Sikorsky S-42
| Sikorsky S-42 | |
|---|---|
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| |
| Role | Flying boat Airliner |
| National origin | United States |
| Manufacturer | Sikorsky |
| Designer | Igor Sikorsky |
| First flight | 29 March 1934 (Prototype) |
| Introduction | 1934 |
| Status | Retired, none remaining |
| Primary user | Pan American Airways |
| Number built | 10 |
The Sikorsky S-42 was an 1930s American commercial flying boat designed and built by Sikorsky to meet a 1931 requirement from Pan American for a long-range transatlantic flying boat.
Design and development
Based on the earlier Sikorsky S-40 that flew in 1931, Igor Sikorsky and Charles Lindbergh, working at the time as a Pan American Airways consultant, laid out plans for a new, larger flying boat. During the S-40's inaugural flight on 19 November 1931, the two visionaries began preliminary sketches on the back of a menu in the S-40's lounge.
Pan Am's president, Juan Trippe, had a similar vision of an aircraft able to span oceans. The new design provided for an increased lifting capacity to carry enough fuel for a 2,500 mile nonstop flight against a 30 mph (48 km/h) wind, at a cruising speed far in excess of the average operating speed of any flying boat at that time. Pan Am was also courted by Glenn Martin but Sikorsky's S-42 was delivered first, as the Martin M-130 was still almost a year away from completion.
Operational history
Flying for Pan American Airways, a total of 10 S-42s were built, manufactured by the Vought-Sikorsky Aircraft Division of the United Aircraft Corporation in Stratford, Connecticut. The prototype first flew on 30 March 1934.
The S-42 only served with Pan American Airways. It was used on many routes, including the San Francisco - Hawaii, New York - Bermuda, and Hong Kong -China.
The S-42 was also known as the Flying Clipper and the Pan Am Clipper. [1]
British Marine Aircraft Ltd. was formed in February 1936 to produce S-42-A flying boats under licence 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 the deal fell through the company was sold to H.P. Folland, who renamed it Folland Aircraft Limited.[2]
All Sikorsky S-42s were either scrapped or destroyed in accidents.
Variants
- S-42
- Production aircraft with four 700 hp (522 kW) Pratt & Whitney Hornet S5D1G radial engines, three built: NC 822M, NC 823M, NC 824M.
- S-42A
- Production aircraft with four 750hp (559kW) Pratt & Whitney Hornet S1EG radial engines, longer wings and a 2000lb (907Kg) increase in maximum take-off weight, four built: NC 15373, NC 15374, NC 15375, NC 15376[3].
- S-42B
- Production aircraft with aerodynamic improvements, constant-speed Hamilton Standard propellers and a further 2000lb (907Kg) increase in maximum take-off weight, three built: NC 16734, NC 16735, NC 16736.
Specifications (S-42-A)
Data from [citation needed]
General characteristics
- Crew: 4
- Capacity: up to 37 day passengers or 14 sleeper berths
Performance
See also
Related development
Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era
References
- Notes
- ^ Flying Clippers
- ^ Fagan, Dave. "Hamble." Aviation in Hampshire UK 1900 to 2000. Retrieved: 5 July 2009.
- ^ The Crash of NC 15376
- Bibliography
- Davies, R.E.G. Pan Am: An Airline and its Aircraft. New York: Orion Books, 1987. ISBN 0-517-56639-7.
- Yenne, Bill. Seaplanes & Flying Boats: A Timeless Collection from Aviation's Golden Age. New York: BCL Press, 2003. ISBN 1-932302-03-4.
External links
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