USAFNM Early Years - April 28th, 2012
Wright 1909 Military Flyer cost only $30,000
This Wright 1909 Military Flyer was built in 1955
Curtiss 1911 Model D, 2nd US Army Signal Corp airplane
Bleriot Monoplane first to fly across English Channel
Standard J-1 two seat primary trainer of US Army Air Service to supplement the JN-4 Jenny
SPAD VII flown by American volunteers for the French
Lafayette Escadrille flew the SPAD VII in February 1918
Americans learn to fly in Avro 504K trainer overseas
The display Avro was built in 1967 with original parts
Curtiss J4-4D Jenny, America's most famous WWI trainer
Nieuport 28 - first fighter flown in combat by AEF
Thomas-Morse S4C Scout - single seat trainer "Tommy"
Halberstadt CL IV ground attacker with little armor
Sopwith F-1 Camel shot down the most enemy aircraft
Fokker Dr. 1 triplane introduced in 1917
Von Richthofen scored 19 of his last 21 victories in a Dr.1
SPAD XIII C.1 was America's final primary fighter
Built in 1918 & painted like Capt. Rickenbacker's aircraft
Fokker D. VII, the best of WWI, appeared in May 1918
German D.VII pilots scored 565 victories in August 1918
French designed Caquot Type R Observation Balloon
De Havilland DH-4, US' only built aircraft in WWI combat
DH-4 stayed in service until 1932 due to tight budgets
Italian designed Caproni CA. 36 heavy bomber
CA.36 was produced in France, Great Britain & the US
Ca. 36s stayed in Italian Air Force service as late as 1929
Packard LePere LUSAC 11 was combination fighter
Only 7 of the 28 total built were before the Armistice
Martin MB-2, first US designated bomber built in numbers
MB-2 was later renamed NBS-1 (Night Bomber Short range)
Consolidated PT-1 Trusty - new trainer starting in 1925
This Curtiss P-6E Hawk is the only original of46 built
Last biplane fighter built in quantity never saw combat
Boeing P-12E (Army) fighter also called the F4B (Navy)
Kellet K-2/K-3 Autogiro built for short landings
Boeing P-26A was the US' first all metal monoplane fighter
Open cockpit, fixed landing gear & external wing bracing
Replaced in 1938 by the Curtiss P-36A & Seversky P-35
Douglas O-38F observation aircraft in service 1931-41
Martin B-10 was the first all-metal monoplane bomber
Retractable landing gear & enclosed cockpits made it fast!
The B-10 was "the air power wonder of its day" in 1934
This last remaining B-10 was exported to Argentina in 1938
Northrop A-17A attack aircraft in service 1937-1941
This, the only A-17 known to exist was retired in 1945
Curtiss O-52 Owl performed stateside submarine patrols
Ryan YPT-16 first US monoplane primary trainer
Fairchild PT-19A, a rugged monoplane primary trainer
North American O-47B (built 1938) towed targets after 1941
North American BT-14 basic trainer built for France in 1940
De Havilland DH 82A Tiger Moth British trainer (1931)
Hawker Hurricane MkIIa (1937) famous for Battle of Britain