Colonial skimmer

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Colonial skimmer
Colonial C-1 Skimmer, built in 1957
Colonial C-1 Skimmer, built in 1957
Type:
Design country:

United StatesUnited States United States

Manufacturer:

Colonial Aircraft Corporation

First flight:

July 17, 1948

Production time:

1948-1959

Number of pieces:

43

The Colonial Skimmer is an amphibious aircraft from the US manufacturer Colonial Aircraft Corporation , which was developed in the late 1940s. In the further developed version Lake Renegade , the model is still produced today (2017) by Lake Aircraft .

history

The Colonial Aircraft Corp. was founded in 1946 by David Thurston and four other designers and developers with the intention of building a single-engine amphibious aircraft with a pusher propeller. Thurston used concepts that he had already used at his previous employers Goodyear and Grumman in the Goodyear GA-1 Duck and Grumman Tadpole (G-65). Construction work began in August 1946 and the first flight took place on July 17, 1948. The prototype ( aircraft registration N6595K) of the C-1 Skimmer initially had a 115 hp Lycoming O-235-C1 engine that operated on an Aeromatic propeller . The design was further developed over the next six years. In the meantime, a Lycoming O-290-D engine with 125 hp replaced the original engine. The final version of the C-1 received a Lycoming O-320 with 150 hp, a modified pylon, a higher vertical stabilizer and longer support floats. The C-1 received type certification on September 19, 1955. Colonial had manufactured 23 C-1s by the end of 1957, when production was discontinued.

The C-1 was replaced by the four-seat variant C-2 Skimmer IV , equipped with a 180-hp Lycoming O-360-A1A engine , which was approved on December 18, 1957. Compared to the C-1, the C-2 also had a larger horizontal stabilizer, improved support floats and structural reinforcements of the wings and the motor pylon. By the time the manufacturing rights and facilities were sold to the Lake Aircraft Division of Consolidated Aeronautics Inc. in October 1959, Colonial had produced 20 C-2s. As a further development, this resulted in the series of Lake LA-4 flying boats, which are still being manufactured.

construction

The all-metal construction of the single-stage hull is divided into five watertight compartments. The cantilevered wings have a torsion box at the front and rear edge, between which a single duralumin main spar is arranged. The ailerons and slotted flaps, which are also made of all-metal, extend over 80% of the span. The nose wheel landing gear is retractable.

Versions

  • C-1 Skimmer: 2 to 3 seats, 150 HP Lycoming O-320
  • C-2 Skimmer IV: 4 seats, 180 hp Lycoming O-360

Technical specifications

Parameter C-2 Skimmer IV
crew 1
Passengers 3
length 7.16 m
span 10.41 m
height 2.84 m
Wing area 14 m²
Empty mass 690 kg
Takeoff mass 1067 kg
Cruising speed 216 km / h
Range 805 km at cruising speed
Engines 1 × Lycoming O-360 four-cylinder boxer engine
on a pylon above the
Hartzell hull boat, constant-speed propeller with a diameter of 1.80 m

See also

literature

  • Leonard Bridgman (Ed.): Jane's All The World's Aircraft - 1959-60 , Sampson Low, Marston & Company Ltd., London, 1959, p. 273
  • John WR Taylor (Ed.): Jane's All The World's Aircraft - 1965-66 , Sampson Low, Marston & Company Ltd., London, 1965, p. 251
  • ER Johnson: American Flying Boats and Amphibious Aircraft , McFarland and Co., 2009, ISBN 978-0-7864-3974-4 , pp. 221-223

Web links

Commons : Colonial Skimmer  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Jane's 1959/1960, p. 273