| 2000, 3000, 4000, CW-14, Sportsman, Osprey | |
|---|---|
| Travel Air 4000, built in 1929, airworthy at Carlsbad, CA, in 2008 | |
| Role | biplane aircraft |
| Manufacturer | Travel Air, Curtiss-Wright |
| Designer | Lloyd Stearman |
| First flight | 13 March 1925[1] |
| Introduction | 1925 |
| Primary user | private owners, aerial sightseeing businesses |
| Produced | 1925-1930 |
| Number built | approx 1,300[2] |
The Travel Air 2000/3000/4000 (originally, the Model A, Model B and Model BH)[3] and later marketed as a Curtiss-Wright product under the names CW-14, Speedwing, Sportsman and Osprey), were aircraft produced in the United States in the late 1920s by the Travel Air Manufacturing Company. Travel Air produced more aircraft during the period from 1924-1929 than any other manufacturer[4].
The types shared a common structure of a conventional single-bay biplane with staggered wings braced by N-struts. The fuselage was of fabric-covered steel tube and included two open cockpits in tandem, the forward of which could carry two passengers side-by-side.
Like other aircraft in the Travel Air line, it was available with a variety of different, interchangeable wings, including a wing shorter and thinner than the rest known as the "Speedwing" designed, as the name suggests, for increased performance. Travel Air entered a specially-modified Model 4000 (designated 4000-T) in the Guggenheim Safe Aircraft Competition of 1930, but it was disqualified.
In 1933 a Travel Air 2000 was modified by George and William Besler where the usual inline or radial gasoline piston engine was replaced by an oil-fired, reversible steam engine, which became the first airplane to successful fly using a steam engine, with a 90° angle V-twin compound engine of their own design. [5][6]
Following Travel Air Manufacturing Company purchase in August 1929[7] by Curtiss-Wright, the Model 4000 continued in production into the early 1930s as the CW-14, and the range was expanded to include a military derivative dubbed the Osprey. This was fitted with bomb racks, a fixed, forward-firing machine gun, and a trainable tail gun. These aircraft were supplied to Bolivia and used during the Gran Chaco War, which eventually led to Curtiss-Wright's successful prosecution for supplying these aircraft in violation of a U.S. arms embargo.
A small number of Travel Air 2000/3000/4000s remain flying along and a few examples preserved in museums. Exhibited examples include those at the National Air and Space Museum, the EAA AirVenture Museum, the Reynolds-Alberta Museum, the Virginia Aviation Museum, and the Canada Aviation and Space Museum.[8]
An airworthy Travel Air 4000 resides in the collection of Fantasy of Flight in Polk City, Florida. In 1997, this aircraft was used by the U.S. Postal Service to help commemorate the first day issue of a series of airplane stamps. With the local Postmaster on board, owner Kermit Weeks delivered the first ever airmail in the history of Polk City; probably the last as well.[9]
Like other Travel Air aircraft, Model 4000 variants were distinguished by letters prefixed (or occasionally affixed) to the basic designation to denote different engine and wing fits. These letter codes included:
Curtiss-Wright models built included:
General characteristics
Performance
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