The Lockheed Explorer was the least successful wooden airplane design produced by the
Lockheed Aircraft Company
The Lockheed Corporation was an American aerospace manufacturer. Lockheed was founded in 1926 and later merged with Martin Marietta to form Lockheed Martin in 1995. Its founder, Allan Lockheed, had earlier founded the similarly named but ...
. The
Vega
Vega is the brightest star in the northern constellation of Lyra. It has the Bayer designation α Lyrae, which is Latinised to Alpha Lyrae and abbreviated Alpha Lyr or α Lyr. This star is relatively close at only from the Sun, a ...
fuselage was combined with a cantilevered low wing. Seating for a single pilot was provided in an open cockpit behind the wings.
Design and development
Work on the Explorer was commenced in 1927 for
Sir Hubert Wilkins
Sir George Hubert Wilkins MC & Bar (31 October 188830 November 1958), commonly referred to as Captain Wilkins, was an Australian polar explorer, ornithologist, pilot, soldier, geographer and photographer. He was awarded the Military Cross afte ...
as an aircraft for use in exploration of
Antarctica
Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean, it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest cont ...
. However, this configuration was judged impractical, and Wilkins opted to use a Vega equipped with floats instead. The incomplete aircraft was brought out of storage to make an attempt at a nonstop flight between Japan and the United States, funded by lumber dealer John Buffelen and members of the
Tacoma Chamber of Commerce. Named ''City of Tacoma'', the first Pacific crossing attempt ended in disaster when overfilled fuel tanks spilled over on takeoff. Two subsequent attempts in newer Explorers also met with failure.
The wing of a wrecked Explorer was fitted to the fuselage of an
Orion by aviator
Wiley Post
Wiley Hardeman Post (November 22, 1898 – August 15, 1935) was a famed American aviator during the interwar period and the first pilot to fly solo around the world. Also known for his work in high-altitude flying, Post helped develop on ...
, resulting in an Orion-Explorer hybrid variously referred to as 'Wiley's Bastard' and 'Aurora', though Post himself referred to the aircraft only by its serial number. The aircraft, nose-heavy, crashed after its engine failed shortly after takeoff near
Point Barrow, Alaska on August 15, 1935, taking the lives of Post and humorist
Will Rogers.
Lockheed built a total of four Explorers, all of which were destroyed in crashes.
Variants
;4 Explorer: Single-seat single-engined aircraft, powered by a 450-hp (336-kW)
Pratt & Whitney Wasp
The Pratt & Whitney Wasp was the civilian name of a family of air-cooled radial piston engines developed in the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s.Gunston 1989, p.114.
The Pratt & Whitney Aircraft Company (P&W) was founded in 1925 by Frederick B. Rentsc ...
radial piston engine. Built for a non-stop trans-Pacific flight between Japan and the united States; two built.
;7 Explorer: Improved version of the 4 Explorer, powered by a
Pratt & Whitney Wasp C
The Pratt & Whitney Wasp was the civilian name of a family of air-cooled radial piston engines developed in the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s.Gunston 1989, p.114.
The Pratt & Whitney Aircraft Company (P&W) was founded in 1925 by Frederick B. Rentsc ...
radial piston engine; two built.
Specifications (Explorer 4)
See also
References
;Notes
;Bibliography
* Francillon, René J., ''Lockheed Aircraft since 1913''. London:Putnam, 1982. .
* Francillon, René J, ''Lockheed Aircraft since 1913''. Naval Institute Press: Annapolis, 1987.
{{Lockheed Martin aircraft
Explorer
Exploration refers to the historical practice of discovering remote lands. It is studied by geographers and historians.
Two major eras of exploration occurred in human history: one of convergence, and one of divergence. The first, covering most ...
1920s United States civil utility aircraft
Single-engined tractor aircraft
Low-wing aircraft