Country of origin:

United States of America

Description:

Three seat touring biplane

Power Plant:

One 67 kw (90 hp) Curtiss Ox-5 eight-cylinder VEE liquid-cooled engine

Specifications:

History:

Built by the American Eagle Aircraft Corp, the prototype of the Eagle series of biplanes known as the A-1 was test flown on 9 April 1926. Tests revealed the design was satisfactory, and the type was put into production at the Company’s facility at Kansas City, Missouri and was typical of US-built aircraft of the 1920s and 30s.  The Eagle in its early form had equal span wings with balanced horn ailerons on the upper wing. The rudder was also of the aerodynamically-balanced horn type. All movable control surfaces were cable actuated and the undercarriage was of the typical straight axle and spreader bar type.

In the 1927 model the balanced ailerons were discarded in favour of the un-balanced type, detail improvements being made, and a variation in the rudder shape was adopted. The engine cowling was modified and the undercarriage became the split-axle type, having one spool of wound rubber shock-cord to take the load. The fuselage framework was built up of welded chrome-molybdenum steel tube faired to shape with wood fairing strips and fabric covering. The wing framework, which was also fabric covered, was built up of solid spruce spars and wood built-up ribs.

The American Eagle Aircraft Corp was founded in 1925 by Mr E Porterfield to build a safe training aircraft for a flying school which he had set up. He was of the opinion that a safer, better performing, training aircraft was needed to replace the aging Curtiss Jenny and Lincoln Standard then in operation. The prototype, as noted above, first flew from Richards Field in Kansas City, having been designed by Waverly Stearman and Porterfield, seating three in two open cockpits and being typical of the era. Type approval was received in November 1927.

Many changes were made during early production, the most notable being the addition of ailerons on the lower wing. To reduce costs war-surplus Curtiss OX-5 engines were installed, but some were fitted with the OXX-6, Hispano and Anzani engines. By May 1928 production had reached 12 aircraft a week.

The Company branched out and produced a number of other designs, including the A-129, A-139, A-201, A-229, A-329 and A-429. However, the Stock Market Crash of 1929 soon meant the market for aircraft had dried up and the Company designed a smaller lighter design known as the Eaglet powered by a 22 kw (30 hp) two-cylinder Szekely SR-3-L radial engine. This was produced in small numbers until 1931 when the Company merged with the Lincoln Aircraft Co. This new company became the American Eagle Lincoln Aircraft Co and basically produced only the Eaglet, eventually producing some 700 aircraft.

Standard colour scheme of all Eagles was all-over silver with burnished ‘swirls’ on the metal engine and cockpit cowlings. Propeller spinner and wheel fairing discs were standard.

One example of the series came to this region, G-AUHV (c/n 238), powered by a 67 kw (90 hp) Curtiss OX-5 engine. It was first registered on 1 August 1928 to well-known Sydney pilot Joseph R Palmer who flew it regularly in and around New South Wales, the aircraft being based in Sydney. It became VH-UHV on 27 May 1929. On 21 July 1930 it was re-engined with a 75 kw (100 hp) Kinner K-5 radial engine but it crashed on 14 April 1935 near Manly, NSW and the registration was cancelled on 31 July 1935. At one stage it had the name ‘Aerial Flights Company’ painted on the side but was never owned by this company. It is assumed it was probably being used for tourist flights by Mr Palmer.