Stinson Model O
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The Stinson Model O was an American single-engined military trainer aircraft of the 1930s designed built by the Stinson Aircraft Company. Based on the Stinson SR, the Model O was designed to meet a requirement of the Honduran Air Force, forming the initial equipment of that air arm.


Design and development

In 1933, New Zealander
Lowell Yerex Lowell Yerex (24 July 1895 – 1968) was born in New Zealand, and attended Valparaiso University in Valparaiso, Indiana United States. He graduated from Valparaiso University in 1916. He volunteered for the British Royal Flying Corps in 1917, wa ...
, who had flown reconnaissance flights in his Stinson Detroiter for forces loyal to Honduran President-elect Tiburcio Carías Andino in a civil war in December 1931, and subsequently founded the South American airline consortium TACA, was tasked with buying trainers and counter-insurgency aircraft for the ''Escuela Nacional de Aviación'' or National Aviation School, which was later to form the core of the Honduran Air Force. Following discussions between Yerex and the Stinson Aircraft Company, Robert Hall, designer of the
Gee Bee Model Z The Granville Gee Bee Model Z was an American racing aircraft of the 1930s, the first of the Super Sportster aircraft built by Granville Brothers Aircraft of Springfield, Massachusetts, with the sole intent of winning the Thompson Trophy, which ...
racing aircraft, designed an aircraft to meet the Honduran requirement.Hagedorn ''Air Enthusiast'' Thirty-one, p. 59.Wegg 1990, p. 130. Hall's design, the Model O, was a parasol wing
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 confi ...
which used the wings and tail surfaces of the Stinson SR Reliant four-seat private aircraft, combining them with a new fuselage seating the crew of two in tandem in open cockpits (the Model O was the first and only Stinson aircraft to have open cockpits). The aircraft was powered by a
Lycoming R-680 The Lycoming R-680 is a nine-cylinder air-cooled radial engine, the first aero engine produced by Lycoming. The engine was produced in two types, the E and B series; both are essentially the same. The B4E was available in a trainer version wit ...
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 ...
, rated at and capable of running on low-
octane rating An octane rating, or octane number, is a standard measure of a fuel's ability to withstand compression in an internal combustion engine without detonating. The higher the octane number, the more compression the fuel can withstand before detonating ...
fuel. The aircraft could be armed with two fixed forward-firing machine guns, with a further machine gun flexibly mounted in the observer's cockpit, while a bomb rack could be mounted beneath the fuselage. Design and construction proceeded quickly, with the prototype first flying in May 1933.Wegg 1990, pp. 130–131.


Operational history

Honduras purchased three Model Os, taking delivery in December 1933, when they formed the initial equipment of the ''Escuela Nacional de Aviación'', with Honduran
serial number A serial number is a unique identifier assigned incrementally or sequentially to an item, to ''uniquely'' identify it. Serial numbers need not be strictly numerical. They may contain letters and other typographical symbols, or may consist enti ...
s 1–3. Following the Japanese
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 ...
in December 1941, Honduras's Model Os were used to carry out patrols along the coast of the still-neutral country. One of the Model Os went missing during such a patrol, but the other two were still in use at the end of the
Second World War 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 ...
in 1945.Hagedorn ''Air Enthusiast'' Thirty-one, pp. 62–63. A total of nine Model Os were built, with three being sold to China, one to Argentina and one to Brazil. With the
Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebelión, lin ...
raging, an attempt was made in 1938 by Republican Spain to purchase 100 Model Os, with President
Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...
's brother-in-law
Hall Roosevelt Gracie Hall Roosevelt (June 28, 1891 – September 25, 1941) was an American engineer, banker, soldier, and municipal official who was the youngest brother of First Lady of the United States Eleanor Roosevelt and a nephew of President Theodore Ro ...
acting as negotiator for the Spanish, but the American arms embargo stopped the deal.Wegg 1990, p. 131. The prototype remained 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 ...
as a civil aircraft, and was still in use in 1946. A replica Model O was constructed by Evergreen Aviation Services of
Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous co ...
, using the wings and tail of a Stinson SR-5 Reliant and a fuselage and wing center-section reconstructed from photographs. It first flew on March 24, 2010.


Operators

; *Kwangsi Air Force purchased three Model Os in 1934.Andersson 2008, p. 40. ; * Honduran Air Force


Specifications


Notes


References

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External links


Stinson Model 'O' Re-Creation Confirmed for Oshkosh – AirVenture (Archived)
{{Stinson aircraft 1930s United States military trainer aircraft O