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Subject: Curtiss SC Seahawk
Date: 5 Apr 2017 07:41:35 -0700
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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curtiss_SC_Seahawk
The Curtiss SC Seahawk was a scout seaplane designed by the Curtiss Aeroplane
and Motor Company for the United States Navy. The existing Curtiss SO3C Seamew
and the Vought OS2U Kingfisher were 1937 designs that, by 1942, needed to be
replaced.
Work began in June 1942, following a US Navy Bureau of Aeronautics request for
scout seaplane proposals. Curtiss submitted the Seahawk design on 1 August 1942,
with a contract for two prototypes and five service test aircraft awarded on 25
August. A production order for 500 SC-1s followed in June 1943, prior to the
first flight of the prototypes.
While only intended to seat the pilot, a bunk was provided in the aft fuselage
for rescue or personnel transfer. Two 0.5 in (12.7 mm) M2 Browning machine guns
were fitted in the wings, and two underwing hardpoints allowed carriage of 250
lb (113 kg) bombs or, on the right wing, surface-scan radar. The main float,
designed to incorporate a bomb bay, suffered substantial leaks when used in that
fashion, and was modified to carry an auxiliary fuel tank.
The first flight of a prototype XSC-1 took place 16 February 1944 at the
Columbus, Ohio Curtiss plant. Flight testing continued through 28 April, when
the last of the seven pre-production aircraft took to the air. Nine further
prototypes were later built, with a second seat and modified cockpit, designated
SC-2; series production was not undertaken.
Role
Scout seaplane
Manufacturer
Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company
First flight
16 February 1944
Introduction
1944
Retired
1949
Primary user
United States Navy
Number built
577
The first serial production Seahawks were delivered on 22 October 1944, to the
USS Guam. All 577 aircraft eventually produced for the Navy were delivered on
conventional landing gear and flown to the appropriate Naval Air Station, where
floats were fitted for service as needed.
Capable of being fitted with either float or wheeled landing gear, the Seahawk
was arguably America's best floatplane scout of World War II. However, its
protracted development time meant it entered service too late to see significant
action in the war. It was not until June 1945, during the pre-invasion
bombardment of Borneo, that the Seahawk was involved in military action. By the
end of the war, seaplanes were becoming less desirable, with the Seahawk being
replaced soon afterward by helicopters.
Tri-color camouflage and markings on the Seahawk were in accordance with US Navy
regulations from 1944, 1945 and later postwar regulations.
There are no known surviving examples of the Seahawk today.
Specifications (SC-1, float-equipped)
General characteristics
Crew: One pilot
Capacity: Facility for single stretcher patient
Length: 36 ft ?4 1/2 in (11.08 m)
Wingspan: 41 ft 0 in (12.49 m)
Height: 16 ft 0 in (4.87 m)
Empty weight: 6,320 lb (2,867 kg)
Loaded weight: 9,000 lb (4,082 kg)
1,350 hp (1,007 kW)
Performance
Maximum speed: 313 mph (272 knots, 504 km/h) at 28,600 ft (8,700 m)
Cruise speed: 125 mph (113 knots, 210 km/h)
Range: 625 mi (543 nmi, 1,006 km)
Service ceiling: 37,300 ft (11,370 m)
Rate of climb: 2,500 ft/min (12.7 m/s)
Armament
*
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