__NOTOC__ The Verville-Sperry R-3 was a cantilever wing racing monoplane with a streamlined fuselage and the second aircraft with fully retractable landing gear, the first being the

Dayton-Wright RB-1 The Dayton-Wright RB-1 (Rinehart Howard Max Rinehart, flight instructor and later, aeronautical engineer.Baumann Milton C. Baumann, a US Army officer who was an aeronautical engineer during WW1. model one), also known simply as the Dayton-Wright ...

. In 1961, the R-3 racer was identified as one of the "Twelve Most Significant Aircraft of all Time" by ''

Popular Mechanics ''Popular Mechanics'' (sometimes PM or PopMech) is a magazine of popular science and technology, featuring automotive, home, outdoor, electronics, science, do-it-yourself, and technology topics. Military topics, aviation and transportation o ...

'' magazine. In 1924, an R-3 won the

Pulitzer Trophy The National Air Races (also known as Pulitzer Trophy Races) are a series of pylon and cross-country races that have taken place in the United States since 1920. The science of aviation, and the speed and reliability of aircraft and engines grew ...

in Dayton, OH.

Design and development

The R-3 was designed by Alfred Verville. Its first production was in 1922. The R-3 was developed by the McCook Field

Engineering Division The Engineering Division was a division of the Aviation Section, U.S. Signal Corps in the United States Department of War. It was formed on 31 August 1918, under the direction of Lt Col Jesse G. Vincent, to study and design American versions of f ...

and manufactured by the Lawrence Sperry Aircraft Company of Farmingdale, New York. Three aircraft were purchased. The airplanes used cylindrical, finned Lamblin radiators and a Wright H-3 engine. The R-3s bore Air Service serial numbers 22-326 to 22-328.

Operational history

At the 1922

race, all three R-3's started in the race, but only two finished. Lieutenant Eugene Barksdale finished fifth at around . Lieutenant Fonda B. Johnson finished seventh, his engine freezing after landing. And Lieutenant

St. Clair Streett St. Clair Streett (October 6, 1893 – September 28, 1970), known as "Bill", was a United States Air Force (USAF) major general and writer who first organized and led the Strategic Air Command (SAC). Streett served as aide to air power advocate G ...

broke an oil line and had a forced landing, damaging his airplane. For the 1923 Pulitzer, a Curtiss D-12 engine was installed in the plane which eliminated some vibration problems that the H-3 engine had. With the new engine the top speed now was approaching . That year a Curtiss biplane was the winner. With Orville Wright officially observing from the ground, Lieutenant Alexander Pearson, Jr. flying an R-3 set a 500 km World Speed Record of over a 10-lap course on March 31, 1923 at

Wilbur Wright Field Wilbur Wright Field was a military installation and an airfield used as a World War I pilot, mechanic, and armorer training facility and, under different designations, conducted United States Army Air Corps and Air Forces flight testing. Loca ...

. For the 1924 Pulitzer, the R-3, piloted by Lieutenant Harry H. Mills, won the race at a slow . The ranked entry–a Curtiss biplane–crashed along the course. After this race, the R-3 racers were sent to the McCook Field Museum.

Operators

; *

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 ...

References

{{USAAS racing aircraft 1920s United States military utility aircraft Racing aircraft Verville aircraft Sperry aircraft Low-wing aircraft Single-engined tractor aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1922

Design and development

Operational history

Operators

See also

References