The Campbell Model F, a

pusher configuration In aeronautical and naval engineering, pusher configuration is the term used to describe a drivetrain of air- or watercraft with propulsion device(s) after the engine(s). This is in contrast to the more conventional tractor configuration, wh ...

, two seat sport aircraft built in the 1930s, was unconventional in its day with its

empennage The empennage ( or ), also known as the tail or tail assembly, is a structure at the rear of an aircraft that provides stability during flight, in a way similar to the feathers on an arrow.Crane, Dale: ''Dictionary of Aeronautical Terms, third ed ...

on twin, slim booms, a cockpit under stepless, rounded, multi-panel glazing and a

tricycle undercarriage Tricycle gear is a type of aircraft undercarriage, or ''landing gear'', that is arranged in a tricycle fashion. The tricycle arrangement has one or more nose wheels in a single front undercarriage and two or more main wheels slightly aft of th ...

Design and development

The Campbell Model A was an all metal aircraft. Its mid-set wing was built around single box

spars SPARS was the authorized nickname for the United States Coast Guard (USCG) Women's Reserve. The nickname was derived from the USCG's motto, "—"Always Ready" (''SPAR''). The Women's Reserve was established by law in November 1942 during Wor ...

with light fore and aft sections attached to them. These gave it a rectangular plan centre section and trapezoidal outer panels, ending in rounded tips. Long, narrow chord

ailerons An aileron (French for "little wing" or "fin") is a hinged flight control surface usually forming part of the trailing edge of each wing of a fixed-wing aircraft. Ailerons are used in pairs to control the aircraft in roll (or movement around ...

were mounted on the outer panels. There were flaps on the wing undersides near the

trailing edge The trailing edge of an aerodynamic surface such as a wing is its rear edge, where the airflow separated by the leading edge meets.Crane, Dale: ''Dictionary of Aeronautical Terms, third edition'', page 521. Aviation Supplies & Academics, 1997. ...

s. The Model F had a short,

ovoid An oval () is a closed curve in a plane which resembles the outline of an egg. The term is not very specific, but in some areas of mathematics (projective geometry, technical drawing, etc.), it is given a more precise definition, which may inc ...

fuselage

nacelle A nacelle ( ) is a streamlined container for aircraft parts such as Aircraft engine, engines, fuel or equipment. When attached entirely outside the airframe, it is sometimes called a pod, in which case it is attached with a Hardpoint#Pylon, pylo ...

which just reached to the wing trailing edge. Its adapted Ford V-8 engine was mounted on top of the nacelle on rubber blocks, positioned over the spar with its pusher

propeller A propeller (often called a screw if on a ship or an airscrew if on an aircraft) is a device with a rotating hub and radiating blades that are set at a pitch to form a helical spiral which, when rotated, exerts linear thrust upon a working flu ...

barely beyond the trailing edge. Its

radiator A radiator is a heat exchanger used to transfer thermal energy from one medium to another for the purpose of cooling and heating. The majority of radiators are constructed to function in cars, buildings, and electronics. A radiator is always a ...

was just aft of the roof of its cabin, which had streamlined, multi-panel glazing rather than a windscreen. The cabin seated two side by side, sharing a central throw-over control column for training. Each seat had

rudder pedal A rudder pedal is a foot-operated aircraft flight control interface for controlling the rudder of an aircraft. The usual set-up in modern aircraft is that each pilot has a pedal set consisting of a pair of pedals, with one pedal for each foot. ...

s that could be removed for a passenger. The tail was carried on a pair of slim,

monocoque Monocoque ( ), also called structural skin, is a structural system in which loads are supported by an object's external skin, in a manner similar to an egg shell. The word ''monocoque'' is a French term for "single shell". First used for boats, ...

booms from the spar at the ends of the inner wing panels, placed just far enough apart to accommodate the propeller disk. Its

tailplane A tailplane, also known as a horizontal stabilizer, is a small lift (force), lifting surface located on the tail (empennage) behind the main lifting surfaces of a fixed-wing aircraft as well as other non-fixed-wing aircraft such as helicopters ...

was rectangular in plan and the twin fins triangular in profile, respectively carrying a narrow chord

elevator An elevator (American English) or lift (Commonwealth English) is a machine that vertically transports people or freight between levels. They are typically powered by electric motors that drive traction cables and counterweight systems suc ...

and blunted, rectangular

rudder A rudder is a primary control surface used to steer a ship, boat, submarine, hovercraft, airship, or other vehicle that moves through a fluid medium (usually air or water). On an airplane, the rudder is used primarily to counter adverse yaw ...

s. The main landing wheels, with

hydraulic Hydraulics () is a technology and applied science using engineering, chemistry, and other sciences involving the mechanical properties and use of liquids. At a very basic level, hydraulics is the liquid counterpart of pneumatics, which concer ...

brakes, were each on a short axle with parallel Bendix shock absorber legs to the spar. There was a V-form drag strut reaching forward. Each leg was also the forward attachment point of a tapering girder on the tailboom underside. The fork-mounted nose-wheel was steerable from the rudder pedals.

Operational history

The Model F first flew in 1935, though the exact date is unknown. By 1937, if not earlier, it was making demonstration flights including one from

Bolling Air Force Base Bolling Air Force Base or Bolling AFB was a United States Air Force installation located in Washington, D.C. In 2010, it merged with Naval Support Facility Anacostia to form Joint Base Anacostia–Bolling. From its establishment, the base has s ...

. It was damaged in another demonstration and was not repaired.

Specifications

References

{{reflist, refs= {{cite journal , title=Campbell F, journal=Aero Digest, date=March 1937, volume=30, issue=3, page=62, url=https://archive.org/details/aerodigest3019unse/page/n275/mode/1up {{cite journal , date=December 1936 , title=Images, journal=L'Aéronautique, volume=211 , pages=321 , url=https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k65547829/f13 {{cite web , url=http://www.aerofiles.com/_ca.html, title=Aerofiles:Campbell, access-date=7 October 2020 {{cite web , url=https://www.criticalpast.com/video/65675053139_Flivver-plane_Mark-Woods_demonstration-flights, title=Demonstration of Campbell Model F flivver airplane at Bolling Field, access-date=5 October 2020 Single-engined pusher aircraft Twin-boom aircraft 1930s United States sport aircraft Mid-wing aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1935 Aircraft with fixed tricycle landing gear Single-engined piston aircraft