The Consolidated P2Y was an American flying boat maritime patrol aircraft . The plane was a parasol monoplane with a fabric-covered wing and aluminum hull. The aircraft was also made by Martin as the P3M, due to an open production contract.
16-518: Initially created to compete for a U.S. Navy contract dated February 28, 1928, the prototype Model 9, XPY-1 , was designed by Captain Dick Richardson and Isaac M. 'Mac' Laddon . Beginning construction in March 1928, the aircraft was ready for its first flight by the end of the year. Lieutenant A. W. Gorton made the first flight out of Anacostia NAS , Washington, D.C. The production contract
32-563: A sesquiplane with a smaller wing mounted lower, at the top of the hull, replacing the booms that had supported the stabilizing pontoons on the XPY-1 . Two Wright R-1820 -E1 Cyclone engines were located close below the top wing and had narrow-chord cowlings. A third similar engine was mounted on a strut along the centerline above the wing, but was removed after the first test in April 1932. The Navy ordered 23 P2Y-3s as production models similar to
48-537: A 1000-mile flight, the boat probably could accommodate no more than 14 people including the crew. Wing and tail construction consisted of a metal frame structure covered with fabric, except for metal-covered leading edges. The Commodore had significant changes from the XPY-1. These included more powerful engines, fuselage shape and structural improvements. With a first flight in 1929, a total of 14 Commodore boats were built. Starting February 18, 1930 Commodores were flown by
64-537: A first step in the United States along a road that was to lead to the highly efficient monoplane-type patrol and transport flying boats later in the 1930s. The XPY-1 and its civil counterpart, the Commodore, may be considered progenitors in a series of flying boat developments that led to the famous Consolidated PBY Catalina of World War II fame. The only known Model 16 Commodore remaining has been located in
80-555: A marked change from earlier patrol boat designs such as the Curtiss NC . In response to losing the Navy contract, Consolidated offered a passenger-carrying version of the XPY-1, which became known as the Commodore. A parasol wing monoplane with all-metal hull, it could accommodate 32 passengers and a crew of three. The full complement of passengers, located in three cabins, could be carried only on relatively short route segments. For
96-543: The Admiral Flying Boat of 1928, the first in a series of famous Consolidated seaplanes that evolved into the highly regarded PBY Catalina of which a total of 3,282 were built. His B-24 Liberator had both the largest production run of any World War II bomber, and is still listed as the most-produced multi-engined aircraft of any type in history. He was also responsible for designing the streamlined Convair airliners used by commercial airlines throughout
112-654: The New York, Rio, Buenos Aires Line from the United States to South America where routes extended as far south as Buenos Aires , a distance of 9000 miles from Miami . One testimony to the Commodore in Pan Am service was made by a Pan Am pilot, Marius Lodeesen who wrote " . . . the good old Consolidated Commodore was the most reliable, trusty air craft of the Pan American fleet during the early 1930s. . . . She
128-497: The P2Y-2s that were modified from the original batch of P2Y-1 s. The Navy ordered 23 P2Y-1s on 7 July 1931. By mid-1933 they were serving with VP-10F and VP-5F squadrons which made a number of long-range formation flights. At least 21 P2Y-1s were modified to P2Y-2s in 1936 and flown by VP-5F and VP-10F until 1938, when they were transferred to VP-14 and VP-15 . The first P2Y-3s reached VP-7F in 1935, and this version
144-541: The "Consolidated Navy Experimental Type C Flying-Boat". A P2Y-3 was used to test Curtiss electric propellers in 1936. Data from The Complete Encyclopedia of World Aircraft ; range from American Aircraft of World War II General characteristics Performance Armament Related development Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era Related lists Isaac M. Laddon Isaac Machlin Laddon (25 December 1894 – 14 January 1976)
160-712: The 1920s to create an aircraft capable of nonstop flights between the mainland of the United States and Panama , Alaska , and the Hawaiian Islands . In response to these requirements, Consolidated produced the prototype XPY-1 Admiral, designed by Isaac M. Laddon , in January 1929. Consolidated lost out on the contract to produce the airplanes for the navy to the Glenn L. Martin Company . Martin produced one prototype XP2M and nine production P3Ms. The aircraft represented
176-547: The XPY-1 had been studied and rejected by Navy Bureau of Aeronautics staff. A new contract was placed by the U.S. Navy on May 26, 1931, for a prototype of a developed version of the Model 9, XPY-1 , designated the Model 22 Ranger by Consolidated. Incorporating features of the Model 16 Commodore , such as the enclosed flight deck, designated the XP2Y-1 by the Navy, this new prototype had the same 100 ft parasol wing, but became
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#1732776377818192-525: The world. He died in San Diego . Consolidated Commodore The Consolidated Commodore was an American flying boat built by Consolidated Aircraft and used for passenger travel in the 1930s, mostly in the Caribbean , operated by companies like Pan American Airways . A pioneer of the long-haul passenger aircraft industry, the Commodore "Clipper" grew out of a Navy design competition in
208-608: Was an American aeronautical engineer and designer. He was born in Garfield, New Jersey . He was educated at McGill University in Montreal from 1915. He joined the U.S. Air Service Experimental and Engineering Test Center at McCook Field , Ohio in 1917, and within two years had become the chief designer for all large aircraft development. He held numerous patents in the aviation industry. He joined Consolidated Aircraft Company as Chief Engineer in 1927. His designs included
224-549: Was flown by VP-4F at Pearl Harbor and in 1939 was in operation with VP-19 , VP-20 , and VP-21 . By the end of 1941, all the P2Y-2s and P2Y-3s had been withdrawn from operational use and were at Naval Air Station Pensacola . The Colombian Air Force used one Commodore P2Y as a bomber in the Colombia-Peru War in 1932–1933. The Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service evaluated the Consolidated P2Y as
240-603: Was hoisted aloft by two engines. They must have been Pratt and Whitneys because they never gave any trouble. . . Waterlooping the Commodore was impossible. Making a bad landing in her was hard work. She was the loveliest boat I ever flew." As the 1930s progressed the Commodores were gradually superseded by more efficient aircraft such as the Sikorsky S-42 , Martin 130 , and Boeing 314 . A number of them went on to serve with other operators. The Commodore may be considered
256-459: Was opened to other bidders, and the Glenn L. Martin Company undercut them and was awarded the contract to construct the plane as the Martin P3M-1 and P3M-2 . Three P3M-1s and six P3M-2s were built; one XP2M-1 was also built to a similar design, powered by three Wright Cyclone engines; following the removal of the third engine it was redesignated XP2M-2 . The idea of a third engine on
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