Verville VCP

Last updated
VCP-1
Verville Vcp-1.jpg
Role USAAS Pursuit prototype
Manufacturer Engineering Division
Designer Alfred V. Verville
First flight 11 June 1920
Number built 2
Variants Verville-Packard R-1 Racer

The Verville VCP was an American single-engined biplane fighter aircraft of the 1920s. A single example of the VCP-1 was built by the United States Army Air Service's Engineering Division, which was later rebuilt into a successful racing aircraft, while a second, modified fighter was built as the PW-1.

Biplane airplane wing configuration with two vertically stacked main flying surfaces

A biplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with two main wings stacked one above the other. The first powered, controlled aeroplane to fly, the Wright Flyer, used a biplane wing arrangement, as did many aircraft in the early years of aviation. While a biplane wing structure has a structural advantage over a monoplane, it produces more drag than a similar unbraced or cantilever monoplane wing. Improved structural techniques, better materials and the quest for greater speed made the biplane configuration obsolete for most purposes by the late 1930s.

Fighter aircraft Military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat against other aircraft

A fighter aircraft is a military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat against other aircraft, as opposed to bombers and attack aircraft, whose main mission is to attack ground targets. The hallmarks of a fighter are its speed, maneuverability, and small size relative to other combat aircraft.

United States Army Air Service 1918-1926 air warfare service of the United States Army

The United States Army Air Service was the aerial warfare service of the United States between 1918 and 1926 and a forerunner of the United States Air Force. It was established as an independent but temporary branch of the U.S. War Department during World War I by two executive orders of President Woodrow Wilson: on May 24, 1918, replacing the Aviation Section, Signal Corps as the nation's air force; and March 19, 1919, establishing a military Director of Air Service to control all aviation activities. Its life was extended for another year in July 1919, during which time Congress passed the legislation necessary to make it a permanent establishment. The National Defense Act of 1920 assigned the Air Service the status of "combatant arm of the line" of the United States Army with a major general in command.

Contents

Design and development

VCP-1

In 1918, Virginius E. Clark, in charge of the Plane Design section of the U.S. Army Air Service's Engineering Division and Alfred V. Verville, who had recently joined the Engineering Division from private industry, started design of a single-seat fighter (known as "pursuit" aircraft to the U.S. Army), the VCP-1 (Verville-Clark Pursuit). [1]

Alfred V. Verville aviation pioneer and aircraft designer

Alfred Victor Verville was an aviation pioneer and aircraft designer who contributed to civilian and military aviation. During his forty-seven years in the aviation industry, he was responsible for the design and development of nearly twenty commercial and military airplanes. Verville is known for designing flying boats, military racing airplanes, and a series of commercial cabin airplanes. His planes were awarded with the Pulitzer Speed Classic Trophy in 1920 and 1924.

Drawing from the experience of the French and their SPAD S.XIII, the desire was to make a sleeker and more maneuverable fighter. [2] The VCP-1 was powered by a Wright-built 300  hp (220  kW ) Hispano-Suiza 8 V-8 engine and had tapered single-bay biplane wings. The fuselage was a monocoque structure constructed of plywood, while the wings were of wood and fabric construction. The engine was cooled with an unusual annular radiator. [1] [3] [4]

SPAD S.XIII fighter aircraft

The SPAD S.XIII was a French biplane fighter aircraft of the First World War, developed by Société Pour L'Aviation et ses Dérivés (SPAD) from the earlier and highly successful SPAD S.VII.

Horsepower unit of power

Horsepower (hp) is a unit of measurement of power, or the rate at which work is done. There are many different standards and types of horsepower. Two common definitions being used today are the mechanical horsepower, which is about 745.7 watts, and the metric horsepower, which is approximately 735.5 watts.

Hispano-Suiza 8 V-8 piston aircraft engine

The Hispano-Suiza 8 was a water-cooled V8 SOHC aero engine introduced by Hispano-Suiza in 1914, and the most commonly used liquid-cooled engine in the aircraft of the Entente Powers during the First World War. The original Hispano-Suiza 8A was rated at 140 hp (100 kW) and the later, larger displacement Hispano-Suiza 8F reached 330 hp (250 kW).

Two were built, but only one was flown, making its maiden flight on June 11, 1920. [1] The aircraft demonstrated good performance, reaching 156 mph (251 km/h), but the radical annular radiator was unsuccessful, having to be replaced to a more conventional unit. Because of its performance, it was decided to modify the VCP-1 to a racing aircraft, replacing the Wright-Hispano engine with a 660 hp (490 kW) Packard 1A-2025 V12 engine, becoming the VCP-R (later again rebuilt as the Verville R-1 Racer). [3] [5]

V12 engine piston engine with 12 cylinders in vee configuration

A V12 engine is a V engine with 12 cylinders mounted on the crankcase in two banks of six cylinders each, usually but not always at a 60° angle to each other, with all 12 pistons driving a common crankshaft. Since each cylinder bank is essentially a straight-six which is by itself in both primary and secondary balance, a V12 inherits perfect primary and secondary balance no matter which V angle is used, and therefore it needs no balance shafts. A four-stroke 12 cylinder engine has an even firing order if cylinders fire every 60° of crankshaft rotation, so a V12 with cylinder banks at a multiples of 60° will have even firing intervals without using split crankpins. By using split crankpins or ignoring minor vibrations, any V angle is possible. The 180° configuration is usually referred to as a "flat-twelve engine" or a "boxer" although it is in reality a 180° V since the pistons can and normally do use shared crankpins. It may also be written as "V-12", although this is less common.

PW-1

In 1920, work commenced on two new fighter aircraft based on the VCP-1, featuring an easier to build fabric covered steel-tube fuselage instead of the plywood monocoque of the VCP-1. The aircraft retained the tapered wings of the VCP-1 and was powered by a 350 hp (260 kW) Packard 1A-1237 engine, cooled by a tunnel-style radiator located under the engine. [6] [7]

The new design was initially known as the VCP-2, but was soon resignated as PW-1 (Pursuit, Water-Cooled [8] ) in the U.S. Army Air Service's new designation system. The first aircraft was used for static testing, while the second prototype flew in November 1921, [6] reaching a speed of 146 mph (235 km/h). It was rebuilt later that year with a new untapered set of wings using a Fokker style thick airfoil, becoming the PW-1A, but performance was reduced, and the aircraft was refitted with its original wings, reverting to the designation PW-1. [3] [9]

Anthony Fokker Dutch aviation pioneer

Anton Herman Gerard "Anthony" Fokker was a Dutch aviation pioneer and aircraft manufacturer. He is most famous for the fighter aircraft he produced in Germany during the First World War such as the Eindecker monoplanes, the Dr.1 triplane and the D.VII biplane.

Airfoil

An airfoil or aerofoil is the cross-sectional shape of a wing, blade, or sail.

While plans were prepared for more powerful versions fitted with revised wings, no production ensued. [3] [9]

Operational history

The VCP-R made its racing debut at the 1920 Gordon Bennett Cup race held at Étampes near Paris on 28 September. Its radiator proved to be insufficient to deal with the powerful, high-compression Packard engine, however, and it retired after the first lap. [4] [10] It was taken back to the U.S. and quickly modified with a larger radiator for entry in the Pulitzer Trophy air-race, held at Mineola, New York on 25 November that year. This time it was successful, winning the race at a speed of 156.5 mph (251.9 km/h). [4] [11]

The U.S. Armed Forces did not compete in the 1921 Pulitzer Trophy race, [12] but for the 1922 race the VCP-R was fitted with a revised tail, becoming the R-1. It finished in sixth place at a speed of 179 mph (288 km/h). [4] [5] [13]

Variants

VCP-1
Single-seat biplane fighter, powered by 300 hp Wright-Hispano engine. Two built, one flown. [5]
VCP-R
Modification of VCP-1 for air-racing, with 660 hp Packard 1A-2025 engine, and capable of reaching a speed of 177 mph (285 km/h). [6]
R-1
Modification of VCP-R for 1922 Pulitzer Trophy race. Maximum speed 186 mph (299 km/h). [6]
PW-1
Modified fighter aircraft with steel-tube fuselage and 350 hp Packard 1A-1237 engine. Two built but only one flown. [14]
PW-1A
PW-1 fitted with new, Fokker-style wings. Speed reduced to 134 mph (216 km/h). [15]

Specifications (PW-1)

Data from The American Fighter [14]

General characteristics

Performance

  • Maximum speed: 146 mph (235 km/h; 127 kn) at sea level
  • Cruise speed: 132 mph (212 km/h; 115 kn)
  • Endurance: 2 hr 30 min
  • Service ceiling: 19,300 ft (5,900 m)
  • Time to altitude: 11 minutes to 10,000 ft (3,050 m)

See also

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References

Notes
  1. 1 2 3 Angelucci and Bowers 1987, p. 197.
  2. ↑ Boyne 2001, p. 8.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Green and Swanborough 1994, p. 193.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Boyne 2001, p. 9.
  5. 1 2 3 Angelucci and Bowers 1987, pp. 197–198.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Angelucci and Bowers 1987, p. 198.
  7. ↑ Boyne 2001, p. 11.
  8. ↑ Dorr and Donald 1990, p. 23.
  9. 1 2 Dorr and Donald 1990, pp. 24–25.
  10. ↑ Flight 7 October 1920, pp. 1055–1056.
  11. ↑ Flight 2 December 1920, p. 1244.
  12. ↑ Flight 1 December 1921, p. 805.
  13. ↑ Flight 19 October 1922, pp. 603–605.
  14. 1 2 Angelucci and Bowers 1987, pp. 198–199.
  15. ↑ Angelucci and Bowers 1987, p. 199.
Bibliography
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