Wright R-1820 Cyclone

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R-1820 Cyclone
Wright R-1820 G.jpg
Curtiss-Wright R-1820 Cyclone Radial Engine
Type Radial engine
National originUnited States
Manufacturer Wright Aeronautical
First run1930s
Major applications Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress
Curtiss P-36 Hawk
Douglas B-18 Bolo
Douglas DC-3
Douglas SBD Dauntless
General Motors FM-2 Wildcat
Sikorsky H-34
North American T-28 Trojan
Number built47,475 [1]
Variants Shvetsov M-25
Developed into Wright R-2600
Wright R-3350

The Wright R-1820 Cyclone 9 is an American radial engine developed by Curtiss-Wright, widely used on aircraft in the 1930s through 1950s. It was produced under license in France as the Hispano-Suiza 9V or Hispano-Wright 9V, and in the Soviet Union as the Shvetsov M-25.

Contents

Design and development

The R-1820 Cyclone 9 represented a further development of the Wright P-2 engine dating back to 1925. Featuring a greater displacement and a host of improvements, the R-1820 entered production in 1931. The engine remained in production well into the 1950s.

The R-1820 was built under license by Lycoming, Pratt & Whitney Canada, and also, during World War II, by the Studebaker Corporation. The Soviet Union had purchased a license for the design, and the Shvetsov OKB was formed to metricate the American specification powerplant for Soviet government-factory production as the M-25 , with the R-1820's general design features used by the Shvetsov design bureau for many of their future radials for the Soviet air forces through the 1940s and onwards. In Spain the R-1820 was license-built as the Hispano-Suiza 9V or Hispano-Wright 9V. [2]

The R-1820 was at the heart of many famous aircraft including early Douglas airliners (the prototype DC-1, the DC-2, the first civil versions of the DC-3, and the limited-production DC-5), every wartime example of the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress and Douglas SBD Dauntless bombers, the early versions of the Polikarpov I-16 fighter (as the M-25), and the Piasecki H-21 helicopter.

The R-1820 also found limited use in armoured vehicles. The G-200 variant developed 900  hp (670  kW ) at 2,300 rpm and powered the strictly experimental M6 Heavy Tank.

D-200 Diesel

The Wright R-1820 was converted to a diesel during World War II by Caterpillar Inc. as the D-200 and produced 450 hp (340 kW) at 2,000 rpm in the M4A6 Sherman. [3]

Variants

R-1820-04
700 hp (520 kW)
R-1820-1
575 hp (429 kW)
R-1820-4
770 hp (570 kW)
R-1820-19
675 hp (503 kW)
R-1820-21
690 hp (510 kW)
R-1820-22
950 hp (710 kW)
R-1820-25
675 hp (503 kW), 750 hp (560 kW), 775 hp (578 kW)
R-1820-32
1,000 hp (750 kW)
XR-1820-32
800 hp (600 kW)
R-1820-33
775 hp (578 kW)
R-1820-34
940 hp (700 kW), 950 hp (710 kW)
R-1820-34A
1,200 hp (890 kW)
R-1820-40/42
1,100 hp (820 kW), 1,200 hp (890 kW)
R-1820-41
850 hp (630 kW)
R-1820-45
800 hp (600 kW), 930 hp (690 kW)
R-1820-49
975 hp (727 kW)
R-1820-50
850 hp (630 kW)
R-1820-52
1,000 hp (750 kW)
R-1820-53
930 hp (690 kW), 1,000 hp (750 kW)
R-1820-56
1,200 hp (890 kW), 1,350 hp (1,010 kW)
R-1820-57
1,060 hp (790 kW)
R-1820-60
1,200 hp (890 kW)
R-1820-62
1,350 hp (1,010 kW)
R-1820-66
1,200 hp (895 kW), 1,350 hp (1,007 kW)
R-1820-67/69
1,200 hp (890 kW), fitted with turbosupercharger
R-1820-72W
1,350 hp (1,010 kW), 1,425 hp (1,063 kW)
R-1820-74W
1,500 hp (1,100 kW)
R-1820-76A,B,C,D
1,425 hp (1,063 kW)
R-1820-77
1,200 hp (890 kW)
R-1820-78
700 hp (522 kW), 1,100 hp (820 kW)
R-1820-80
700 hp (520 kW), 1,535 hp (1,145 kW)
R-1820-82WA
1,525 hp (1,137 kW)
R-1820-84
1,525 hp (1,137 kW)
R-1820-86
1,425 hp (1,063 kW)
R-1820-97
1,200 hp (890 kW), fitted with turbosupercharger
R-1820-103
1,425 hp (1,063 kW)
SGR-1820-F3
710 hp (530 kW), 720 hp (540 kW)
SGR-1820-F2
720 hp (540 kW)
R-1820-F53
770 hp (570 kW)
R-1820-F56
790 hp (590 kW)
GR-1820-G2
1,000 hp (750 kW)
R-1820-G3
840 hp (630 kW)
R-1820-G5
950 hp (710 kW)
R-1820-G101
1,100 hp (820 kW)
R-1820-G102
775 hp (578 kW)
GR-1820-G102A
1,100 hp (820 kW)
R-1820-G102A
1,100 hp (820 kW)
R-1820-G102A
1,100 hp (820 kW)
R-1820-G202A
1,200 hp (890 kW)
R-1820-G103
1,000 hp (750 kW)
R-1820-G105
1,000 hp (750 kW)
R-1820-G205A
1,200 hp (890 kW)

Notes: Unit numbers ending with W indicate engine variants fitted with water-methanol emergency power boost systems.

Hispano-Suiza 9V

The Hispano-Suiza 9V is a licence-built version of the R-1820. [4]

Hispano-Suiza 9Vr
9V with reduction gear
Hispano-Suiza 9Vb
Hispano-Suiza 9Vbr
variant of the 9Vb with reduction gear [4]
Hispano-Suiza 9Vbrs
variant of the 9Vb with reduction gear and supercharger
Hispano-Suiza 9Vbs
variant of the 9Vb with supercharger [4]
Hispano-Suiza 9Vd
variant of the 9V [4]
Hispano-Suiza 9V-10
429 kW (575 hp) driving fixed-pitch propeller
Hispano-Suiza 9V-11
as -10 but RH rotation
Hispano-Suiza 9V-16
480 kW (650 hp) driving variable-pitch propeller, LH rotation
Hispano-Suiza 9V-17
as -16 but RH rotation

Applications

Vehicles

Engines on display

Preserved Wright R-1820 engines are on display at the following museums:

Specifications (GR-1820-G2)

Data fromJane's. [7]

General characteristics

Components

Performance

See also

Related development

Comparable engines

Related lists

Related Research Articles

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References

  1. "SUMMARY OF WRIGHT ENGINE SHIPMENTS 1920 – 1930" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2021-10-10. Retrieved 2023-09-18.
  2. Lage(2004) pp. 157-162
  3. Conners 2013.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Hartmann, Gustave. Hispano-Suiza, Les moteurs de tous les Records.pdf (in French).
  5. May, Joseph (8 January 2013). "Flagship Knoxville — an American Airlines Douglas DC-3". Hearst Seattle Media. Retrieved 3 August 2014.
  6. "Exhibit & Collection". Wings of Freedom. Retrieved 2024-09-06.
  7. Bridgman 1998, p. 314.

Bibliography