Curtiss-Wright CW- designations and P- projects

[sienar]

I've gone through the Smithsonian's searchable archive and put together this list of P designations based on the title of reports. Sometimes that gives a pretty good description of the aircraft, other times not so much.

p-200 Pursuit with V-1800 engine, for X-603
p-202 Army Trainer, Model 18
p-212 Transport, 4 H-2120
p-218 Transport, 4 R-1820
P-219 Transport
p-222 Transport, 4 H-2120 or SGR-1829-12 and Bomber, 8000 mile range
P-223 Transport
P-224 Transport
P-225 Army Transport
P-227 Twin Engine Advanced Trainer, R-760E or R-975E
P-228 Twin engine 3 place low wing monoplane
P-229 Transport
P-232 High alt Transport,4 R-1820 - pressuized agreement trans am
P-232-Y4 Transport 4 aircooled wright H engines
P-235 Cargo, 2 R-1820 (diesel also considered)
P-238 mentioned but no details on type
P-239 Model 20 Cargo verion R-2600
P-240 four engine pax plane, compared against model 20
P-243 Interceptor USAAF
P-245 Two place basic trainer, R-975 for CP 39-735 USAAF Type spec R-705
P-247 1940
P-248 Single seat interceptor V-1710F3R XC-622 R40-c
P-249 Single seat interceptor V-1710F3R XC-622 R40-C
P-250 Navy interceptor
P-251 Army Bomber Proposal
P-252 Army Bomber Proposal
P-253 Twin engine 2-seat advanced trainer R-680
P-254 Twin engine, three seat interceptor
P-255 long range transport
P-256 pressurized twin engine transport
P-257 single seat single engine interceptor
P-259 twin engine, 2 seat destroyer
P-261 single seat twin engine pursuit
P-268 24-32 and 38-43 seat passenger plane, "gear box designe multi-engine drive"
P-269 low performance cargo, "army task force airplane"
P-272 "converstion 45,000 pound C-46 cargo to p-272 transport"
P-273 Navy fighter plane (1942)
P-274 Cargo Transport
P-275 weight estimate prelim 1942
P-276 Single place dive bomber Army, single R-3350
P-277 Xp-55 with two-stage supercharged engines
P-278 Attack bomber, single seat
P-279 single seat dive bomber R-2800
P-280 Military cargo airplane/35k lb commercial pax
P-282 45 pax transport
p-283 twin transport military
p-291 compared against C-46 1944
P-292 1944
P-293 coupled engine
P-295 "design proposal - twin turbine, vertical climbing fighter" 4/23/1944 (!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)
P-296 Military cargo
P-297 Military Cargo
P-298 Military personnel transport Cw-20
P-299 c-46 with R-2800
P-302 11/16/1944
P-303 Cargo and personnel transport, alternate turbine power plane 2/9/1945
P-304 3/31/1945
P-305 general descrip, CW-20
P-306 4/23/1945
P-307 8/28/1945

 

[hesham]

Nice find dear Sienar,and I can add,

P-241 light bomber Project to C-104
P-244 ideal fighter of 1939
P-247 single seat interceptor,based on CW-21
P-264 twin engined fighter of 1941
P-304 medium-range jet fighter
P-509 Navy bomber and torpedo bomber
P-517 & P-518 light bomber Projects
P-538 carrier-based long range escort fighter
P-539 target
P-541 medium bomber
P-545 target
P-551 carrier-based long range escort fighter
P-558 heavy bomber to OS-111
P-565 navy night fighter
P-586 Doman rotor
P-588 was ASW aircraft
P-592 experimental helicopter patrol

 

[Mark Nankivil]

Allow me to answer a few untackled questions from earlier in this thread:


"SKY-CLEARER" Interceptor Pursuit, 1944

I think the Sky-Clearer interceptor pursuit was from Curtiss-Wright design,so it was XP-55 and not XF15C-1.

The P-55 was not an "interceptor" and the F15C was not a "pursuit" (that word was only used by the Army for their fighters, and stuck until 1948 when the P- for pursuit became the F- for fighter). The only candidate that fits the description "Curtiss-Wright Corporation, 'Sky-Clearer' Interceptor Pursuit (abandoned), 8/10/44" and was scheduled to be built at St. Louis is the XP-71.



Curtiss-Wright CW-2

CW-2; Coupe; 1931; St. Louis; Kinner 100hp; 2 PCLM

Three things I want to point out here. First, as the list shared by aim9xray suggests, "Coupe" was not the name given to the CW-2 but only the type of aircraft. Secondly, since the Curtiss-Robertson CR-1 Skeeter prototype was produced as the CW-1 Junior, it is possible that the CW-2 might likewise have been a planned production version of the CR-2 Coupe prototypes. Finally, I have read somewhere that the Coupe sort of laid the foundations for what became the CW-19 Sparrow/Coupe. Unless the CW-2 was to have been a major redesign of the CR-2 there is really two little commonality between the 1929 Coupe and the 1935 one to establish such a lineage!



Curtiss-Wright CW-5 "PEGASUS"

CW-5; Freighter; Pegasus; (proposed)

It is likely that the CW-5 JUNIOR TRANSPORT (also found as the FREIGHTER) also started life as the Travel Air 5000.

I made a terrible mistake here as I was mixing up the Curtiss-Wright CW-5 Pegasus, an unbuilt freighter proposal, with the "Curtis Wright" CW-5 Junior Transport, an evasive 1929 prototype that had nothing to do with the Curtiss-Wright Airplane Co. (see two posts above).

In fact I made TWO terrible mistakes in this thread, for which I deeply apologize. The Travel Air 5000 was NEVER allocated the CW-5 slot for record purposes. Just like the 1000, 2000, 3000, the 5000 was no longer produced. Only the types that were still in production or still considered for production got a number in the new CW- list. That left the company with four unused slots, which they allocated to the Junior (CW-1), the unbuilt coupe (CW-2), the Duck (formerly known as Teal and Duckling) (CW-3) and the Pegasus freighter project (CW-5).



B-2 "CONDOR"?

Was the original B-2 bomber, also named Condor, also under the CW-4 designation or did it have another?

Jos Heyman already partly answered this one, but let me add to it. The CW- list was for Saint-Louis related designs ONLY. The Condor bomber and Condor CO (Condor 18) transport were not only earlier (being drafted in 1929), but they were Garden City and Buffalo products. When the 1935 system was introduced, the NBS-4, B-2 Condor and Condor 18 received the Models 36, 52 and 53 designations in retrospect. The T-32 Condor (the Condor "II") was purely a Saint-Louis product, bestowed upon that branch as a bone to chew when production of other types subsided.

Why call it CW-4 afterwards when the type was no longer produced? The reason for this is strange, as in all logic it should have occupied a much later slot, and the CW-4 slot had previously been reserved for the Travel Air 4 (previously Travel Air 4000). Perhaps a case of superstition to avoid CW-13? We will never know...



Curtiss-Wright Model 410

Curtiss had projected a whole range of this type of aircraft with known type designations 201, 203, 205, 207, 300, 325, 410, 425 and 500, but with probably a lot more designs.

Doing some more digging throgh the Curtiss archives, this morning. Came across a mention of the Curtiss Wright Model 410 in the back of the X-19 files. Huge VTOL with Ten times the payload @ 12,740-15,000 lbs. It is/was also a four engine tilt rotor with 23' props. Will do some more digging..

The Model 410 (also found as X-410) is probably pretty close to the Model 425 (X-425) / LT-1 "Light Transport" passenger or troop transport project. Perhaps a cargo variant of the same?



Curtiss-Wright CW-33

For CW-33,please see;
http://www.secretprojects.co.uk/forum/index.php/topic,888.msg7261/highlight,cw+33.html#msg7261

It appears through comparing the various bits of data at our disposal that this designation was assigned to a carrier-based heavy attack bomber project designated inhouse as the P-558 and submitted to the OS-111 tender. It was given Contract No. 10430 but lost to the A3D.



Curtiss-Wright CW-40

CW-40----Helicopter,formerly Doman LZ-4.

"The LZ-4 is the engineer-produced and hand-built prototype of the LZ-5. Built specifically for research purposes, it was taken over by Curtiss Wright, where it was given the designation of CW-40. The LZ-4's maiden flight took place in November 1950."
P.Lambermont "Helicopters and Autogyros of the World", 1958

"Doman moved on to the improved LZ-5 and transferred the LZ-4A (N74147) to Curtiss Wright as a test vehicle."
R.Simpson "Airlife's Helicopter and Rotorcraft", 1998

You can notice in these two references a disagreement on the designation: LZ-4? LZ-4A? Why did Curtiss-Wright take over that prototype specifically, anyway? The only reference we have to a Curtiss-Wright helicopter project is this "Curtiss-Wright Helicopter Airliner Development Report V-151-S-3, 10/00/44" but it's earlier, and apart from this, no helicopter work was associated to the company in that period of time... Perhaps some engine- or blade-related work?



"Design Numbers", "model Numbers", or "Alternate Model Designations"?

while Aerofiles and other sources MAY have listed as "CW"-16E, "CW"-16K, and "CW"-16W "Models". I do not think this is correct as a Curtiss designation. No problem with listing them as "Travel Air Model 16-E" etc etc. But 'IF" they were listed in usual official company designations they were more likely to be listed as "Design numbers" with the usual A-Z dash letter. "CW-16, CW-16A. CW-16B" etc etc
The company policy as to designations is quoted in their book as. "Subsequent variations or developments of the design are given a dash letter." As can be plainly seen in their many pages of charts and designation listings, these dash letters FOR THE DESIGN NUMBER are A-Z in alphabetical order, and not letters of engine codes. The additon of a dash letter as engine code is used in the "Alternate Model Designation."
The Company "Prime Model Designation" would be "Travel Air." The company "Alternative Model Designation" would be listed as "16-E, 16-K" etc etc

Point well taken. I, of all people, do use the terms "model", "type" and "design" very often indistinctly whereas they can represent very different notions depending on the manufacturer. In the case of Curtiss we can see clearly that there were "Primary Model Designations" (often a bird's name) and an "Alternate Model Designations" (most often the military designation). However, in both cases they are still refered to as "Model Designations". In the case of the CW-16 series, "CW-16" is considered the "Design Number" and is put in parentheses (an indication that it was never used as such), "Travel Air" the "Primary Model Designation", and 16-E, 16-K and 16-W are clearly marked as "Alternate Model Designations". Still, looking at the whole list, there are many incoherences and therefore whatever we find there must always be taken with a pinch of salt and cross-referenced with other company documents!

Good Day All -

I scanned some Curtiss-Wright St. Louis files from the David Ostrowski collection at our Museum which so happen to have three photos of the Curtiss-Wright St. Louis CR-2 "Coupe". The markings on the aircraft clearly state "Coupe" so that is now defined. Also note that the typed description calls it a Travel Air Coupe.

Also have photos of an original St. Louis built 1931 CW-1 Junior, though re-engined. This is in the collection of the Pioneer Flight Museum in Kingsbury, TX and was the first Junior I have ever seen fly. Took these photos the day before their big "Wings and Wheels" Fly-In back in early May.

The CW-3 Duckling looks like a Junior with webbed feet - only three were built and David Ostrowski's collection has photos of only one, 12325. Have to chuckle at the "Baby China Clipper" name.

Enjoy the Day! Mark

 

[hesham]

From this book.