The Curtiss CONDOR
The Condor II was a 1933 two-bay biplane of mixed construction with a single vertical stabilizer and rudder, and retractable landing gear. It was powered by two Wright Cyclone radial engines.
The first aircraft was flown on 30 January 1933 and a production batch
of 21 aircraft was then built. The production aircraft were fitted out
as 12-passenger luxury night sleeper transports. They entered service
with Eastern Air Transport and American Airways, forerunners of Eastern Air Lines and American Airlines
on regular night services for the next three years. The June 1, 1934
American Airlines system timetable marketed its Condors as being "The
World's First Complete Sleeper-Planes" with these 12-passenger aircraft
being equipped with sleeper berths and also being capable of cruising at
190 miles per hour.[1]
An example of the Condor services operated by American were daily
overnight flights between Dallas and Los Angeles during the mid 1930s
with a routing of Dallas - Ft. Worth - Abilene - Big Spring, TX - El
Paso - Douglas, AZ - Tucson - Phoenix - Los Angeles.[2]
No comments:
Post a Comment