Douglas C-1
{{Short description|US Army Air Service cargo aircraft}}
{{Infobox aircraft
|name = C-1
|image = Douglas C-1 051127-F-1234P-004.jpg
|caption =
|type = Transport
|national_origin = United States
|manufacturer = Douglas Aircraft Company
|designer =
|first_flight = 2 May 1925
|introduction = 1925
|retired =
|status =
|primary_user = United States Army Air Service
|more_users =
|produced =
|number_built = 26
|program cost =
|unit cost =
|developed_from =
|variants =
|developed_into =
}}
The Douglas C-1 was a cargo/transport aircraft produced by the Douglas Aircraft Corporation for the United States Army Air Service starting in 1925.
Design and development
Douglas received an order for nine single-engined transport aircraft in 1925, the first aircraft flying from Douglas's Santa Monica, California factory on 2 May 1925.Francillon 1979, p. 96. The C-1 was the first aircraft assigned in the new C- category. The aircraft design was based on several earlier and similar designs developed by Douglas in the early 1920s (including the Douglas World Cruisers used in the first round-the-world flight in 1924). The C-1 featured an enclosed passenger compartment capable of carrying six passengers or about 2,500 lb (1,100 kg) of cargo. A trap door was placed in the lower fuselage to allow large and/or heavy cargo (particularly aircraft engines) to be lifted directly into the cargo compartment. An auxiliary door for passengers and light cargo was included on the right side of the center fuselage.
Operational history
The C-1 biplane was powered by the Liberty L-12 engine and carried a crew of two in an open cockpit. A C-1 was flown in the 1926 Ford National Reliability Air Tour.Forden 2003, p. 24.
Seventeen additional aircraft were ordered in 1926 and 1927 for the United States Army Air Corps as C-1Cs and were slightly larger than the original C-1s.
Several C-1s were used in test programs—as an engine testbed, as a prototype air ambulance and as refueling aircraft for early air-to-air refueling experiments. Two of these aircraft were used as "tankers" in the 1929 record endurance flight of the Fokker C-2 Question Mark.
Variants
;C-1: Single-engined cargo/passenger transport aircraft, powered by a 435 hp (324 kW) Liberty V-1650-1 piston engine, accommodation for two crew and six to eight passengers.
;C-1A: One C-1 used to test a variety of engines and cowlings, it was also used for number of experiments with ski landing gear.
;C-1C: Single-engined cargo/passenger transport aircraft, fitted with a metal cabin floor, modified landing gear, it had a higher gross landing weight and increased dimensions, plus a new balanced rudder; 17 built
Operators
Specifications (Douglas C-1)
{{Aircraft specs
|ref=McDonnell Douglas aircraft since 1920 : Volume I{{cite book |last1=Francillon |first1=René J. |title=McDonnell Douglas aircraft since 1920 : Volume I |date=1988 |publisher=Naval Institute Press |location=London |isbn=0870214284 |pages=82–84}}
|prime units?=imp
|genhide=
|crew=2
|capacity=6 or 8 pax / {{cvt|2500|lb}} payload
|length ft=35
|length in=4
|length note=
|span ft=56
|span in=7
|span note=
|height ft=14
|height in=
|height note=
|wing area sqft=805
|wing area note=
|aspect ratio=
|empty weight lb=3836
|empty weight note=
|gross weight lb=6443
|gross weight note=
|max takeoff weight lb=
|max takeoff weight note=
|fuel capacity=
|lift lb=
|lift note=
|more general=
|eng1 number=1
|eng1 name=Liberty V-1650-1
|eng1 type=V-12 water-cooled piston engine
|eng1 hp=435
|prop blade number=2
|prop name=fixed-pitch propeller
|prop dia ft=
|prop dia in=
|prop dia note=
|max speed mph=116
|max speed note=at sea level
|max speed mach=
|cruise speed mph=85
|cruise speed note=
|stall speed mph=
|stall speed note=
|never exceed speed mph=
|never exceed speed note=
|minimum control speed mph=
|minimum control speed note=
|range miles=385
|range note=
|combat range miles=
|combat range note=
|ferry range miles=
|ferry range note=
|endurance=
|ceiling ft=14850
|ceiling note=
|g limits=
|roll rate=
|glide ratio=
|climb rate ftmin=645
|climb rate note=
|time to altitude=
|sink rate ftmin=
|sink rate note=
|lift to drag=
|wing loading lb/sqft=8
|wing loading note=
|fuel consumption lb/mi=
|power/mass={{cvt|0.0676|hp/lb|kW/kg}}
|more performance=
}}
References
;Notes
{{reflist}}
;Bibliography
{{refbegin}}
- Forden, Lesley. The Ford Air Tours: 1925-1931. New Brighton Minnesota: Aviation Foundation of America, 2003, First edition 1972. No ISBN.
- Francillon, René J. McDonnell Douglas Aircraft since 1920. London: Putnam, 1979. {{ISBN|0-370-00050-1}}.
{{refend}}
External links
{{Commons category}}
- The National Museum of the United States Air Force has articles on the [https://web.archive.org/web/20070824050604/http://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/factsheets/factsheet.asp?id=3233 C-1], [https://web.archive.org/web/20120422035519/http://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/factsheets/factsheet.asp?id=3234 C-1A], [https://web.archive.org/web/20120422035524/http://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/factsheets/factsheet.asp?id=3235 C-1B] (never built), and [https://web.archive.org/web/20120422035529/http://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/factsheets/factsheet.asp?id=3236 C-1C], and also on the use of the C-1 as an [https://web.archive.org/web/20120422035534/http://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/factsheets/factsheet.asp?id=3237 air ambulance].
{{Douglas aircraft}}
{{USAF transports}}