Misplaced Pages

#262737

26-605: During the inaugural flight of Sikorsky's previous flying boat, the S-40 , on November 19, 1931, the pilot and Pan American Airways consultant, Charles Lindbergh , who considered the S-40 a monstrosity, engaged designer Igor Sikorsky in a conversation about what he thought the next airplane should look like. The conversation continued that night at the hotel in Jamaica. Sikorsky argued that design development should be incremental and that

52-529: A 2,500 mi (4,000 km) nonstop flight against a 30 mph (50 km/h) headwind, at a higher cruising speed than the norm for similar flying boats at that time. Of the six companies tenders had been sent to, only Sikorsky and Martin provided submissions. Sikorsky offered the S-42. The other offer was the more ambitious Martin M-130 . The new Sikorsky design, the S-42, had major aerodynamic improvements over

78-576: A New York-to-Bermuda service. 1940 saw S-42 flights between Seattle and Alaska. An S-42 was also used between Manila and Hong Kong. British Marine Aircraft Ltd. was formed in February 1936 to produce S-42A flying boats under license in the United Kingdom but nothing came of this. The company built a factory on the western side of the Hamble peninsula with a slipway to Southampton Water . When

104-430: A fishing boat that was in his path but one pontoon struck the boat and the aircraft overturned. On January 11, 1938, Pan Am Flight 1, an S-42B named Samoan Clipper (formerly Pan American Clipper II ), exploded near Pago Pago, American Samoa . The flying boat developed an engine problem shortly after takeoff. The pilot elected to dump fuel before making an emergency landing, but the aircraft exploded while fuel dumping

130-525: A flight engineer pulled the gas dump valve control instead of the fire extinguisher control. The expulsion of fuel spread the fire and the resulting inferno destroyed the aircraft. No one was killed or injured. On August 8, 1944, Pan Am Flight 218, an S-42 named Hong Kong Clipper (formerly West Indies Clipper and Pan Am Clipper I ) on a return trip from San Juan to Miami with intermediate stops at Port-au-Prince and Antilla, Cuba , crashed shortly after taking off from Antilla. After striking, bow first,

156-576: A larger passenger-carrying airplane. The S-40 could carry 38 passengers, a significant increase over the S-38 's eight passengers. Wind tunnel testing of the S-40 started in October 1928, and models of the hull were tested in April 1929. The aircraft featured a pantry with an electric refrigerator and stove as well as a smoking lounge with book-ended mahogany wood paneling. Six life rafts were carried. Despite

182-632: A pontoon striking a rail at the edge of ramp. Beaching is when the flying boat is on the water, but brings its wheels down to come on to land, usually by a seaplane ramp. Another was damaged at Dinner Key in April 1943, and then returned to Pan-American by the Navy, however it was not returned to service but was used for spare parts. Data from American airplane specifications General characteristics Performance Related development Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era Related lists Samoan Clipper Samoan Clipper

208-439: A significant size increase over the preceding S-38, the S-40 design was a conservative iteration of the smaller aircraft; the numerous flying wires and strut braces that were used in the exterior support framework caused significant drag and prompted Charles Lindbergh , retained as a consultant for Pan American, to tell Sikorsky "it would be like flying a forest through the air." Only three were built as Sikorsky began designing

234-621: A transport in the Caribbean and to South America. All Sikorsky S-42s were either scrapped or destroyed in crashes. In 1947, inventor Lemuel Stewart purchased the fuselage of S-42 NC-822M Brazilian Clipper from Pan Am for $ 750.00, converted it to a six-room houseboat, and kept it docked in a boat canal in Miami, Florida. Its ultimate fate is unknown. On April 11, 1936, a Pan Am S-42 crashed on takeoff from Port of Spain, Trinidad & Tobago, killing three of 25 on board. The pilot swerved to avoid

260-471: The Sikorsky S-40A . Upgrades included replacing the original 575 hp (429 kW) Pratt & Whitney R-1860 Hornet B engines with smaller displacement but more powerful supercharged 660 hp (490 kW) R-1690 Hornet T2D1 engines, eliminating the landing gear, and increasing the maximum weight slightly. Another source states the landing gear was removed soon after the type certificate

286-406: The S-40. Igor Sikorsky said, "in its very outline the S-42 represents simplicity. Diverting sharply from the past Sikorsky designs, external bracings have been reduced to a minimum. The tail, instead of being supported by outriggers, is attached directly to the hull." The S-42 had a high wing loading which required flaps to provide acceptable takeoff and landing speeds. Though Lindbergh approved of

SECTION 10

#1732773167263

312-594: The S-42, it fell far short of his proposed range. Stripped of all accommodations, with extra fuel tanks in the fuselage, the S-42 was just able to fly proving flights across the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. Pan Am would have to wait for the Martin M-130 to have an airliner capable of flying the Pacific with a payload. Pan Am's S-42s were used primarily on the Miami - Rio de Janeiro route. In 1937 S-42s also operated

338-478: The US Navy during World War II, who used them as trainers for four-engined flight instruction. Under Navy service, the aircraft were designated Sikorsky RS-4 . (see also Sikorsky RS ) Two of the S-40 were pressed into Navy service, and called RS-4. In July 1943, an RS-4 (752V) was coming in for beaching when it struck an unforeseen submerged rock, which damaged the wheel strut, which in turn caused list that lead

364-625: The United States, flying first to England by the northern route, and then to Portugal by the Bermuda-Azores route. In March 1939 a Pan Am S-42 was scheduled to leave Miami at 0730, stop overnight in San Juan, Port of Spain, Belem and Recife, and arrive at Rio de Janeiro at 1530 on the fifth day. (It returned to Miami, and passengers to Buenos Aires continued on DC2/DC3s.) In early 1942 the U.S. Navy acquired one S-42 which it used as

390-502: The aircraft swerved violently to the right and broke apart. On December 8, 1941, a Pan Am S-42B named Hong Kong Clipper II (formerly Bermuda Clipper and Alaska Clipper ) was destroyed on the water at Kai Tak Airport , Hong Kong , during a Japanese bombing raid. On July 27, 1943, while docked at Manaus in Brazil a Pan Am S-42B named Bermuda Clipper (formerly Pan American Clipper III ) developed an engine fire in response to which

416-426: The crew decided to return to port. However, the S-42, fully loaded with fuel, was too heavy to land safely in the limited space of the harbor, so the crew elected to dump fuel before landing. While fuel dumping was in progress, there was a fire and explosion which destroyed the aircraft, killing all aboard. The exact cause of ignition for the fire could not be determined. This American Samoa –related article

442-650: The deal fell through, the company was sold to Henry Folland , who renamed it Folland Aircraft Limited . Flying for Pan American Airways, a total of ten S-42s were built, manufactured by the Vought-Sikorsky Aircraft Division of the United Aircraft Corporation in Stratford, Connecticut . The prototype first flew on March 30, 1934. Pan American was the sole customer for the S-42. The S-42 Pan Am Clipper surveyed

468-587: The early 1930s for Pan American Airways . During WW2 they were used by the United States Navy for training. This was the first of flying clippers, large flying boats of the 1930s used for long distance air travel. More advanced designs soon followed, but the S-40 was big step forward as it could carry 38 passengers as opposed to the S-38's eight. Sikorsky designed the S-40 in response to a request from Juan Trippe , president of Pan American Airways , for

494-428: The flying boat left the water in a slightly nose-high attitude, then returned, and by the third time, stalled. There were 17 fatalities (all passengers) out of the 26 passengers and five crew. Data from , Sikorsky S-42 Clipper History General characteristics Performance Related development Sikorsky S-40 The Sikorsky S-40 was an American amphibious flying boat built by Sikorsky in

520-654: The more advanced and streamlined S-42 shortly after the S-40 entered service, based partly on input from Lindbergh. All three S-40s were built by the Vought-Sikorsky Aircraft Division of the United Aircraft in Stratford, Connecticut . The first test flight occurred on August 6, 1931. The first aircraft was christened American Clipper by Lou Henry Hoover , wife of President Herbert Hoover , on October 12, 1931 at NAS Anacostia ; after its christening, American Clipper flew around Washington, D.C. In 1935, all three aircraft were upgraded and re-designated as

546-605: The route from the US West Coast to China, making the first survey flight from Alameda, California to Pearl Harbor , Hawaii in April 1935. According to Sikorsky, "Later on, another Pan American S-42 inaugurated the longest over ocean airline in the world from San Francisco to New Zealand. Finally in July, 1937, another S-42 Clipper made the first regular airline crossing of the North Atlantic Ocean starting from

SECTION 20

#1732773167263

572-426: The safe approach would be a larger S-40. Lindbergh argued that a sleeker design, with a range in still air of 2,500 mi (4,000 km), was needed. In June 1931 Pan Am president Juan Trippe had requested designs from six aircraft companies for an aircraft able to span the oceans. The new design would need increased lifting capacity to carry enough fuel and 300 lb (140 kg) of mail, but no passengers, for

598-411: The succeeding S-42. The S-40 was Pan American's first large flying boat. American Clipper served as the flagship of Pan Am's clipper fleet and this aircraft model was the first to earn the popular designation of "Clipper" or "Pan Am Clipper". The three S-40s served without incident during their civilian lives, flying a total of over 10 million miles. They were retired around 1940 and turned over to

624-458: Was in progress. All seven crew members (including famous aviator Captain Ed Musick ), died in the crash. On October 3, 1941, Pam Am Flight 203, an S-42A named Dominican Clipper , crashed on landing in the harbour at San Juan, Puerto Rico , killing two of 27 on board. After the approach to San Juan, the aircraft hit the water in a nose-low attitude while moving sideways; after the first contact

650-500: Was issued. Passenger carrying service was initiated on November 19, 1931, with a S-40 piloted by Charles Lindbergh and Basil Rowe, flying from Miami, Florida to the Panama Canal Zone with stops at Cienfuegos , Cuba; Kingston, Jamaica , and Barranquilla , Colombia. Igor Sikorsky , the aircraft's designer, was on board as a passenger; during that trip, Sikorsky and Lindbergh began working on concepts that were used in

676-452: Was one of ten Pan American Airways Sikorsky S-42 flying boats . It exploded near Pago Pago, American Samoa , on January 11, 1938, while piloted by aviator Edwin Musick . Musick and his crew of six died in the crash. The aircraft was carrying only airmail and express freight; no passengers were aboard. The aircraft developed an oil leak shortly after taking off from Pago Pago harbor, and

#262737