Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-05-04
MANY WAR PLANES |
TO FLY IN RACES!'
Five Standard Types Will Be
in Anacostia Contests.
Others Shown.

Virtually every type of military plane
used by the United States Navy will be
shown to the public in connection with
the Curtiss Marine Trophy races, to be
flown at the Anacostia Naval Air Sta
ton May "a Planes Of five different
standard types will participate in the
races and others will be seen in the re-
view of $50 fighting planes from the
scouting and battle fleets. A number
of experimental types are in the
hangers at the station undergoing rigid
examination at the hands of flight test
pilots.
There will be separate races for each
of the five types of planes entered in
the races-flghter, observation, amphib-
ian, torpedo and bombardment and
training. Prizes will be offered for
winners in each class, in addition to
the CurtisS trophy for the fastest plane
CT all types.
David S. Ingalls,, Assistant Secretary
of the Navy for Aeronautics, has Of
fered a trophy for the pilot whose plane
makes the highest percentage of its
service speed rating. All types of planes
will be eligible to compete for this
trophy on an equal footing, since each
will be racing against the service speed
set up for its particular type.
Speeds to Be Represented.
The service speeds for several Of the
standard types which will be repre-
scented in the races are as follows:
F6C3 and F6C4, fighters, 1855 miles
per hour; OL-6, Looming amphibian,
12l miles per hour; OILS, Looming with
Wasp motor A, 118 miles per hour and
O2U-l, observation plane, with Wasp
A, las miles per hour and with Wasp
B, lat miles per hour; Tamil, Martin
torpedo and bombing plane, 112 miles
per hour: MIC, CurtisS training plane,
112 miles per hour; NIX, Keystone
trainer. ia miles per hour, and NY.
Consolidated trainer, IS miles per
hour.
One of the fighters undoubtedly will
be the winner of the Curtiss Trophy,
the only other type having a remote
chance being the observation type
known as the Vought Corsair. The
Navy is expected to enter only two
types of fighters in this years races
models of the CurtiSs Hawk, mounted
on seaplane floats.
In the Navy fighting planes are
divided into two general types. There
are carrier fighters, with landing
wheels. used for operation from the air
plane carriers, and battleship fighters,
with pontoonS, used for catapult
launchings from battleships and cruis-
ers. Either is convertible to the other
type by substitution of pontoons for
wheels, or vice versa. Since the Curtiss
race is restricted to seaplanes and fly
ing boats, the battleship type will be
used.
The Navy fighter has for its principal
mission the destruction OF enemy air.
craft in the air, either, extensively or for
the protection of ships or of the slower
torpedo and bombing planes. They are
armed with two propellers synchron-
lied to fire through the arc of the pro-
peller, the guns being aimed by point
ing the whole plane. The fighter has
secondary purpose-light lombard
ment. They carry up to 500 pounds Of
light bombs, and may be used for div
ing bombardment attacks on enemy
surface vessels.
Two-Seater Type "Spotter."
The Navy observation plane, or
"spotter," as it is known, is of the two
scatter type, the most widely used being
the vought Corsair. The spotter may
be used just as the fighter, for carrier
or catapult launching, equipped either
with wheels or pontoons. Both types
are used. The observation plane, as its
name implies, is used for locating the
enemy. observing the progress Of battle
maneuverS, and particularly for the
noting of the effect of shellfire and the
reporting of corrections to the gun
crews.
The Corsair carries two fixed machine
guns in the wings, fired by the pilot and
aimed by pointing the plane, and fiex-
ible gun in the rear cockpit, fired by the
observer. 1t also may carry bombs. The
Navy also makes some use Of the Loen-
ing amphibian for observation purposes,
though 1t Is classed as q utility plane
and will be flown as a separate class
in the races.
The torpedo plane may carry either
q standard Navy torpedo or bombs. For
attack with torpedos, it must operate
close to the surface of the water,
launching its torpedo at a distance OF
two miles or more from the vessel II
is attacking so as to escape gun fire.
AS bomber it is used in the normal
manner, launching the bombs from an
altitude above the target.
Utility planes, to be represented in
the races only by the Looming amphib-
ian, also include such types as the
Sikorsky amphibian and the Ford tri-
motored transport. They are used, as
the name indicates, for general utility,
including the transportation Of men
and materials.
Training planes never are used for
combat work, but are employed to teach
elementary flight, gunnery and radio to
student pilots. They are all of the dual
control type, so they may be flown
either by the instructor or student and
are built to withstand the shocks OF
bad landings and rough usage at the
hands of unskilled students. They
have low landing and take-of speeds,
and are designed with a view to re-
liability and safety.