The Hall PH was an American

flying boat A flying boat is a type of fixed-winged seaplane with a hull, allowing it to land on water. It differs from a floatplane in that a flying boat's fuselage is purpose-designed for floatation and contains a hull, while floatplanes rely on fusela ...

of the 1930s. It was a twin-engined

biplane A biplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with two main wings stacked one above the other. The first powered, controlled aeroplane to fly, the Wright Flyer, used a biplane wing arrangement, as did many aircraft in the early years of aviation. While ...

, developed from the

Naval Aircraft Factory PN The Naval Aircraft Factory PN was a series of open cockpit American flying boats of the 1920s and 1930s. A development of the Felixstowe F5L flying boat of the First World War, variants of the PN were built for the United States Navy by Douglas, ...

and could hence trace its lineage back to the

Felixstowe Felixstowe ( ) is a port town in Suffolk, England. The estimated population in 2017 was 24,521. The Port of Felixstowe is the largest container port in the United Kingdom. Felixstowe is approximately 116km (72 miles) northeast of London. His ...

flying boats of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. The PH was purchased in small numbers 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 ...

and the

United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, military, mult ...

. It remained in service with the Coast Guard until 1944, being used for anti-submarine and search and rescue duties.

Development and design

In December 1927, the U.S. Navy placed a contract with the Hall Aluminum Aircraft Corporation of

Bristol, Pennsylvania Bristol is a borough in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is located northeast of Center City Philadelphia, opposite Burlington, New Jersey on the Delaware River. It antedates Philadelphia, being settled in 1681 and first incorporat ...

for a developed version of the Naval Aircraft Factory PN-11,Swanborough and Bowers 1976, p. 254 which itself could trace a development history back to the Felixstowe F.5 flying boat of

.Donald 1995, p. 186 The resultant prototype, the XPH-1, first flew in December 1929.Green 1962, p. 175 The XPH-1 had identical wings and a similar metal hull to that of the PN-11, but was fitted with a large single

fin A fin is a thin component or appendage attached to a larger body or structure. Fins typically function as foils that produce lift or thrust, or provide the ability to steer or stabilize motion while traveling in water, air, or other fluids. Fin ...

and

rudder A rudder is a primary control surface used to steer a ship, boat, submarine, hovercraft, aircraft, or other vehicle that moves through a fluid medium (generally aircraft, air or watercraft, water). On an aircraft the rudder is used primarily to ...

. It was powered by two

Wright Cyclone Wright Cyclone was the name given to a family of air-cooled radial piston engines designed by the Wright Aeronautical Corporation and used in numerous American aircraft in the 1930s and 1940s. Background The Wright Aeronautical Corporation was f ...

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 ...

s and accommodated its two pilots side by side in an open

cockpit A cockpit or flight deck is the area, usually near the front of an aircraft or spacecraft, from which a Pilot in command, pilot controls the aircraft. The cockpit of an aircraft contains flight instruments on an instrument panel, and the ...

, with cockpits for gunners in the nose and behind the wings. In 1930 the Navy ordered nine aircraft, designated the PH-1, which were fitted with more powerful engines and a partly enclosed cockpit for the pilots.Roberts 2000, p. 677 The Coast Guard later ordered seven PH-2 aircraft, similar to the PH-1 but with armament removed, and seven PH-3 units with armament reinstated and a fully enclosed cockpit for the pilots.

Operational history

Delivery of the PH-1 commenced in October 1931, equipping VP-8 from 1932, operating from the seaplane tender and from bases at

Pearl Harbor Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the Naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the Re ...

Midway Atoll Midway Atoll (colloquial: Midway Islands; haw, Kauihelani, translation=the backbone of heaven; haw, Pihemanu, translation=the loud din of birds, label=none) is a atoll in the North Pacific Ocean. Midway Atoll is an insular area of the Unit ...

, and the

Panama Canal Zone The Panama Canal Zone ( es, Zona del Canal de Panamá), also simply known as the Canal Zone, was an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the Isthmus of Panama, that existed from 1903 to 1979. It was located within the terr ...

. It was replaced by the

Consolidated PBY The Consolidated PBY Catalina is a flying boat and amphibious aircraft that was produced in the 1930s and 1940s. In Canadian service it was known as the Canso. It was one of the most widely used seaplanes of World War II. Catalinas served wit ...

-1 Catalina in 1937.Roberts 2000, p. 116 Production of the PH recommenced in June 1936 to meet an order for seven PH-2s for the Coast Guard. These entered service from 1938, being the largest aircraft operated by the Coast Guard at that time.Hall PH
US Coast Guard. Retrieved 13 March 2008 In 1939 the Coast Guard ordered an additional seven PH-3 aircraft; they entered service in 1941. The Hall flying boats were used by the Coast Guard for

search and rescue Search and rescue (SAR) is the search for and provision of aid to people who are in distress or imminent danger. The general field of search and rescue includes many specialty sub-fields, typically determined by the type of terrain the search ...

duties and were fitted with specialized equipment for this role. Following the

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

attack on Pearl Harbor The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service upon the United States against the naval base at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii, j ...

and the United States entry into World War II, the remaining PHs were painted in U.S Navy Grey Green colors to replace the previous bare metal finish, armed, and used for anti-

submarine A submarine (or sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability. The term is also sometimes used historically or colloquially to refer to remotely op ...

patrols (particularly during the

Operation Drumbeat The "Second Happy Time" (; officially Operation Paukenschlag ("Operation Drumbeat"), and also known among German submarine commanders as the "American Shooting Season") was a phase in the Battle of the Atlantic during which Axis submarines att ...

U-boat U-boats were naval submarines operated by Germany, particularly in the First and Second World Wars. Although at times they were efficient fleet weapons against enemy naval warships, they were most effectively used in an economic warfare role ...

attacks off the East coast of the United States in 1942) as well as continuing search and rescue operations. The Coast Guard continued operating the PH-2 and -3 until 1944.

Variants

;XPH-1 :Prototype. Two 537 hp (401 kW)

Wright R-1750 Wright Cyclone was the name given to a family of air-cooled radial piston engines designed by the Wright Aeronautical Corporation and used in numerous American aircraft in the 1930s and 1940s. Background The Wright Aeronautical Corporation was ...

engines. One built. ;PH-1 :Production version for U.S. Navy. Partly enclosed cockpit for pilots. Two 620 hp (463 kW)

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 ...

-86 engines in short- chord

Townend ring A Townend ring is a narrow- chord cowling ring fitted around the cylinders of an aircraft radial engine to reduce drag and improve cooling. Development The Townend ring was the invention of Dr. Hubert Townend of the British National Physica ...

cowlings. Nine built. ;PH-2 :Version for U.S Coast Guard. Two 750 hp (560 kW) Wright R-1820F-51 engines. Armament omitted. Seven built. ;PH-3 :Improved version for Coast Guard. Long Chord

NACA cowling The NACA cowling is a type of aerodynamic fairing used to streamline radial engines installed on airplanes. It was developed by Fred Weick of the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) in 1927. It was a major advance in aerodynamic ...

s. Revised enclosed canopy for pilots. Seven built.

Operators

; *

Specifications (PH-3)

References

;Notes ;Bibliography *Donald, David (ed.).''American Warplanes of World War II''. London: Aerospace, 1995. *Green, William. ''War Planes of the Second World War: Volume Five: Flying Boats''. London: Macdonald, 1962. *Roberts, Michael D.
Dictionary of American Naval Aviation Squadrons: Volume 2: The History of VP, VPB, VP(HL) and VP(AM) Squadrons
'. Washington DC: Naval Historical Center, 2000 *Swanborough, Gordon and Bowers, Peter M. ''United States Navy Aircraft since 1911''. London: Putnam, Second edition 1976.

External links

– Aviation Enthusiast Corner {{USN patrol aircraft Flying boats Hall PH01 P1H Biplanes Aircraft first flown in 1929 Twin piston-engined tractor aircraft