The Bellanca 28-70 was a long-range air racer designed for
James Fitzmaurice,
Irish
Irish may refer to:
Common meanings
* Someone or something of, from, or related to:
** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe
***Éire, Irish language name for the isle
** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...
pioneer aviator, who christened it ''Irish Swoop''. Although it was built in time for the 1934
MacRobertson Race
The MacRobertson Trophy Air Race (also known as the London to Melbourne Air Race) took place in October 1934 in aviation, 1934 as part of the 1934 Centenary of Melbourne, Melbourne Centenary celebrations. The race was devised by the Lord Mayor o ...
from England to Australia, it was never destined to be a competitive long-distance racer but it was ultimately reborn as a high-speed bomber.
Design and development
![Bellanca_28-70_photo_L'Aerophile_November_1934](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/10/Bellanca_28-70_photo_L%27Aerophile_November_1934.jpg)
In preparation for the upcoming 1934
MacRobertson Race
The MacRobertson Trophy Air Race (also known as the London to Melbourne Air Race) took place in October 1934 in aviation, 1934 as part of the 1934 Centenary of Melbourne, Melbourne Centenary celebrations. The race was devised by the Lord Mayor o ...
from England to Australia, Col. James "Fitz" Fitzmaurice, former commanding officer of the Irish Free State Air Force travelled to the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
in spring 1934 to commission a long-distance air racing aircraft.
[Underwood 1975, p. 16.] After approaching the
Lockheed Aircraft and
Northrop Aircraft
Northrop Corporation was an American aircraft manufacturer from its formation in 1939 until its 1994 merger with Grumman to form Northrop Grumman. The company is known for its development of the flying wing design, most successfully the B-2 Spiri ...
companies, he sought out
Giuseppe Mario Bellanca
Giuseppe Mario Bellanca (March 19, 1886 – December 26, 1960) was an Italian-American aviation pioneer, airplane designer and builder, who is credited with many design firsts and whose aircraft broke many aviation records. He was inducted into t ...
.
[Underwood 1975, p. 17.] Although he did not have a product to sell, Bellanca made a proposal to Fitzmaurice to build a "one-off" specialty aircraft for $30,000.00.
In May 1934, Fitzmaurice signed an agreement for a new aircraft called the Bellanca 28-70. Bellanca turned to a conventional wooden frame with fabric covering but the purposeful profile did not look like any of the previous company designs. Powered by a
Pratt & Whitney
Pratt & Whitney is an American aerospace manufacturer with global service operations. It is a subsidiary of Raytheon Technologies. Pratt & Whitney's aircraft engines are widely used in both civil aviation (especially airlines) and military aviat ...
700 hp double-row "Wasp Jr.", the long streamlined fuselage merged a tandem cockpit area topped by an extended canopy into a low-wing monoplane configuration with retractable main landing gear. An unusual set of top and bottom wing braces were utilized. Designed for a fuel capacity of 400 gallons, in order to have long "legs," a total of 600 gallons of fuel were aboard, raising the gross weight to 8,350 lbs.
[Underwood 1975, p. 19.]
Operational history
After receiving the aircraft, Fitzmaurice and his co-pilot, Eric "Jock" Bonar conducted a rapid series of preflight tests in New York before carrying out the first flight on 1 September 1934.
[Underwood 1975, p. 19.] The initial flight showed problems in aileron controls that necessitated a modification. Following a successful second test flight, the aircraft painted as "race 29" was crated and shipped by sea on the liner ''
SS Bremen'' with a final destination at Bremerhaven, after the aircraft was unable to be offloaded at its first stop in Southampton, when the small ship that was to transport the Bellanca broke its towline.
Christened the ''Irish Swoop'', Fitzmaurice and Bonar took off in the racer on 9 October, arriving in
Great Britain
Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...
barely in time for the start of the
MacRobertson Race
The MacRobertson Trophy Air Race (also known as the London to Melbourne Air Race) took place in October 1934 in aviation, 1934 as part of the 1934 Centenary of Melbourne, Melbourne Centenary celebrations. The race was devised by the Lord Mayor o ...
.
The ferry flight was problematic with a cracked cowling forcing a landing at Amsterdam.
[Underwood 1975, p. 21.]
The MacRobertson race rules committee considered the Fitzmaurice and Bonar entry not "race-ready".
[Underwood 1975, p. 21.] A more serious problem involved the Bellanca exceeding its design specifications wherein it had been certified for a 400-gallon fuel capacity and now was carrying much more fuel and weight without being recertified. Assigned a penalty that limited its fuel to 120 gallons, Fitzmaurice withdrew the ''Irish Swoop'' hours before the race, unwilling to sacrifice his fuel load.
After being recertified for its new configuration, Fitzmaurice and Bonar undertook a long-distance record flight on 29 October 1934 intending to set a new London-Baghdad mark (4,100 km / 2546 mi).
[Underwood 1975, p. 62.] Over Belgium, however, problems with a fairing and the cowling caused an end to the attempt. The Bellanca was shipped back to the US to finish its tests, but was badly damaged in a landing accident on 15 April 1935 when a gust of wind flipped the aircraft on its back during a proving flight undertaken by Bonar and Bellanca mechanic Eddie Griscome.
[Underwood 1975, p. 62.] In 1936, the aircraft was rebuilt with a 900 hp P&W Twin Wasp and redesignated the 28-90.
Purchased by
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies.
** Britishness, the British identity and common culture
* British English, ...
long-distance air racer
Jim Mollison
James Allan Mollison Order of the British Empire, MBE (19 April 1905 – 30 October 1959) was a Scottish pioneer aviator who, flying solo or with his wife, Amy Johnson, set many records during the rapid development of aviation in the 1930 ...
for $28,000, he renamed the aircraft ''Dorothy'' and used the Bellanca for a new transatlantic speed record, but in 1937 sold the aircraft to the Republican government in Spain.
The
Bellanca 28-90 Flash was developed into a bomber in the 1930s for export to Spain to take part in the
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebelión, lin ...
. Although none reached Spain, the order was diverted to China where the aircraft briefly saw service. Later, an additional batch destined for Spain ended up in Mexico. A total of 43 aircraft were produced.
Operators
;
*
Irish Hospitals' Trust
;
*
Spanish Republican Air Force
Specifications
See also
*
Giuseppe Mario Bellanca
Giuseppe Mario Bellanca (March 19, 1886 – December 26, 1960) was an Italian-American aviation pioneer, airplane designer and builder, who is credited with many design firsts and whose aircraft broke many aviation records. He was inducted into t ...
Aircraft of comparable role, configuration and era
*
Granville Gee Bee R-6
The Granville Gee Bee R-6 International Super Sportster, named "Q.E.D." (latin: ''quod erat demonstrandum'' "it is proven"), and later named "''Conquistador del Cielo''" (Spanish: "sky conqueror"), was the last in a series of racing and touring ...
''Q.E.D.''
*
Lockheed Model 8 Sirius
The Lockheed Model 8 Sirius was a single-engined, propeller-driven monoplane designed and built by Jack Northrop and Gerard Vultee while they were engineers at Lockheed in 1929, at the request of Charles Lindbergh. Two versions of the same basic ...
*
Northrop Gamma
The Northrop Gamma was a single-engine all-metal monoplane cargo aircraft used in the 1930s. Towards the end of its service life, it was developed into the A-17 light bomber.
Design and development
The Gamma was a further development of the su ...
Related lists
*
List of racing aircraft
This list of racing aircraft covers aircraft which have been designed or significantly modified to take part in air races. It does not include minimally modified aircraft which were not built for racing, even if they have taken part in races.
...
References
;Notes
;Bibliography
*
*
* Taylor, Michael J.H. ''Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation''. London: Studio Editions, 1989.
* Underwood, John. "A Racer for Ireland, Bombers for Spain." ''Air Classics'' Vol. 11, no. 10, October 1975.
External links
aerofiles.com
{{Bellanca
1930s United States military utility aircraft
28-70
Racing aircraft
Single-engined tractor aircraft
Low-wing aircraft
Aircraft first flown in 1934