The Wright R-1820 Cyclone 9 is an American
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. ...
developed by
Curtiss-Wright
The Curtiss-Wright Corporation is an American manufacturer and services provider headquartered in Davidson, North Carolina, with factories and operations in and outside the United States. Created in 1929 from the consolidation (business), consoli ...
, widely used on aircraft in the 1930s through 1950s. It was produced under license in France as the Hispano-Suiza 9V or Hispano-Wright 9V, and in the Soviet Union as the
Shvetsov M-25.
Design and development
The R-1820 Cyclone 9 represented a further development of the
Wright P-2 engine dating back to 1925. Featuring a greater displacement and a host of improvements, the R-1820 entered production in 1931. The engine remained in production well into the 1950s.
The R-1820 was built under license by
Lycoming,
Pratt & Whitney Canada
Pratt & Whitney Canada (PWC or P&WC) is a Canada-based aircraft engine manufacturer. PWC's headquarters are in Longueuil, Quebec, south of Montreal. It is a division of the larger US-based Pratt & Whitney (P&W), itself a business unit of RTX ...
, and also, during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, by the
Studebaker Corporation. The
Soviet Union
The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
had purchased a license for the design, and the
Shvetsov ''
OKB'' was formed to
metricate the
American specification powerplant for Soviet government-factory production as the ''
M-25'', with the R-1820's general design features used by the Shvetsov design bureau for many of their future radials for the Soviet air forces through the 1940s and onwards. In
Spain
Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
the R-1820 was license-built as the ''Hispano-Suiza 9V'' or ''Hispano-Wright 9V''.
The R-1820 was at the heart of many famous aircraft including early Douglas airliners (the prototype
DC-1, the
DC-2, the first civil versions of the
DC-3, and the limited-production
DC-5), every wartime example of the
Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress
The Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress is an American four-engined heavy bomber aircraft developed in the 1930s for the United States Army Air Corps (USAAC). A fast and high-flying bomber, the B-17 dropped more bombs than any other aircraft during ...
and
Douglas SBD Dauntless bombers, the early versions of the
Polikarpov I-16 fighter (as the M-25), and the
Piasecki H-21
The Piasecki H-21 Workhorse/Shawnee is an American helicopter, the fourth of a line of tandem rotor helicopters designed and built by Piasecki Helicopter (later Boeing Vertol). Commonly called "the flying banana", it was a multi-mission helicop ...
helicopter.
The R-1820 also found limited use in armored vehicles. The G-200 variant developed at 2,300 rpm and powered the strictly experimental
M6 Heavy Tank.
D-200 Diesel
The Wright R-1820 was converted to a diesel during World War II by
Caterpillar Inc. as the D-200 and produced at 2,000 rpm in the
M4A6 Sherman.
Variants
Notes: Unit numbers ending with W indicate engine variants fitted with water-methanol emergency power boost systems.
Hispano-Suiza 9V
The Hispano-Suiza 9V is a licence-built version of the R-1820.
;Hispano-Suiza 9Vr:9V with reduction gear
;Hispano-Suiza 9Vb:
;Hispano-Suiza 9Vbr:variant of the 9Vb with reduction gear
;Hispano-Suiza 9Vbrs:variant of the 9Vb with reduction gear and supercharger
;Hispano-Suiza 9Vbs:variant of the 9Vb with supercharger
;Hispano-Suiza 9Vd:variant of the 9V
;Hispano-Suiza 9V-10: driving fixed-pitch propeller
;Hispano-Suiza 9V-11:as -10 but RH rotation
;Hispano-Suiza 9V-16: driving variable-pitch propeller, LH rotation
;Hispano-Suiza 9V-17:as -16 but RH rotation
Applications
Vehicles
*
M4A6 tank
*
M6 heavy tank
Engines on display
Preserved Wright R-1820 engines are on display at the following museums:
*
American Airlines C.R. Smith Museum
*
Fleet Air Arm Museum
The Fleet Air Arm Museum is devoted to the history of British naval aviation. It has an extensive collection of military and civilian aircraft, aero engines, models of aircraft and Royal Navy ships (especially aircraft carriers), and paintings ...
*
Delta Flight Museum
*
National Air and Space Museum
The National Air and Space Museum (NASM) of the Smithsonian Institution is a museum in Washington, D.C., in the United States, dedicated to history of aviation, human flight and space exploration.
Established in 1946 as the National Air Museum, ...
*
National Museum of the U.S. Air Force
*
Wings of Freedom Aviation Museum
Specifications (GR-1820-G2)
See also
References
Bibliography
* Bridgman, L, (ed.) (1998) ''Jane's Fighting Aircraft of World War II.'' Crescent. .
*
* Eden, Paul & Soph Moeng, ''The Complete Encyclopedia of World Aircraft.'' Amber Books Ltd. Bradley's Close, 74-77 White Lion Street, London, NI 9PF, 2002, .
*Gunston, Bill. ''World Encyclopedia of Aero Engines: From the Pioneers to the Present Day''. 5th edition, Stroud, UK: Sutton, 2006.
*White, Graham. ''Allied Aircraft Piston Engines of World War II: History and Development of Frontline Aircraft Piston Engines Produced by Great Britain and the United States During World War II''. Warrendale, Pennsylvania: SAE International, 1995.
*
*
{{US military piston aeroengines
Aircraft air-cooled radial piston engines
R-1820
1930s aircraft piston engines