The Consolidated Model 17 Fleetster was a 1920s American light transport

monoplane A monoplane is a fixed-wing aircraft configuration with a single mainplane, in contrast to a biplane or other types of multiplanes, which have multiple planes. A monoplane has inherently the highest efficiency and lowest drag of any wing con ...

aircraft built by the Consolidated Aircraft Corporation.

Design and development

The Fleetster received Approved

Type Certificate A type certificate signifies the airworthiness of a particular category of aircraft, according to its manufacturing design (''type design''). It confirms that the aircraft of a new type intended for serial production, is in compliance with applica ...

Number 369 on 29 September 1930. It was designed to meet a requirement of the New York, Rio, and Buenos Aires Line (NYRBA) for an aircraft to serve the coastal routes in South America. The Fleetster had a streamlined all-metal

monocoque Monocoque ( ), also called structural skin, is a structural system in which loads are supported by an object's external skin, in a manner similar to an egg shell. The word ''monocoque'' is a French term for "single shell". First used for boats, ...

fuselage The fuselage (; from the French ''fuselé'' "spindle-shaped") is an aircraft's main body section. It holds crew, passengers, or cargo. In single-engine aircraft, it will usually contain an engine as well, although in some amphibious aircraf ...

with a wooden wing. The

powerplant Propulsion is the generation of force by any combination of pushing or pulling to modify the translational motion of an object, which is typically a rigid body (or an articulated rigid body) but may also concern a fluid. The term is derived from ...

was a 575 hp (429 kW)

Pratt & Whitney R-1860 Hornet B The Pratt & Whitney R-1860 Hornet B was a relatively uncommon aircraft engine. It was a development of Pratt & Whitney's earlier R-1690 Hornet and was basically similar, but enlarged in capacity from 1,690 to .Connors, p.79 Cylinder bore was in ...

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 ...

. It was available as a landplane or seaplane and could accommodate up to eight passengers, although the three NYRBA aircraft were fitted with two full-width seats each for three passengers. A

parasol-wing A monoplane is a fixed-wing aircraft configuration with a single mainplane, in contrast to a biplane or other types of multiplanes, which have multiple planes. A monoplane has inherently the highest efficiency and lowest drag of any wing con ...

version (the Model 20 Fleetster) was also developed with the wing supported by four short struts. The open cockpit was moved behind the passenger cabin and the resultant space was used as a cargo compartment. Three aircraft were built for NYRBA and a private

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

customer. In 1932 a carrier-borne dive bomber version (Model 18) was evaluated by the

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 ...

as the XBY-1, it was not ordered but was the first stressed-skin aircraft, and the first aircraft with so-called "

wet wing A wet wing (also referred to as ''integral fuel tanks''Crane, Dale: ''Dictionary of Aeronautical Terms, third edition'', page 557. Aviation Supplies & Academics, 1997. ) is an aerospace engineering technique where an aircraft's wing structure is se ...

" integral fuel tanks in the wings operated by the Navy.

Variants

;Model 17-1 :

powered production variant for the NYRBA ;Model 17AF :Nine-passenger version powered by a 575hp (429kW)

Wright R-1820 The Wright R-1820 Cyclone 9 is an American radial engine developed by Curtiss-Wright, widely used on aircraft in the 1930s through 1950s. It was produced under license in France as the Hispano-Suiza 9V or Hispano-Wright 9V, and in the Soviet Un ...

E Cyclone radial engine. The wing had an increased span and area to give an increased

maximum takeoff weight The maximum takeoff weight (MTOW) or maximum gross takeoff weight (MGTOW) or maximum takeoff mass (MTOM) of an aircraft is the maximum weight at which the pilot is allowed to attempt to take off, due to structural or other limits. The analogous ...

. Three planes were built for

Ludington Airline Ludington Airline (also, Ludington Lines or Ludington Line) was an airline of northeastern United States in the 1930s. It was unique as it was the first airline that carried passengers only and was not supported by government revenue from airmail ...

, they were later purchased by Pacific Alaska Airways, two of them (NC703YS, NC704Y) were resold to Soviet Union for use as Arctic rescue planes. These two planes were used in heroic rescue of

SS Chelyuskin SS ''Chelyuskin'' ( rus, «Челю́скин», p=tɕɪˈlʲuskʲɪn) was a Soviet steamship, reinforced to navigate through polar ice, that became ice-bound in Arctic waters during navigation along the Northern Maritime Route from Murmansk t ...

crew in April, 1934. Consolidated XBY-1 front three quarter view

;Model 17-2AC :One aircraft powered by a 575hp (429kW) Wright R-1820E Cyclone radial engine. ;Model 18 :Two-seat carrier based bomber for US Navy with revised wing (50 ft (15.24 m) span) featuring an integral fuel tank. Fitted with an internal bomb bay capable of carrying a 1,000 lb (450 kg) bomb and powered by 600 hp (448 kW) R-1820-78 engine. One built, evaluated as XBY-1 (BuNo 8921).Wegg 1990, p. 63. ;Model 20-1 :Parasol-wing version of the Model 17 for the NYRBA, four built. Consolidated Fleetster 20A (4427643916)

;Model 20-A :Production version for the Transcontinental & Western Air was a quick-change variant for passenger or cargo work, seven built. ;C-11 :One Model 17 bought for use of the United States Assistant Secretary of War and designated Y1C-11, later modified to Model 17-2 standards and redesignated C-11A. Consolidated Y1C-22 Fleetster

;C-22 :Refined version of the Model 17 for the

United States Army Air Corps The United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) was the aerial warfare service component of the United States Army between 1926 and 1941. After World War I, as early aviation became an increasingly important part of modern warfare, a philosophical r ...

, three built.

Operators

; * Argentine Navy, one model 17, coded T-202 ; * Spanish Republican Air Force – Model 20-A ; *

- three C-22 *

United States Department of War The United States Department of War, also called the War Department (and occasionally War Office in the early years), was the United States Cabinet department originally responsible for the operation and maintenance of the United States Army, ...

- one Y1C-11, later converted to C-11A

Specifications (Model 17)

References

* Andrade, John. ''U.S.Military Aircraft Designations and Serials since 1909'', Midland Counties Publications, 1979, (Page 171) * Wegg, John. ''General Dynamics Aircraft and their Predecessors''. London:Putnam, 1990. . * The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft (Part Work 1982–1985), 1985, Orbis Publishing

External links