Ryan M-1

Last updated
M-1 and M-2
Ryan M-1 NX2073 HARM Creve Coeur 2006.jpg
Original Ryan M-1 NC2073 in Pacific Air Transport markings in the Historic Aircraft Restoration Museum, Creve Coeur airport, Missouri.
General information
TypeMailplane
National originUnited States
Manufacturer Ryan
Designer
Hawley Bowlus, W A Mankey, John Northrop [1]
Statustwo airworthy in 2009
Number built36
History
First flight14 February 1926

The Ryan M-1 was a mail plane produced in the United States in the 1920s. It was the first original design built by Ryan Aeronautical. [2] It was a conventional gear parasol-wing monoplane with two open cockpits in tandem and fixed, tailskid undercarriage. [3]

Contents

Design and development

The follow-on M-2 was substantially the same as the M-1. [2] The prototype M-1 was originally powered by a Hispano-Suiza 8A, but production examples featured a variety of engines in the same general power range, with the Wright J-4B chosen for nine of the sixteen M-1s built, [2] and the prototype later refitted with this engine. [4]

According to Cassagneres, "Dimensions allowed for a front cockpit that could accommodate two passengers side by side, or one passenger and a sack of mail, or just mail sacks and no passenger. Dual controls were provided, so a passenger flying up front could get in some 'stick time' if he wished. The M-1 cowling had a feature that was to become almost a trademark on all subsequent Ryan models up to the ST. This was the distinctive 'engine-turning' or 'jeweling' effect achieved by burnishing the aluminum. [5]

Operational history

A M-1 was flown in the 1926 Ford National Reliability Air Tour. [6]

Pacific Air Transport operated J-4B-powered M-1s and M-2s on their demanding Seattle–San Francisco–Los Angeles mail route, [7] while Hispano-Suiza-powered machines flew with Colorado Airways between Cheyenne and Pueblo [2] and Yukon Airways between Whitehorse and Dawson City. [7]

One M-2 (named Bluebird) was built with a fully enclosed cabin for the pilot and four passengers, foreshadowing Ryan's highly successful Brougham series. [7] The standard M-2, meanwhile, was Charles Lindbergh's first choice for his transatlantic flight. [8] His list of requirements for the aircraft soon made it apparent, however, that rather than modifying an M-2, it would be more effective to build an all-new design along the same general lines, which resulted in the Ryan NYP Spirit of St Louis. [8]

Operators

Flag of the United States (23px).png  United States

Aircraft on display

The M-1 prototype was restored to flying condition between 1980 and 1984 and is preserved in the Museum of Flight in Seattle. [3] The seventh aircraft is preserved in airworthy condition in Pacific Air Transport markings at the Historic Aircraft Restoration Museum at Creve Coeur airport, Missouri. [9] A replica of an M-1 using a small number of parts from serial number 11 was built by Andy King in 2001, powered by a Lycoming R-680 and also painted in Pacific Air Transport #7's scheme. [10] Serial number 11 is owned and faces a full restoration by John Norman, who crafted the most accurate reproduction of the Spirit of St. Louis ever built. [11] [12] A replica M-1 is exhibited in the San Diego Air & Space Museum. [13]

Specifications (M-1)

Data from "Ryan M-1"

General characteristics

Performance

References

Notes

  1. 1 2 "Ryan, Ryan-Douglas, Ryan-Flamingo, Ryan-Standard"
  2. 1 2 3 4 Taylor 1989, p. 774.
  3. 1 2 "Ryan M-1"
  4. ↑ Museum of Flight News
  5. ↑ Cassagneres, Ev (1982). The Spirit of Ryan. Blue Ridge Summit: TAB BOOKS Inc. pp. 26–27.
  6. ↑ Forden, Lesley. The Ford Air Tours: 1925-1931. New Brighton Minnesota: Aviation Foundation of America, 2003, First edition 1972. No ISBN.
  7. 1 2 3 Munson 1982, p. 128.
  8. 1 2 Hall 1927, p. 1.
  9. ↑ Ogden 2007, p. 331.
  10. ↑ "A New Ryan M-1 Mailplane". Skyways. October 2001.
  11. ↑ Podsada, Janice (2019-08-11). "This might be the best Spirit of St. Louis replica ever made". HeraldNet.com. Retrieved 2022-06-16.
  12. ↑ "Projects". JNE Aircraft, LLC. Retrieved 2022-06-16.
  13. ↑ "Collections"

Bibliography

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