The Pitcairn PA-4 Fleetwing II, also called the Pitcairn Fleetwing DeLuxe, and the Pitcairn PA-4 Fleetwing is a commercial mail hauling and passenger

biplane A biplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with two main wings stacked one above the other. The first powered, controlled aeroplane to fly, the Wright Flyer, used a biplane wing arrangement, as did many aircraft in the early years of aviation. While ...

Design and development

Ten PA-4s were built before it was re-engined with the

Wright J-5 The Wright R-790 Whirlwind was a series of nine-cylinder air-cooled radial aircraft engines built by Wright Aeronautical Corporation, with a total displacement of about and around . These engines were the earliest members of the Wright Whirlwin ...

Whirlwind as the Pitcairn PA-5 to fly on the CAM-19 mail routes. The Fleetwing II is a

conventional landing gear Conventional landing gear, or tailwheel-type landing gear, is an aircraft Landing gear, undercarriage consisting of two main wheels forward of the Center of gravity of an aircraft, center of gravity and a small wheel or skid to support the tail ...

equipped biplane with

strut-braced In aeronautics, bracing comprises additional structural members which stiffen the functional airframe to give it rigidity and strength under load. Bracing may be applied both internally and externally, and may take the form of struts, which act in ...

tail surfaces. The

fuselage The fuselage (; from the French language, French ''fuselé'' "spindle-shaped") is an aircraft's main body section. It holds Aircrew, crew, passengers, or cargo. In single-engine aircraft, it will usually contain an Aircraft engine, engine as wel ...

is welded steel-tube construction with

aircraft fabric covering Aircraft fabric covering is a term used for both the material used and the process of covering aircraft open structures. It is also used for reinforcing closed plywood structures. The de Havilland Mosquito is an example of this technique, as are ...

. The cowling is formed from two pieces. The wire wheels were streamlined with laced-on discs.

Operational history

Six Fleetwings were sold directly to

Pitcairn Aviation Eastern Air Lines (also colloquially known as Eastern) was a major airline in the United States that operated from 1926 to 1991. Before its dissolution, it was headquartered at Miami International Airport in an unincorporated area of Miami-Dade ...

. In 1928, the Fleetwing II ''The City of Reading'' participated in the Transcontinental Air Race. It was sold to Reading Airways after the race and later used in stunt flying around

Cumberland, Maryland Cumberland is a city in Allegany County, Maryland, United States, and its county seat. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 19,075. Located on the Potomac River, Cumberland is a regional business and comm ...

with the signature "Flying through a train tunnel" illusion. The sole remaining Fleetwing II was rebuilt over the course of seven years by Harold Armstrong from drawings supplied by Steve Pitcairn (1925-2008), son of company founder

Harold Frederick Pitcairn Harold Frederick Pitcairn (June 20, 1897 – April 23, 1960) was an Americans, American aviation inventor and pioneer. He played a key role in the development of the autogyro and founded the Autogiro Company of America. He patented a number of i ...

(1897-1960). The aircraft won Grand Champion Antique at the 1991

EAA AirVenture Oshkosh EAA AirVenture Oshkosh (formerly the EAA Annual Convention and Fly-In), or just Oshkosh, is an annual air show and gathering of aviation enthusiasts held each summer at the Wittman Regional Airport and adjacent Pioneer Airport in Oshkosh, Wiscon ...

airshow. Armstrong's Fleetwing was seriously damaged in an accident on September 9, 2012.

Specifications (Fleetwing II)

References

Citations

Bibliography

External links

{{Pitcairn aircraft Pitcairn aircraft Biplanes Single-engined tractor aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1927