Wright Model G.

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Wright Model G.
Wright Model G.
Type: Biplane - pusher propeller - flying boat
Design country:

United States 45United States United States

Manufacturer:

Wright Company

First flight:

1913

Production time:

1913

Number of pieces:

2

The Wright Model G Aeroboat was an early flying boat designed by Orville Wright and Grover Loening in 1913.

history

The success of the Curtiss F flying boats prompted Orville Wright to build a flying boat himself. The Model G was developed in 1913 together with his then chief engineer Grover Loening. On September 30, 1913, Wright published a four-page flyer on Model G.

The Model G was a double-decker flying boat with a pusher propeller for one pilot and one passenger. The hull was made of wood with metal cladding. The wing design was derived largely from the Model C from. The wingspan was slightly smaller than that of the Model C. Small floats at the end of the wings stabilized the machine.

The first prototype was successfully tested on the Great Miami River by Grover Loening. Nevertheless, it was decided to build a second modified variant. Here the elevator was modified and the first T-tail unit in aircraft history was created. The engine was moved to the front and the power was transferred to the rear via a long-distance shaft under the flight seats.

Wright offered the machine to the US Navy for testing purposes. The Navy introduced the aircraft under the designation AH-19 . However, there was an aircraft accident during the test. On August 20, 1914, Orville Wright flew over the Great Miami River, accompanied by student pilot Lieutenant Wright Kenneth Whiting. At a height of 10 meters one of the wings broke and the machine fell into the river. Nobody drowned in the accident. However, this was the end of Wright's flying boat plans with the US Navy. The US Navy decided on another machine, the Martin Model S, and gave it the designation AH-19 , and later the A68 . A68 was the aircraft's US Navy Bureau Number .

Technical specifications

Wright Model G in flight
Parameter Data
length 8.53 m
span 11.58 m
Wing area 40 m²
height approx. 2.43 m
drive a Wright 6-60 water-cooled 6-cylinder engine with 50 to 75 horsepower
Top speed 96 km / h
crew 2
Empty mass approx. 453 kg
Takeoff mass approx. 816 kg

Museum plane

In the Armstrong Air and Space Museum in Wapakoneta , Ohio , a fuselage and wing fragment exist of the Model G, as well as parts of the engine.

Web links