The Neilson NC-1 Golden Bear, aka Neilson Coach was an American, three-place,

high wing A monoplane is a fixed-wing aircraft A fixed-wing aircraft is a heavier-than-air aircraft, such as an airplane, which is capable of flight using aerodynamic lift. Fixed-wing aircraft are distinct from rotary-wing aircraft (in which a r ...

cabin aircraft, flown in 1929. It did not go into production.

Design and development

The Golden Bear was a high wing aircraft built around a welded steel tube structure which incorporated chrome-molybdenum alloys where stresses were high. The two spar wing was rectangular in plan and braced to the lower fuselage

longeron In engineering, a longeron or stringer is a load-bearing component of a framework. The term is commonly used in connection with aircraft fuselages and automobile chassis. Longerons are used in conjunction with stringers to form structural fram ...

s with parallel

strut A strut is a structural component commonly found in engineering, aeronautics, architecture and anatomy. Struts generally work by resisting longitudinal compression, but they may also serve in tension. A stay is sometimes used as a synonym for ...

s from the spars. The central wing was joined to the top of the cabin. On the prototype the wing, like the rest of the aircraft, was fabric-covered, though production models would have had metal covering. The prototype was powered by a Comet 7-D seven cylinder

radial engine The radial engine is a reciprocating engine, reciprocating type internal combustion engine, internal combustion engine configuration in which the cylinder (engine), cylinders "radiate" outward from a central crankcase like the spokes of a wheel. ...

, mounted with its cylinder heads exposed for cooling, though the second example was scheduled to have a seven cylinder

Wright J-6-7 Whirlwind The Wright R-760 Whirlwind was a series of seven-cylinder air-cooled radial aircraft engines built by the Wright Aeronautical division of Curtiss-Wright. These engines had a displacement of 756 in³ (12.4 L) and power ratings of 225-35 ...

. The cabin was well-windowed for both pilot and passengers, with a windowed luggage compartment aft and doors on both sides. There were two unusual safety features. The central wing structure provided space for an aircraft rescue

parachute A parachute is a device designed to slow an object's descent through an atmosphere by creating Drag (physics), drag or aerodynamic Lift (force), lift. It is primarily used to safely support people exiting aircraft at height, but also serves va ...

, a concept under test at the time. Second, the cabin doors could be jettisoned together in flight with a single lever so that the two passengers could escape individually and rapidly by parachute. The tail was conventional, with a low

aspect ratio The aspect ratio of a geometry, geometric shape is the ratio of its sizes in different dimensions. For example, the aspect ratio of a rectangle is the ratio of its longer side to its shorter side—the ratio of width to height, when the rectangl ...

, roughly rectangular plan horizontal tail mounted on top of the fuselage. It had a cropped triangular

fin A fin is a thin component or appendage attached to a larger body or structure. Fins typically function as foils that produce lift or thrust, or provide the ability to steer or stabilize motion while traveling in water, air, or other fluids. F ...

with a rounded,

balanced rudder Balanced rudders are used by both ships and aircraft. Both may indicate a portion of the rudder surface ahead of the hinge, placed to lower the control loads needed to turn the rudder. For aircraft the method can also be applied to elevator (air ...

which reached down to the keel. The Golden Bear had conventional, fixed

landing gear Landing gear is the undercarriage of an aircraft or spacecraft that is used for taxiing, takeoff or landing. For aircraft, it is generally needed for all three of these. It was also formerly called ''alighting gear'' by some manufacturers, s ...

, with independent axles and drag struts from the lower fuselage

s. The vertical, shock absorbing legs were mounted on the forward wing struts at points reinforced by short struts to both upper and lower fuselage longerons. Its tailwheel was also fitted with a shock absorber. The date of the Golden Bear's first flight is not known, though its test programme was flown by Ray Crayford from the then new

Berkeley, California Berkeley ( ) is a city on the eastern shore of San Francisco Bay in northern Alameda County, California, United States. It is named after the 18th-century Anglo-Irish bishop and philosopher George Berkeley. It borders the cities of Oakland, Cali ...

airport. By August 1929 the first production shop of a proposed factory was completed. The prototype survived until August 1939 when it was destroyed by a crowd at an

Oakland Speedway The Oakland Speedway was a motor racing track in San Leandro, California, a suburb of Oakland, California. It was a one-mile, banked dirt oval track built in 1931, which operated throughout the Great Depression and postwar years. The track featured ...

thrill show, disappointed at not getting their money's worth. It is not known if the second example was completed.

Specifications

References

{{reflist, refs= {{cite magazine , editor=Horsefall, J.E., title=Golden Bear cabin plane , journal=Aero Digest, date= September 1929 , page=174 , url=https://archive.org/details/aerodigest1519unse/page/n175/mode/1up, volume=15, number=3, publisher=Aeronautical Digest Publishing Corp, location=New York City {{cite web , url= http://www.aerofiles.com/_n.html, title=Aerofiles: Neilsen, author= , date= , publisher= , accessdate=5 June 2020 High-wing aircraft Single-engined tractor aircraft 1920s United States sport aircraft 1920s United States civil utility aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1929