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| Air Express | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Role | Passenger and Mail transport |
| National origin | United States |
| Manufacturer | Lockheed |
| First flight | April 1928 |
| Number built | 8 |
| Developed from | Lockheed Vega |
The Lockheed Air Express was the second aircraft design created by the Lockheed Aircraft Company after its founding in 1927; the type first flew in April 1928. [1]
The Air Express design incorporated the original fuselage of the Vega, but in order to meet the requirements of Western Air Express, the wing was raised to a parasol configuration above the fuselage and the cockpit was moved behind the wing, while a more powerful Pratt & Whitney Wasp engine was fitted to ease operations over the Sierra Nevada mountains. [2] The design was a commercial success for the company although only seven were built, plus one Air Express Special.
The Lockheed Vega is an American six-passenger high-wing monoplane airliner built by the Lockheed Corporation starting in 1927. It became famous for its use by a number of record-breaking pilots who were attracted to the rugged and very long-range design. Amelia Earhart became the first woman to fly the Atlantic solo in one, and Wiley Post used his to prove the existence of the jet stream after having flown around the world twice.
The Sierra Nevada is a mountain range in the Western United States, between the Central Valley of California and the Great Basin. The vast majority of the range lies in the state of California, although the Carson Range spur lies primarily in Nevada. The Sierra Nevada is part of the American Cordillera, a chain of mountain ranges that consists of an almost continuous sequence of such ranges that form the western "backbone" of North America, Central America, South America and Antarctica.
No Air Expresses have survived to the present day. One, registered NR3057, was flown by Roscoe Turner.
Roscoe Turner was a record-breaking American aviator who was a three-time winner of the Thompson Trophy air race and widely recognized by his flamboyant style and his pet Gilmore the Lion.
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Data from Lockheed Aircraft since 1913 [3]
General characteristics
The Pratt & Whitney Wasp was the civilian name of a family of air-cooled radial piston engines developed in the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s.
Performance
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