5 |
| Variant | Naval Aircraft Factory PN |
The twin-engineF5L was one of theFelixstowe F series offlying boats developed byJohn Cyril Porte at theSeaplane Experimental Station,Felixstowe, England, during theFirst World War for production in America.
A civilian version of the aircraft was known as theAeromarine 75.
Porte had taken theCurtiss H-12, an original design by the AmericanGlenn Curtiss, and developed it into a practical series of flying boats at the Felixstowe station. They then took theirF.5 model and further redesigned it with better streamlining, a stronger hull using veneer instead of doped linen and U.S.-built 330 hp (later 400 hp)Liberty 12A engines. The prototype was built and tested in England and the design then taken over by the Naval Aircraft Factory,Philadelphia, where further modifications were made to suit their production methods under wartime conditions.[2] The American-built version was also known as theCurtiss F5L and (in civilian operation) as the Aeromarine 75.
The F5L was built by theNaval Aircraft Factory (137),Curtiss (60) andCanadian Aeroplanes Limited (30). Some were converted for civilian use by theAeromarine Plane and Motor Company in 1919.
The F5L entered U.S. service at the end of the war and was the U.S. Navy's standard patrol aircraft until 1928, when it was replaced by thePN-12.
In civil service, named theAeromarine 75, the Felixstowe F5L could accommodate 10 passengers and was operated byAeromarine Airways on flights fromKey West toHavana, carrying the firstU.S. Post Office internationalair mail on flights fromNew York City toAtlantic City, and fromCleveland toDetroit. The firstin-flight movie screened in an Aeromarine 75 during thePageant of Progress Exposition,Chicago, August 1921.
A further civil conversion for theAtlantic Coast Airways Corporation of Delaware was reported to accommodate 25 passengers in August 1928, withtalkies byFirst National Pictures run as a test on the inaugural flight. The airline bought about six ex-U.S. Navy aircraft and advertised a service betweenMontreal,Boston,Newport, New York, Atlantic City,Charleston,Miami and Havana.[3][4][5]
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On 13 January 1923, theAeromarine Airways Aeromarine 75Columbus suffered engine failure during a flight from Key West to Havana and landed in theFlorida Strait. Buffeted by 10-to-15-foot (3-to-4.5-metre) waves, its hull began to fill with water. Four passengers died, but the ferry shipH. M. Flagler saved the other three passengers and both crew members.[6]
Both a hull and float from a US Navy F5L are preserved at theNational Air and Space Museum (Smithsonian). The hull is only partially skinned with wood to reveal structure. Both artifacts are presently in storage and not available for public display.[7]
Data fromFlight 31 July 1919,[2] Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum:Felixstowe[7]
General characteristics
Performance
Armament
Related development
Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era
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