The Cessna Airmaster, is a family of single-engined aircraft manufactured by the

Cessna Aircraft Company Cessna () is an American brand of general aviation aircraft owned by Textron Aviation since 2014, headquartered in Wichita, Kansas. Originally, it was a brand of the Cessna Aircraft Company, an American general aviation aircraft manufacturing c ...

. The Airmaster played an important role in the revitalization of Cessna in the 1930s after the crash of the aviation industry during the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

Development

Initial model

In the mid-1930s, nearing the end of the Great Depression, the American economy began to slowly strengthen.

Dwane Wallace Dwane Leon Wallace (October 29, 1911 – December 21, 1989) was an American aviation businessman and aircraft designer. He served as the president and/or chairman of the board of the Cessna Aircraft Company from 1935 until the 1970s, having then c ...

(founder

Clyde Cessna Clyde Vernon Cessna (; December 5, 1879 – November 20, 1954) was an American aircraft designer, aviator, and early aviation entrepreneur. He is best known as the principal founder of the Cessna Aircraft Corporation, which he started in 1927 i ...

's nephew who was a recent college graduate in aeronautical engineering) decided to assist his uncle and cousin,

Eldon Cessna Eldon may refer to: Places Australia * Eldon Range, Tasmania, a mountain range Canada * Eldon, Alberta, a locality * Eldon Parish, New Brunswick * Eldon Township, Ontario, a former municipality * Eldon, Ontario, a former railway stop * Eldon, P ...

(Clyde's son), in building more modern airplanes for Cessna Aircraft. The design of the first Airmaster is credited to Wallace, and the first flight of the C-34 model was in June 1935.Simpson, 2001, p. 132 Not long after introduction of the C-34, Clyde Cessna retired from the aircraft industry, leaving the company to his nephew.

Later models

The original Airmaster, the C-34, evolved into more advanced versions of the Airmaster. The C-37 had a wider cabin, improved landing gear and electric flaps. The C-38 had a taller vertical tail, curved main gear legs and a landing flap under the fuselage. Changes common to both the C-37 and C-38 included wider fuselages and landing gear along with rubber engine mounts to hold the

Warner Super Scarab The Warner Scarab is an American seven-cylinder radial aircraft engine, that was manufactured by the Warner Aircraft Corporation of Detroit, Michigan in 1928 through to the early 1940s. In military service the engine was designated R-420. Varia ...

engine. The final revisions of the C-34 were the C-145 and the C-165, of which 80 were built. On these models, the belly flaps added on the C-38 were removed and the overall length of the fuselage was increased. The only difference between the C-145 and C-165 was the engine horsepower, with the latter having an upgraded Warner engine.

End of the line

It was with the beginning of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

that the Airmaster line came to an end. The welded tubular fuselage, fabric-covered body, extensive woodwork, wooden wings and radial engines, all characteristic of 1930s-era aircraft technology, became too expensive and slow to produce. The old-style aircraft was quickly replaced with aircraft constructed from aluminium with strut braced wings first seen in the

Cessna 120 120 may refer to: *120 (number), the number *AD 120, a year in the 2nd century AD *120 BC, a year in the 2nd century BC *120 film, a film format for still photography * ''120'' (film), a 2008 film *120 (MBTA bus) *120 (New Jersey bus) *120 (Kent) C ...

Design

The design of the C-34 incorporates characteristics that were borrowed from previous models of Cessna Aircraft. These similarities include the high mounted cantilever wing and the narrow design of the cabin windows. The wings and tail surfaces were composed entirely of wood while the fuselage was structured with steel tubing coupled with wooden stringers and formers. Both C-145 and C-165 models were offered with floats.Phillips, Edward H: ''Cessna, A Master's Expression'', Flying Books, 1985.

Variants

;C-34: Four-seat light cabin aircraft, powered by a 145-hp (108-kW)

radial piston engine; 42 built. ;C-37: Cabin widened by 12.7 cm (5 in), fitted with improved landing gear and electrically operated flaps; 46 built. ;C-38: Fitted with wide landing gear with curved legs, plus a taller vertical tail and a landing flap under the fuselage; 16 built. ;C-39: Original designation of the Cessna C-145. ;C-145: Powered by a 145-hp (108-kW) Warner Super Scarab radial piston engine. ;C-165: Powered by a 165-hp (123-kW) Warner Super Scarab radial piston engine. ;C-165D: Powered by a 175-hp (130-kW) Warner Super Scarab radial piston engine. ;UC-77B: Two Cessna C-34s impressed into service with the

United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

(USAAF) during

. ;UC-77C: One Cessna C-37 impressed into service with the USAAF in 1942. ;UC-77D: Four Cessna C-37s impressed into service with the USAAF in 1942. ;UC-94: Three Cessna C-165s impressed into service with the USAAF in 1942.

Operators

Military operators

; *

Royal Australian Air Force "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = RAAF Anniversary Commemoration ...

; *

Finnish Air Force The Finnish Air Force (FAF or FiAF; fi, Ilmavoimat, , Air forces; sv, Flygvapnet, , Air weapon) is one of the branches of the Finnish Defence Forces. Its peacetime tasks are airspace surveillance, identification flights, and production of Finnis ...

; *

Survivors

As of December 31, 2006, there are 69 aircraft in the FAA database with the listed Models (totals) being C-165 (30), C-145 (10), C-34 (8), C-37 (14), and C-38 (7).

Specifications

References

;Notes ;Bibliography * * *

External links

Article on the Airmaster

May 1974 ''American Aircraft Modeler'' {{ADF aircraft designations 165 1930s United States civil utility aircraft High-wing aircraft Single-engined tractor aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1935