| Curtiss Carrier Pigeon | |
|---|---|
 | |
| General information | |
| Type | Mail aircraft |
| National origin | United States |
| Manufacturer | Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company |
| Primary user | U.S. Airmail |
| History | |
| First flight | 1925 |
| Variant | Curtiss Lark |
TheCurtiss Carrier Pigeon was anAmericanmail plane of the 1920s. A single-enginedbiplane designed and built to replaceWorld War I surplus aircraft such as theDH-4, the Carrier Pigeon was one of the first aircraft designed specifically forU.S. Airmail service.
In 1925 theU.S. Postal Service felt they had excellent operational service with convertedAirco D.H.4 biplanes. The eight-year-old designs were considered antiquated by this time, however, and a modern purpose-built machine was desired. While most manufacturers started to build new generation passenger aircraft with mail cargo capability, the Curtiss Carrier Pigeon was the first clean-sheet design specifically made for U.S. air-mail service. The aircraft was intended to be sold directly to the Postal Service, but new legislation that opened up outside contracts brought on a slew of competing models.
The Carrier Pigeon was drawn up to meet or exceed the original postal specifications. Strength, serviceability, and ease of maintenance were the three core design criteria. It was intended to provide service on the nighttime runs between Chicago and New York, with only one stop. The plane was built to take advantage of the powerful and plentiful 400 hpLiberty L-12 engine to meet Postal specifications. Up to 40,000airmail letters could be carried in the 1,000 lb capacity cargo hold.
The fuselage was a welded steel tube frame covered in fabric. The upper and lower wings were interchangeable and used solid, unsplicedspruce spars. The rudder, ailerons, and elevators were also interchangeable, which reduced spares counts.[1] The hinges used heavy replaceable bronze pins to reduce wear.
The watertight cargo hold was at the center of gravity so the aircraft could accommodate a range of loads without affecting the balance. The landing gear used rubber doughnut suspension. The fuel tank could be jettisoned in case of an emergency. A seven quartfire extinguisher was plumbed to the engine compartment for suppression of inflight fires. The pilot could choose between wheel or stick control based on his preference.[2]
A prototype Curtiss Carrier Pigeon flown by Charles S. (Casey) Jones placed 7th in the 1925Edsel B. Ford Reliability Tour. Out of 17 starters, 11 aircraft including the Carrier Pigeon completed with a perfect score, netting a $350 prize.[3][4]Henry Ford waited at the finish line to greet the winners of the 1,900 mile endurance test.[5]
The Carrier Pigeon was used byNational Air Transport Inc. At the time, both Curtiss and NAT were owned and controlled byClement Keys. Ten Carrier Pigeons were put into service with 35 surplus Liberty engine spares. NAT used the Carrier Pigeon for theContract Air Mail CAM-3 (Chicago-Dallas) route. The first recorded service was on May 12, 1926 with The route betweenChicago, Illinois andDallas, Texas. Stops were scheduled inMoline, Illinois,Saint Joseph, Missouri,Kansas City, Missouri,Wichita, Kansas,Oklahoma City, Oklahoma andFort Worth, Texas. The maiden flight was piloted by D A Askew, R L Dobie, R H Fatt, Lawrence H Garrison, P E Johnson, H L Kindred and Edmund Matucha. These pilots logged 776,351 miles of flight in the first year without an accident or loss of any mail.
NAT invested $10 million competing for the nighttime Chicago to New York route (CAM 17). NAT started service on September 1, 1927 using Carrier Pigeons from CAM-3.[6] These planes flew the earlylighted airway from Cheyenne to Chicago, and recently extended to New York. The path over the Allegheny Mountains was referred to as the "Hell Stretch".[7] Early in 1929, NAT acquired seven 625 hp Curtiss Falcons, these replaced the smaller Carrier Pigeons. D. A. Askew flew the final Carrier Pigeon flight. He had flown this same aircraft on the inaugural CAM No. 3 flight.[8] On February 9, 1934, the Post Office cancelled all airmail contracts on suspicion that the mail carrying contracts had been awarded through collusion during the previous administration.[9]
One fatal airmail crash was recorded in a Carrier Pigeon. Arthur R. Smith was killed in aircraft #602 when he hit trees nearMontpelier, Ohio, en route to Chicago.[10]
On November 27, 1929,Evelyn "Bobbi" Trout andElinor Smith took off from Metropolitan Airport in aCommercial Sunbeam biplane in an attempt to set an official record for a refueled endurance flight by women. A Carrier Pigeon was used as the tanker aircraft, which refueled the Sunbeam 3 1/2 times.[11] The Sunbeam was to be refueled in early morning and before sunset. Refueling went well. With shifts of four hours each, two days passed. By Thanksgiving Day, they had been up for 39 hours. While refueling, the Carrier Pigeon began trailing black smoke. Trout quickly tossed the fueling hose over the side as Smith maneuvered away from the ailing Carrier Pigeon. It landed, and the fliers emerged safely.[12]
Data from Curtiss Aircraft 1907–1947[14]
General characteristics
Performance
Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era
