The Bellanca CH-400 Skyrocket is a six-seat utility aircraft built in 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 the 1930s, a continuation of the design lineage that had started with the

Bellanca WB-2 The sole Wright-Bellanca WB-2, named ''Columbia'', ''Miss Columbia'', and later ''Maple Leaf'', was the second in a series of aircraft designed by Giuseppe Mario Bellanca, initially for Wright Aeronautical then later Columbia Aircraft Corp. D ...

. Retaining the same basic airframe of the preceding CH-200 and CH-300, the CH-400 was fitted with a more powerful

Pratt & Whitney Wasp The Pratt & Whitney Wasp was the civilian name of a family of air-cooled radial piston engines developed in the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s.Gunston 1989, p.114. The Pratt & Whitney Aircraft Company (P&W) was founded in 1925 by Frederick B. Rentsch ...

radial engine The radial engine is a reciprocating type internal combustion engine configuration in which the cylinders "radiate" outward from a central crankcase like the spokes of a wheel. It resembles a stylized star when viewed from the front, and is ca ...

. Three examples were purchased by the

U.S. Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage o ...

under the designation RE. Two were used for radio research, and one as an

air ambulance Air medical services is a comprehensive term covering the use of air transportation, aeroplane or helicopter, to move patients to and from healthcare facilities and accident scenes. Personnel provide comprehensive prehospital and emergency and cri ...

for the U.S. Marine Corps. This latter aircraft was reconfigured to carry two stretchers. The aircraft was also available in a deluxe version for private pilot owners, fitted with a more powerful Wasp variant providing 450 hp (336 kW) and detail enhancements. Two of these aircraft were purchased by the government of the

Dominion of Newfoundland Newfoundland was a British dominion in eastern North America, today the modern Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It was established on 26 September 1907, and confirmed by the Balfour Declaration of 1926 and the Statute of Westmi ...

in 1937, and one later ended in private hands. NC10294 was changed to VO-BCD and NC13155 to VO-BDF.

Variants

;CH-400: Six-seat utility aircraft., powered by a

radial piston engine. ;XRE-1: One aircraft used for radio research work at

Naval Air Station Anacostia Anacostia is a historic neighborhood in Southeast Washington, D.C. Its downtown is located at the intersection of Good Hope Road and Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue. It is located east of the Anacostia River, after which the neighborhood is nam ...

. ;XRE-2: One light transport aircraft for the US Navy. ;XRE-3: One two-stretcher air ambulance aircraft for the US Marine Corps.

Military operators

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United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

Specifications (CH-400 Skyrocket)

References

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aerofiles.com
{{Bellanca aircraft CH-400 High-wing aircraft Single-engined tractor aircraft 1930s United States civil utility aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1930