Skyranger | |
---|---|
Commonwealth Skyranger 185 | |
Role | Utility aircraft |
Manufacturer | Rearwin, Commonwealth |
Designer | Gene Salvay and George A. Stark |
First flight | 9 April 1940 |
Produced | 1940-1942, 1945-1947 |
Number built | 358 |
The Commonwealth Skyranger, first produced as the Rearwin Skyranger, was the last design of Rearwin Aircraft before the company was purchased by a new owner and renamed Commonwealth Aircraft. [1] It was a side-by-side, two-seat, high-wing taildragger.
The Rearwin company had specialized in aircraft powered by small radial engines, such as their Sportster and Cloudster, and had even purchased the assets of LeBlond Engines to make small radial engines in-house in 1937. By 1940, however, it was clear Rearwin would need a design powered by a small horizontally opposed engine to remain competitive. Intended for sport pilots and flying businessmen, the "Rearwin Model 165" first flew on April 9, 1940. Originally named the "Ranger," Ranger Engines (who also sold several engines named "Ranger") protested, and Rearwin renamed the design "Skyranger." The overall design and construction methods allowed Rearwin to take orders for Skyrangers then deliver the aircraft within 10 weeks. [2] : 179–180
The Skyranger's development in 1940 [1] came shortly before the U.S. entered World War II. At that time, the U.S. government was purchasing almost any airplane in the two-seat, 50-90 horsepower class as training aircraft for the Civilian Pilot Training Program ("CPT Program" or "CPTP"), intended to develop tens of thousands of pilots for the possibility of U.S. involvement in the war. However, unlike its contemporaries heavily used in the CPTP such as the Piper Cub, Taylorcraft, Interstate Cadet, and Porterfield Collegiate, the Skyranger was rejected by the government for CPTP use as too challenging to fly. [1]
By 1942, Rearwin had produced only 82 Skyrangers (compared to hundreds or thousands of its competitors' planes) when World War II forced production to halt. [3] [4] [2] : 186
In 1945 Commonwealth Aircraft re-established production of the Skyranger. The first 12 had to be hand-built, as the original jigs and tooling were recycled or scrapped during World War II. [2] : 186 In 1946, production shifted to Valley Stream, New York. the Commonwealth Skyranger had minor modifications but was essentially the same as the pre-war aircraft. Commonwealth went bankrupt in 1946, and was dissolved in March of 1947, partly because the pre-war design failed to compete with new designs and cheap war surplus aircraft. [2] : 213
The Skyranger was a high-wing light plane seating two people side-by-side. It had a conventional landing gear with a tailwheel. It was constructed with a fabric-covered steel tube fuselage and wooden wing (with a semi-symmetrical airfoil cross-section. The Skyranger was powered by a variety of opposed engines made by Continental Motors and the Franklin Engine Company, [4] ranging from 65 to 90 horsepower. It sold for $1,795 to $2,400. [5] [2] : 180
The Skyranger handled differently from the other planes in its class (such as the Cub, Taylorcraft, Cadet, Collegiate, and Aeronca Chief), with a "heavy-airplane feel" (heavy controls, exceptional stability). With an unusually large vertical stabilizer for its size, the Skyranger was exceptionally susceptible to crosswinds during landing and taxiing. [4] [1] Unusually for the time and aircraft in its class, the Skyranger was also designed with slots in its outer wings to allow controllability at lower speeds. [2] : 181
Rearwin also offered a low-cost version of the Skyranger from 1940 to 1941. [2] : 180
Data from Jane's all the World's Aircraft 1947 [12]
General characteristics
Performance
The Piper J-3 Cub is an American light aircraft that was built between 1938 and 1947 by Piper Aircraft. The aircraft has a simple, lightweight design which gives it good low-speed handling properties and short-field performance. The Cub is Piper Aircraft's second most-produced model after the PA-28 Cherokee series with over 20,000 built in the United States. Its simplicity, affordability and popularity invokes comparisons to the Ford Model T automobile.
The Cessna 180 Skywagon is a four- or six-seat, fixed conventional gear general aviation airplane which was produced between 1953 and 1981. Though the design is no longer in production, many of these aircraft are still in use as personal aircraft and in utility roles such as bush flying.
The Taylorcraft B is an American light, single-engine, high-wing general aviation monoplane, with two seats in side-by-side configuration, that was built by the Taylorcraft Aviation Corporation of Alliance, Ohio.
The Fargo Air Museum is an aviation related museum in Fargo, North Dakota. It is located at Hector International Airport in the northern part of the city. The museum includes many historic aircraft of which 90% are in flying condition.
The Taylorcraft L-2 Grasshopper is an American observation and liaison aircraft built by Taylorcraft for the United States Army Air Forces in World War II.
Rearwin Airplanes was a series of US airplane-manufacturing businesses founded by Andrew ("Rae") Rearwin in 1928. Rae Rearwin was an American businessman who had developed several successful business ventures in the Salina, Kansas area in the early 20th century. Although he had no experience with aircraft manufacturing, he felt that he could succeed with his solid business acumen. With his two sons, Ken and Royce, he hired some engineers and built the Ken-Royce in a garage in Salina. The business moved to the Fairfax Airport in Kansas City, Kansas, and went through several variations before it was sold to Commonwealth Aircraft in 1942, which went bankrupt in 1946.
The Interstate Cadet is an American two-seat tandem, high wing, single-engine monoplane light aircraft. Around 320 of these aircraft were produced between the years 1941 and 1942 by the Interstate Aircraft and Engineering Corporation based in El Segundo, California. The construction techniques employed were a welded steel tube fuselage, wood (spruce) wing structure with metal ribs, and fabric covering, all of which were fairly standard in the 1940s.
The Aeronca L is a 1930s American cabin monoplane designed and built, in small numbers, by Aeronca Aircraft. It differed significantly from other Aeronca planes by the use of radial engines, streamlining, and a cantilever low wing.
The Franklin O-175 was an American air-cooled aircraft engine of the 1940s. The engine was of horizontally-opposed four-cylinder and displaced 175 cu in (2.9 L). The power output was nominally 80 hp (60 kW). A later variant was designated O-180, despite sharing the same displacement.
The Franklin O-200 was an American air-cooled aircraft engine of the early 1940s. The engine was of four-cylinder, horizontally-opposed layout and displaced 200 cu in (3 L). The power output ranged between 65 hp (48 kW) and 100 hp (75 kW) depending on variant. The O-200-5 (4ACG-199) featured a geared propeller drive.
The Culver Cadet is an American two-seat light monoplane aircraft, also as a radio-controlled drone, produced by the Culver Aircraft Company.
Commonwealth Aircraft Company was an aircraft manufacturer from Valley Stream, New York. Originally Rearwin Aircraft & Engines of Kansas City, the company was renamed in 1942 after it was purchased by a new owner. During World War II, Commonwealth primarily made combat gliders under contract to the Waco Aircraft Company. After World War II, Commonwealth resumed production of the Rearwin-designed Commonwealth Skyranger and consolidated operations in Valley Stream, New York. Commonwealth Aircraft went bankrupt in March 1947 and ceased operations.
The Porterfield Collegiate is an American-built two-seat training and touring monoplane built by the Porterfield Aircraft Corporation of Kansas City.
The Rearwin Sportster is a 1930s American two-seat, high-winged, cabin monoplane designed and built by Rearwin Aircraft & Engines for sport/touring use.
The Rearwin Cloudster was a two or three-seat civil utility aircraft produced by the Rearwin Aircraft & Engines Company of Kansas City, Missouri beginning in 1939. It was a strut-braced, high-wing monoplane of conventional design with an enclosed cabin and fixed, taildragger undercarriage. One specialized version was produced as a trainer for Pan American Airways.
The Rearwin Speedster was a two-seat, high-wing, sport aircraft produced by Rearwin Airplanes Inc. in the United States in the 1930s.
The Taylorcraft Model D is a light aircraft of the US manufacturer Taylorcraft Aviation from the early 1940s.
The Aeronca K series, Aeronca Chief, Aeronca Super Chief, Aeronca Tandem, Aeronca Scout, Aeronca Sea Scout, Aeronca Champion and Aeronca Defender were a family of American high-winged light touring aircraft, designed and built starting in the late 1930s by Aeronca Aircraft.
The Taylorcraft Model F-19 Sportsman is a two-seat cabin monoplane designed and built by Taylorcraft Aircraft as the first new product of the reformed Taylorcraft Aviation Company. The F-19 fuselage is a fabric-covered 4130 steel tube framework; its wing is fabric-covered with a wooden spar. It has conventional landing gear and a tractor configuration 100 hp (75 kW) Continental O-200 engine.
The Rearwin Ken-Royce was an American three-seat sport/touring biplane built by Rearwin Airplanes first in Salina, Kansas then Kansas City. It was the first airplane built by the company.