Curtiss B-2 Condor formation flight over Atlantic City, N.J. S/N 28-399 is in the foreground (tail section only). Aircraft were assigned to 11th Bombardment Squadron, 7th Bombardment Group at Rockwell Field, California. This flight of 4 aircraft completed cross-country flight to Atlantic City, NJ
The B-2 was a large fabric-covered biplane aircraft. Its two engines sat in nacelles between the wings, flanking the fuselage. It had a twin set of rudders on a twin tail, a configuration which was becoming obsolete by that time. At the rear of each nacelle was a gunner position. In previous planes, the back-facing gunners had been in the fuselage, but their view there was obstructed. A similar arrangement (using nacelle-mounted gun platforms) was adopted in the competing Keystone XB-1 aircraft.
The XB-2 competed for a United States Army Air Corps production contract with the similar Keystone XB-1, Sikorsky S-37, and Fokker XLB-2. The other three were immediately ruled out, but the Army board appointed to make the contracts was strongly supportive of the smaller Keystone XLB-6, which cost a third as much as the B-2. Furthermore, the B-2 was large for the time and difficult to fit into existing hangars. However, the superior performance of the XB-2 soon wrought a policy change, and in 1928 a production run of 12 was ordered.
One modified B-2, dubbed the B-2A, featured dual controls for both the pilot and the copilot. Previously, the control wheel and the pitch controls could only be handled by one person at a time. This "dual control" setup became standard on all bombers by the 1930s. There was no production line for the B-2A. The B-2 design was also used as a transport.
The B-2 was quickly made obsolete by technological advances of the 1930s, and served only briefly with the Army Air Corps, being removed from service by 1934. Following production of the B-2, Curtiss Aircraft left the bomber business, and concentrated on the Hawk series of pursuit aircraft in the 1930s.
Variants
Model 52
Company designation of the B-2.
XB-2
Prototype.
B-2
Twin-engined heavy bomber biplane. Initial production version; 12 built.
B-2A
Redesignation of one B-2 fitted with dual controls.
curtiss, condor, later, condor, biplane, airliner, curtiss, condor, 1920s, united, states, bomber, aircraft, descendant, martin, which, built, curtiss, aeroplane, motor, company, glenn, martin, company, there, were, differences, such, stronger, materials, diff. For the later Condor biplane airliner see Curtiss T 32 Condor II The Curtiss B 2 Condor was a 1920s United States bomber aircraft It was a descendant of the Martin NBS 1 which was built by the Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company for the Glenn L Martin Company There were a few differences such as stronger materials and different engines but they were relatively minor B 2 CondorRole Heavy bomberManufacturer Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor CompanyIntroduction 1929Retired 1934Status No known survivorsPrimary user United States Army Air CorpsProduced 1929 1930Number built 13Developed into T 32 Condor IICurtiss B 2 Condor formation flight over Atlantic City N J S N 28 399 is in the foreground tail section only Aircraft were assigned to 11th Bombardment Squadron 7th Bombardment Group at Rockwell Field California This flight of 4 aircraft completed cross country flight to Atlantic City NJ Contents 1 Development 2 Variants 3 Military operators 4 Specifications B 2 5 See also 6 References 7 Bibliography 8 External linksDevelopment EditThe B 2 was a large fabric covered biplane aircraft Its two engines sat in nacelles between the wings flanking the fuselage It had a twin set of rudders on a twin tail a configuration which was becoming obsolete by that time At the rear of each nacelle was a gunner position In previous planes the back facing gunners had been in the fuselage but their view there was obstructed A similar arrangement using nacelle mounted gun platforms was adopted in the competing Keystone XB 1 aircraft The XB 2 competed for a United States Army Air Corps production contract with the similar Keystone XB 1 Sikorsky S 37 and Fokker XLB 2 The other three were immediately ruled out but the Army board appointed to make the contracts was strongly supportive of the smaller Keystone XLB 6 which cost a third as much as the B 2 Furthermore the B 2 was large for the time and difficult to fit into existing hangars However the superior performance of the XB 2 soon wrought a policy change and in 1928 a production run of 12 was ordered One modified B 2 dubbed the B 2A featured dual controls for both the pilot and the copilot Previously the control wheel and the pitch controls could only be handled by one person at a time This dual control setup became standard on all bombers by the 1930s There was no production line for the B 2A The B 2 design was also used as a transport The B 2 was quickly made obsolete by technological advances of the 1930s and served only briefly with the Army Air Corps being removed from service by 1934 Following production of the B 2 Curtiss Aircraft left the bomber business and concentrated on the Hawk series of pursuit aircraft in the 1930s Variants EditModel 52 Company designation of the B 2 XB 2 Prototype B 2 Twin engined heavy bomber biplane Initial production version 12 built B 2A Redesignation of one B 2 fitted with dual controls Model 53 Condor 18 Civil version of the B 2 Six built Military operators Edit United StatesUS Army Air Corps 7th Bombardment Group Rockwell Field California 11th Bomb Squadron operated 1928 1931Specifications B 2 EditData from Curtiss aircraft 1907 1947 1 General characteristicsCrew 5 Length 47 ft 4 in 14 43 m Wingspan 90 ft 0 in 27 43 m Airfoil root Curtiss C 72 tip Curtiss C 72 2 Empty weight 9 300 lb 4 218 kg Gross weight 16 951 lb 7 689 kg Powerplant 2 Curtiss GV 1570 7 Conqueror V 12 water cooled piston engine 600 hp 450 kW eachPerformance Maximum speed 132 mph 212 km h 115 kn Cruise speed 105 5 mph 169 8 km h 91 7 kn Range 805 mi 1 296 km 700 nmi Service ceiling 17 100 ft 5 200 m Rate of climb 850 ft min 4 3 m s Armament Guns 6x 0 30 in 7 62 mm Lewis machine guns Bombs 2 508 lb 1 138 kg of bombs See also EditRelated development Martin NBS 1Aircraft of comparable role configuration and era Fokker XLB 2 Huff Daland XB 1 Huff Daland XHB 1 Keystone LB 7 Sikorsky S 37Related lists List of military aircraft of the United States List of bomber aircraftReferences Edit Bowers Peter M 1979 Curtiss aircraft 1907 1947 London Putnam pp 213 215 ISBN 0 370 10029 8 Lednicer David The Incomplete Guide to Airfoil Usage m selig ae illinois edu Retrieved 16 April 2019 Bibliography EditBowers Peter M Curtiss Aircraft 1907 1947 London Putnam amp Company 1979 ISBN 0 370 10029 8 External links Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Curtiss B 2 Curtis B 2 Condor page of Joe Baugher part of his Encyclopedia of American Aircraft USAF Museum article on B 2 New Flying Battleship Modern Mechanix October 1927 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Curtiss B 2 Condor amp oldid 1027096923, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
