Liberty L-6

The Liberty L-6 was a six-cylinder, water-cooled, inline, aero-engine developed in the United States during World War I. The Liberty L-6, which developed 200-215 hp, was built by the Thomas-Morse Aircraft Corp. and Wright Aeronautical Corp., and since it was based on the same engine design as the more successful Liberty L-12 V12 liquid cooled aviation engine, the L-6's resemblance to the Mercedes D.III German aviation engine, the source for the Liberty V-12's own cylinder design, the L-6 resultingly bore a close resemblance to the German straight-six aviation powerplant, with at least one L-6 even being mounted postwar into a captured Fokker D.VII fighter for testing in the USA.

Since the L-6 was too large for mail airplanes and other engines were available, the L-6 was canceled after only 52 had been built. In 1921 the L-6 was installed in the Curtiss (only two built) and the Engineering Division TW-1 (only six built).

References

This article incorporates text from http://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/factsheets/factsheet.asp?id=837, a public domain work of the United States Government.

• http://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/factsheets/factsheet.asp?id=837
• Gunston, Bill (1986). World Encyclopedia of Aero Engines. Wellingborough: Patrick Stephens. pp. 106.