Aeromarine PG-1 Pursuit/Ground Attack Aircraft

[Dynoman]

Aeromarine Plane & Motor Co., and principal of Aeromarine Airways, developed training aircraft for the US Navy during WWI. After the war they attempted to capitalize on a number of Curtiss HS-2L and F-5L surplus seaplanes by converting them into civilian 'aerial yachts' for their airline. However, at the height of their success Aeromarine developed the first US multi-role pursuit and ground attack aircraft, known as the PG-1. Unfortunately, the aircraft did not perform as well as expected and was lost in a fire that consumed one of Aeromarines manufacturing plants.

 

[Boogey]

One more shot of the Aeromarine PG-1 front quarter view attached.
It's an airplane built for the U. S. Army Air Service ...
The Aeromarine built also three machines for the U. S. Naval Aviation designated AS-1 & AS-2
in Scout category.

 

[Bailey]

Profile from http://wp.scn.ru/en/ original source unknown.

Info from here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aeromarine_PG-1

Regards Bailey.

 

[Steve Pace]

Talk about poor visibility. But the pilot wouldn't get too wet when it rained.

 

[Dynoman]

XB-70 Guy...your right. Good luck looking for targets. Thiis aircraft reminds me of the military racing aircraft seen just a few years later.

 

[Boogey]

The aircraft above seems to be the Curtiss R-6 Pulitzer Trophy racer of 1922.

 

[Steve Pace]

The aircraft above seems to be the Curtiss R-6 Pulitzer Trophy racer of 1922.

I believe it to be a Curtiss RC3-1.

 

[Stargazer]

I almost concurred with Boogey but then double-checked my info and realized XB-70 Guy was right.

Although R3C was a Navy designation (third racer by Curtiss), allocated to the Model 42 series, the R3C-2 aircraft were also used for racing by the Army. The R-6 Army racer was the earlier Model 27, and so was the CR-2, its Navy equivalent. Please note also that the Navy's CR-1 and CR-3 were the Model 23 and 23A.

The Curtiss R2C-1 and CR-3 are attached here for comparison.

 

[Boogey]

Dear gentlemen, I won't argue with You, I only have seen an " U.S. Army " inscription on the tail.
The Curtiss CR ( CF ), Curtiss R2C ( F2C ) and Curtiss R3C ( F3C )
were designations of the U. S. Naval Aviation racer airplanes and I can't image myself a Naval plane
with an " U.S. Army " on its tail ;D
Look also at the characteristic shape of tail on Dynoman's photo which differs nuance
from these of Stargazer2006's Curtiss R2C-1 and CR-3.

The U. S. A. A. C. Curtiss R-6

 

[VictorXL188]

Another couple of pics of the PG-1, with the first courtesy of the Ray Wagner Photo Collection, and the second propless example from unknown source

 

[Dynoman]

Found an interesting video of the test of the Baldwin 37mm cannon that was mounted to the top of the engine (Wright K-2), which the PG-1 program was built around. A 50 caliber was added to the design, because the rate of fire of the cannon was too slow for the strafing mission.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aBKfc-GHJN4

 

[Stargazer]

Found an interesting video of the test of the Baldwin 37mm cannon that was mounted to the top of the engine (Wright K-2), which the PG-1 program was built around. A 50 caliber was added to the design, because the rate of fire of the cannon was too slow for the strafing mission.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aBKfc-GHJN4

Thanks. The PG-1 was declared inadequate even before it could fly, so I suppose they didn't get a chance at testing it.

More pics of the PG-1:

 

[Dynoman]

I believe you are correct. There were tests on the cannon on the engine, however I have not found anything that verifies that it was flown with the engine and cannon. The test prep for firing the cannon is seen below.

 

[Dynoman]

The PG-1 design was supposed to have a 50 caliber weapon with an interchangeable gun mount that could accommodate a 30 caliber Browning machine gun. I have not seen an exact location for the mount. However, the gun is supposed to be synchronized, so I image it was to be fired through the propeller arc (e.g. atop the engine cowling, side mounted?)

From what I understand the aircraft were as follows:

Aircraft 1. Sn 64244 used in static tests at McCook Field. Delivered November 1921, load tested, repaired and not flown.
Aircraft 2. Sn 64245 First flown on July 14, 1922 with the Wright H2 engine. Top speed 121.5 mph.
Aircraft 3. Sn 64246 Flown with the Packard 1237 after November 1922 reaching a top speed of 116 mph. The Engineering Division contemplated flying the aircraft with a 12 cylinder Packard 1A-1116 (modified version of the Model 1237). Some records indicate that the 1A-1116 flew on the third aircraft. I have no records the Wright K-2 having flown.

 

[Stargazer]

The PG-1 design was supposed to have a 50 caliber weapon with an interchangeable gun mount that could accommodate a 30 caliber Browning machine gun. I have not seen an exact location for the mount. However, the gun is supposed to be synchronized, so I image it was to be fired through the propeller arc (e.g. atop the engine cowling, side mounted?)

From what I understand the aircraft were as follows:

Aircraft 1. Sn 64244 used in static tests at McCook Field. Delivered November 1921, load tested, repaired and flown.
Aircraft 2. Sn 64245 First flown on July 14, 1922 with the Wright H2 engine. Top speed 121.5 mph.
Aircraft 3. Sn 64246 Flown with the Packard 1237 after November 1922 reaching a top speed of 116 mph. The Engineering Division contemplated flying the aircraft with a 12 cylinder Packard 1A-1116 (modified version of the Model 1237). Some records indicate that the 1A-1116 flew on the third aircraft. I have no records the Wright K-2 having flown.

You're right. The PG-1 did fly. I think it's the PN-1 that never flew.

 

[Dynoman]

The only pilot that I have recorded that flew the PG-1 was Lt. Wade Leigh. He was a test pilot at McCook Field's Engineering Division, who would later go on to be the youngest pilot of the team that flew around the world in the Douglas World Cruisers in 1924.

The report was that the aircraft was heavy, the Wright engine vibrated excessively (resulting in the addition of engine mount shock absorbers in 1923), could barely climb, and did not reach the speeds originally hoped for to be a pursuit aircraft. The second PG-1 in the photo from above with hay in its main gear, made in emergency landing in a farmers field due to engine problems.

The aircraft was designed by 'Mac' Laddon of the Engineering Division, who designed the GAX aircraft and who would later go on to Consolidated to design the Catalina and the B-24.

The design did not change much from the wind tunnel tested version at MIT of the PG-1 to the actual aircraft. The horizontal and vertical stabilizers, rudder and elevator were more rounded on the model. The actual aircraft had more empennage surface area, which may be accounting for the heavier 3/16th inch steel armor around the engine and cockpit.

 

[Dynoman]

PG-1 after construction at the Aeromarine Plane and Motor Company. No markings have been applied (beyond its Air Service serial number). This aircraft would be used as the static test article at McCook Field. Notice there are no engine exhaust stacks emanating from the cowling. The Wright K2 was not ready when it was shipped to McCook.

 

[Dynoman]

Designer of the PG-1, Isaac 'Mac' Laddon (photo circa 1920), who also designed the GAX, PG-1, McCook A-1 Aerial Ambulance, and the famously failed human powered multi-wing aircraft (he would later go on to design the PBY Catalina and the B-24 Liberator for Consolidated). Laddon was a design engineer in the service of the Engineering Division, McCook Field, when the Air Service was designing and building their own aircraft and receiving a lot of backlash from the aircraft manufacturing industry. He was a good engineer and praised by General Billy Mitchell for flying in the GAX to help solve some of its engineering issues.

 

[Dynoman]

Laddon's design for a Night Pursuit aircraft appears to bear some resemblance to his PG-1 design, being a sesquiplane with a V-strut, recessed cockpit and rounded empennage design similar to the PG-1 model design. The later empennage design of the PG-1 is similar to the GAX vertical stabilizer (i.e. rounded on vertical stabilizer's leading edge and squared trailing edge.) Below is the Laddon Night Pursuit wind tunnel model schematic of 1920.

 

[Dynoman]

The armored cowl and cockpit of the PG-1.

 

[Dynoman]

Another view of the static test article PG-1.

 

[Dynoman]

Here is another (very poor) picture of the armored engine cowl and cockpit under construction at the Aeromarine plant.