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Douglas O-2

March 03, 2023

The Douglas O-2 was a 1920s American observation aircraft built by the Douglas Aircraft Company.

O-2
Role Observation plane
Manufacturer Douglas Aircraft Company
Primary user United States Army Air Corps
Produced 1924
Variants Douglas O-38
Douglas XA-2
Douglas M-1

Development

The important family of Douglas observation aircraft sprang from two XO-2 prototypes, the first of which was powered by the 420 hp (313 kW) Liberty V-1650-1 V-engine and test-flown in the autumn of 1924. The second XO-2 was powered by the 510 hp (380 kW) Packard 1A-1500 Vee engine, which proved unreliable. The US Army ordered 45 O-2 production aircraft in 1925, these retaining the XO-2's welded steel tube fuselage, wooden wings and overall fabric covering but at the same time introducing aluminum panels on the forward fuselage. The XO-2 had been flown with short and long-span wings, the latter giving improved handling and therefore being specified for the production aircraft. The fixed tailskid landing gear included a main unit of the divided type, the horizontal tail surface was strut braced, and the engine was cooled by a tunnel radiator.[1]

The O-2 proved to be a conventional but very reliable biplane which soon attracted orders for 25 more aircraft: 18 O-2A machines equipped for night flying and six O-2B dual-control command aircraft for the US Army, plus one civil O-2BS modified specially for James McKee, who made a remarkable trans-Canada flight in September 1926. In 1927 the O-2BS was adapted as a three-seater with a radial engine.[1]

The O-2Hs were an entirely new design but continued the same basic model number. Major differences were heavily staggered wings, a more compact engine installation, and clean landing gear secured to the fuselage.[2]

Up to 2011 there were no O-2's known to exist. However, in 2011 the wreckage of O-2H 29-163 that crashed out of Kelly Field Texas on March 16, 1933 has been positively identified. The rear and central/forward portion of the fuselage behind the firewall, wing attachments and landing gear parts, tailplane and many engine parts and eight of the twelve pistons are now recovered. Research is continuing on this aircraft. It is known it was flown by Aviation Cadet Charles D. Rogers on a night recon advanced training mission. Apparently flying low, the aircraft hit a hill and burned after the crash leaving only the found wreckage today. Weather was not considered a contributing factor. Cadet Rogers was instantly killed in the crash by the impact. His body was recovered but the wreckage was abandoned due to the airframe and engine both being a writeoff.

The only similar aircraft known to exist are a restored Douglas M-2 mailplane and a follow-on derivative of the O-25 variant, an O-38.

Operational history

Douglas O-2M variants were deployed by the Chinese Air Force's 6th, 7th and 8th Bomber-Attack and Scouting-Attack Groups in combat against the Imperial Japanese forces during the early years of the War of Resistance-World War II.[3] O-2Ms (sometimes mislabeled as Douglas O-38s[by whom?]) were heavily deployed in the Battle of Shanghai, the Battle of Nanjing and the Battle of Taiyuan. As their slow speed made the O-2Ms vulnerable to fast Japanese fighters, they either flew clandestine night missions solo or day missions escorted by Hawk IIs or Hawk IIIs. Japanese ace fighter pilot Akio Matsuba flying an A2N from the aircraft carrier Kaga in his first aerial combat engagement, claimed his first (shared) victory over an O-2M while providing air-cover for Japanese troop-landings in Shanghai on third day in the airwar of the War of Resistance/WWII, 16 August 1937.[4][5]

Variants

XO-2
Two pre-production prototypes.
O-2
Initial production model - 45 built.[1]
O-2A
O-2 with night flying equipment - 18 built.[1]
O-2B
Dual control version of O-2 - six built.[1]
O-2C
These differed from the O-2 in having frontal radiators for their Liberty L-12 engines and modified oleo-strut landing gear. The USAAC took delivery of 18 aircraft, while the remaining 27 went to reserve National Guard units - 45 built and one later conversion from O-9.[1]
O-2D
Unarmed staff transport versions of the O-2C - two built.[1]
O-2E
A one-off aircraft which replaced the wire link between upper and lower wing ailerons of production aircraft by rigid struts.[1]
O-2H
The fuselage was redesigned and a new tailplane was fitted, with staggered wings of unequal span. The O-2H incorporated the rigid-strut aileron interconnections of the O-2E. An improved split-axle landing gear was standard. The USAAC received 101 O-2Hs between 1928 and 1930, and the National Guard a further 40 - 141 built.[1]
O-2J
Unarmed dual control version of the O-2H for service as USAAC staff transports - three built.[1]
O-2K
A slightly modified version of the O-2J for US Army staff transport and liaison duties. 30 built for the USAAC and 20 for the National Guard - 50 built.[1]
O-2M
various export versions of O-2 that saw services with Republic of China Air Force. These aircraft were used as scout-bombers by the Chinese in the Second Sino-Japanese War with some success against ground targets of the Empire of Japan. It was also used by the Mexican Air Force with Lewis and Vickers machine guns, with very good results.[citation needed]
O-2MC
Export version for China, powered by a Hornet radial engine - ten built
O-2MC-2
Export version for China, with the Hornet radial engine surrounded by a Townend ring - 20 built
O-2MC-3
Export version for China, fitted with an uprated 575 hp (429 kW) Pratt & Whitney Hornet radial engine - five built
O-2MC-4
Export version for China - 12 built
O-2MC-5
Export version for China, fitted with the less powerful 420 hp (310 kW) Pratt & Whitney Wasp C1 engine - 12 built
O-2MC-6
Export version for China, fitted with the 575 hp (429 kW) Wright R-1820-E radial engine - 22 built
O-2MC-10
Export version for China, fitted with a 670 hp (500 kW) Wright R-1820-F21 radial engine - one built
XO-6
Five all-metal O-2s, built in the mid-1920s by Thomas-Morse.[1]
XO-6B
Radically altered (smaller and lighter) version of the XO-6 - one built.[1]
O-7
Three O-2s refitted with the 510 hp (380 kW) Packard 2A-1500 direct-drive engine. Two were later converted to O-2 standards, and one to the O-2C standard.[1]
O-8
One O-2 with the 400 hp (300 kW) Curtiss R-1454 radial engine instead of the intended Packard inverted-Vee engine. It later became an O-2A.[1]
O-9
One O-2 refitted with the 500 hp (370 kW) Packard 3A-1500 geared engine. It resembled the O-7 but had a four- rather than two-bladed propeller. It later became an O-2A.[1]
XO-14
One reduced-scale O-2H, with a 220 hp (160 kW) Wright J-5 engine,[2] and the first Douglas aircraft with wheel brakes.[1]
XA-2
The 46th aircraft of the original O-2 contract was completed as an attack machine with the powerplant of one 420 hp (310 kW) V-1410 Liberty inverted-Vee engine, and with a total of eight machine-guns (two in the engine cowling, two each in the upper and lower wings, and two on a ring-mounting operated by the observer). It was remarkably well armed for its day, and competed against the Curtiss A-3 in 1926 but was not selected for production.[1]
OD-1
Two O-2Cs for service with the US Marine Corps from 1929.[1]
O-22
O-2H airframe with a swept-back upper wing and a Pratt & Whitney Wasp engine.[2]
O-25
O-2H airframe with a Curtiss Conqueror engine, and a revised nose. Later redesignated as the XO-25A [2]
O-25A
Forty-nine production versions of the O-25.[2]
O-25B
Three unarmed O-25As fitted with dual controls. Used as staff transport aircraft
O-25C
29 production O-25s with Prestone cooling system
Y1O-29
Later designated O-29A: Two O-2K airframes fitted with a Wright R-1750 Cyclone engine.[2]
O-32
O-2K conversion with Pratt & Whitney R-1340-3 Wasp engine, most later fitted with anti-drag rings.[2]
O-32A
Production O-32, 30 built.
YO-34
O-22 re-fitted with a Curtiss Conqueror engine.[2]
 
BT-2 (left) and BT-1 at Waco, Texas
BT-1
O-2K conversion to basic trainer, 30 converted.
BT-2
O-32 airframe converted to basic trainer.
BT-2A
O-32A conversion to basic trainer, 30 converted.
BT-2B
First production model, 146 built. 58 later converted to BT-2BI instrument trainers. Two converted to BT-2BR and 15 to BT-2BG radio-controlled aerial target drones.
BT-2C
Second production model, 20 built. 13 converted to BT-2CI instrument trainers. Seven became BT-2CR drone controllers.
A-4
Seventeen BT-2BRs and BT-2BGs converted in 1940 as radio-controlled aerial target drones. These had tricycle gear (a steerable nosewheel was added) with main gear moved aft, faired-over rear cockpit, and single controls, allowing the aircraft to be test-flown.[6][7]
MO-2B
Three seat general purpose biplane derived from the M series of mail-planes, despite the O-2 designation

Operators

  Republic of China
  Mexico
  United States

Specifications (O-2H)

Data from McDonnell Douglas aircraft since 1920 : Volume I[8]

General characteristics

  • Crew: 2
  • Length: 30 ft 0 in (9.14 m)
  • Wingspan: 40 ft 10 in (12.45 m)
  • Height: 10 ft 0 in (3.05 m)
  • Wing area: 362 sq ft (33.6 m2)
  • Airfoil: Clark Y [9]
  • Empty weight: 2,857 lb (1,296 kg)
  • Gross weight: 4,484 lb (2,034 kg)
  • Max takeoff weight: 4,550 lb (2,064 kg)
  • Fuel capacity: 110 US gal (92 imp gal; 420 l) in a single fuselage tank ahead of and below the pilot's cockpit
  • Powerplant: 1 × Liberty V-1650-1 V-12 liquid-cooled piston engine, 435 hp (324 kW)
  • Propellers: 2-bladed metal propeller

Performance

  • Maximum speed: 134.5 mph (216.5 km/h, 116.9 kn) at sea level
  • Cruise speed: 110 mph (180 km/h, 96 kn)
  • Range: 512 mi (824 km, 445 nmi)
  • Service ceiling: 16,900 ft (5,200 m)
  • Rate of climb: 1,075 ft/min (5.46 m/s)
  • Wing loading: 12.4 lb/sq ft (61 kg/m2)
  • Power/mass: 0.0971 hp/lb (0.1596 kW/kg)

Armament

  • 2 × .30 in (7.62 mm) Browning machine guns, one fixed forward-firing and one flexible
  • 400 lb (181 kg) of disposable stores carried under the lower wing

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s Eden, Paul; Moeng, Soph (2002), The Complete Encyclopedia of World Aircraft, London: Amber Books, ISBN 978-0-7607-3432-2
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Swanborough, F. G.; Bowers, Peter M. (1964), United States Military Aircraft Since 1909, New York: Putnam, ISBN 0-85177-816-X
  3. ^ "Shanghai 1937 – Where World War II Began". Retrieved 2020-11-20.
  4. ^ "Martyr Peng Ren-bian". air.mnd.gov.tw. Retrieved 2020-11-19. On 26th August 1937, 2Lt. Peng Ren-bian flew a Douglas O2MC from Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province to Shanghai to raid Japanese forces, and accomplished the mission over the target area. While flying back, he was suddenly attacked by multiple hostile aircraft, and killed in the skies over Lin'an of Zhejiang. He was given a posthumous promotion to the rank of first lieutenant, and was survived by his parents and wife.
  5. ^ Gustavsson, Hakans. "Håkans Aviation page – Sino-Japanese Air War 1937". Biplane Fighter Aces - China. Retrieved 2020-11-20. 14 October 1937, at 16:00, 18 Chinese aircraft (three Martin 139WCs, two Heinkel He111s, five Douglas O-2MCs, three Hawk IIIs and five Northrop Gammas) took off from Nanking to attack Shanghai airfields and warehouses; five Japanese bombers escorted by five fighters, arrived about five minutes after the Chinese attack force took off... barely escaping the raid by... the Japanese planes bombed the vacant airfield without inflicting much damage. Starting at 21:00, one aircraft was sent every hour for night-bombing runs on Japanese targets in Shanghai until 03:00 on 15 October 1937.
  6. ^ Francillon, Rene. McDonnell Douglas Aircraft since 1920 (Putnam, 1979), p.89.
  7. ^ Home Video of flying K model (around 6 min)
  8. ^ Francillon, René J. (1988). McDonnell Douglas aircraft since 1920 : Volume I. London: Naval Institute Press. pp. 62–81. ISBN 0870214284.
  9. ^ Lednicer, David. "The Incomplete Guide to Airfoil Usage". m-selig.ae.illinois.edu. Retrieved 16 April 2019.

External links

  Media related to Douglas O-2 at Wikimedia Commons

March 03, 2023
douglas, 1920s, american, observation, aircraft, built, douglas, aircraft, company, 2role, observation, planemanufacturer, douglas, aircraft, companyprimary, user, united, states, army, corpsproduced, 1924variants, douglas, 38douglas, 2douglas, contents, devel. The Douglas O 2 was a 1920s American observation aircraft built by the Douglas Aircraft Company O 2Role Observation planeManufacturer Douglas Aircraft CompanyPrimary user United States Army Air CorpsProduced 1924Variants Douglas O 38Douglas XA 2Douglas M 1 Contents 1 Development 2 Operational history 3 Variants 4 Operators 5 Specifications O 2H 6 References 7 External linksDevelopment EditThe important family of Douglas observation aircraft sprang from two XO 2 prototypes the first of which was powered by the 420 hp 313 kW Liberty V 1650 1 V engine and test flown in the autumn of 1924 The second XO 2 was powered by the 510 hp 380 kW Packard 1A 1500 Vee engine which proved unreliable The US Army ordered 45 O 2 production aircraft in 1925 these retaining the XO 2 s welded steel tube fuselage wooden wings and overall fabric covering but at the same time introducing aluminum panels on the forward fuselage The XO 2 had been flown with short and long span wings the latter giving improved handling and therefore being specified for the production aircraft The fixed tailskid landing gear included a main unit of the divided type the horizontal tail surface was strut braced and the engine was cooled by a tunnel radiator 1 The O 2 proved to be a conventional but very reliable biplane which soon attracted orders for 25 more aircraft 18 O 2A machines equipped for night flying and six O 2B dual control command aircraft for the US Army plus one civil O 2BS modified specially for James McKee who made a remarkable trans Canada flight in September 1926 In 1927 the O 2BS was adapted as a three seater with a radial engine 1 The O 2Hs were an entirely new design but continued the same basic model number Major differences were heavily staggered wings a more compact engine installation and clean landing gear secured to the fuselage 2 Up to 2011 there were no O 2 s known to exist However in 2011 the wreckage of O 2H 29 163 that crashed out of Kelly Field Texas on March 16 1933 has been positively identified The rear and central forward portion of the fuselage behind the firewall wing attachments and landing gear parts tailplane and many engine parts and eight of the twelve pistons are now recovered Research is continuing on this aircraft It is known it was flown by Aviation Cadet Charles D Rogers on a night recon advanced training mission Apparently flying low the aircraft hit a hill and burned after the crash leaving only the found wreckage today Weather was not considered a contributing factor Cadet Rogers was instantly killed in the crash by the impact His body was recovered but the wreckage was abandoned due to the airframe and engine both being a writeoff The only similar aircraft known to exist are a restored Douglas M 2 mailplane and a follow on derivative of the O 25 variant an O 38 Operational history EditDouglas O 2M variants were deployed by the Chinese Air Force s 6th 7th and 8th Bomber Attack and Scouting Attack Groups in combat against the Imperial Japanese forces during the early years of the War of Resistance World War II 3 O 2Ms sometimes mislabeled as Douglas O 38s by whom were heavily deployed in the Battle of Shanghai the Battle of Nanjing and the Battle of Taiyuan As their slow speed made the O 2Ms vulnerable to fast Japanese fighters they either flew clandestine night missions solo or day missions escorted by Hawk IIs or Hawk IIIs Japanese ace fighter pilot Akio Matsuba flying an A2N from the aircraft carrier Kaga in his first aerial combat engagement claimed his first shared victory over an O 2M while providing air cover for Japanese troop landings in Shanghai on third day in the airwar of the War of Resistance WWII 16 August 1937 4 5 Variants EditXO 2 Two pre production prototypes O 2 Initial production model 45 built 1 O 2A O 2 with night flying equipment 18 built 1 O 2B Dual control version of O 2 six built 1 O 2C These differed from the O 2 in having frontal radiators for their Liberty L 12 engines and modified oleo strut landing gear The USAAC took delivery of 18 aircraft while the remaining 27 went to reserve National Guard units 45 built and one later conversion from O 9 1 O 2D Unarmed staff transport versions of the O 2C two built 1 O 2E A one off aircraft which replaced the wire link between upper and lower wing ailerons of production aircraft by rigid struts 1 O 2H The fuselage was redesigned and a new tailplane was fitted with staggered wings of unequal span The O 2H incorporated the rigid strut aileron interconnections of the O 2E An improved split axle landing gear was standard The USAAC received 101 O 2Hs between 1928 and 1930 and the National Guard a further 40 141 built 1 O 2J Unarmed dual control version of the O 2H for service as USAAC staff transports three built 1 O 2K A slightly modified version of the O 2J for US Army staff transport and liaison duties 30 built for the USAAC and 20 for the National Guard 50 built 1 O 2M various export versions of O 2 that saw services with Republic of China Air Force These aircraft were used as scout bombers by the Chinese in the Second Sino Japanese War with some success against ground targets of the Empire of Japan It was also used by the Mexican Air Force with Lewis and Vickers machine guns with very good results citation needed O 2MC Export version for China powered by a Hornet radial engine ten built O 2MC 2 Export version for China with the Hornet radial engine surrounded by a Townend ring 20 built O 2MC 3 Export version for China fitted with an uprated 575 hp 429 kW Pratt amp Whitney Hornet radial engine five built O 2MC 4 Export version for China 12 built O 2MC 5 Export version for China fitted with the less powerful 420 hp 310 kW Pratt amp Whitney Wasp C1 engine 12 built O 2MC 6 Export version for China fitted with the 575 hp 429 kW Wright R 1820 E radial engine 22 built O 2MC 10 Export version for China fitted with a 670 hp 500 kW Wright R 1820 F21 radial engine one built XO 6 Five all metal O 2s built in the mid 1920s by Thomas Morse 1 XO 6B Radically altered smaller and lighter version of the XO 6 one built 1 O 7 Three O 2s refitted with the 510 hp 380 kW Packard 2A 1500 direct drive engine Two were later converted to O 2 standards and one to the O 2C standard 1 O 8 One O 2 with the 400 hp 300 kW Curtiss R 1454 radial engine instead of the intended Packard inverted Vee engine It later became an O 2A 1 O 9 One O 2 refitted with the 500 hp 370 kW Packard 3A 1500 geared engine It resembled the O 7 but had a four rather than two bladed propeller It later became an O 2A 1 XO 14 One reduced scale O 2H with a 220 hp 160 kW Wright J 5 engine 2 and the first Douglas aircraft with wheel brakes 1 XA 2 The 46th aircraft of the original O 2 contract was completed as an attack machine with the powerplant of one 420 hp 310 kW V 1410 Liberty inverted Vee engine and with a total of eight machine guns two in the engine cowling two each in the upper and lower wings and two on a ring mounting operated by the observer It was remarkably well armed for its day and competed against the Curtiss A 3 in 1926 but was not selected for production 1 OD 1 Two O 2Cs for service with the US Marine Corps from 1929 1 O 22 O 2H airframe with a swept back upper wing and a Pratt amp Whitney Wasp engine 2 O 25 O 2H airframe with a Curtiss Conqueror engine and a revised nose Later redesignated as the XO 25A 2 O 25A Forty nine production versions of the O 25 2 O 25B Three unarmed O 25As fitted with dual controls Used as staff transport aircraft O 25C 29 production O 25s with Prestone cooling system Y1O 29 Later designated O 29A Two O 2K airframes fitted with a Wright R 1750 Cyclone engine 2 O 32 O 2K conversion with Pratt amp Whitney R 1340 3 Wasp engine most later fitted with anti drag rings 2 O 32A Production O 32 30 built YO 34 O 22 re fitted with a Curtiss Conqueror engine 2 BT 2 left and BT 1 at Waco Texas BT 1 O 2K conversion to basic trainer 30 converted BT 2 O 32 airframe converted to basic trainer BT 2A O 32A conversion to basic trainer 30 converted BT 2B First production model 146 built 58 later converted to BT 2BI instrument trainers Two converted to BT 2BR and 15 to BT 2BG radio controlled aerial target drones BT 2C Second production model 20 built 13 converted to BT 2CI instrument trainers Seven became BT 2CR drone controllers A 4 Seventeen BT 2BRs and BT 2BGs converted in 1940 as radio controlled aerial target drones These had tricycle gear a steerable nosewheel was added with main gear moved aft faired over rear cockpit and single controls allowing the aircraft to be test flown 6 7 MO 2B Three seat general purpose biplane derived from the M series of mail planes despite the O 2 designationOperators Edit Republic of ChinaRepublic of China Air Force MexicoMexican Air Force United StatesUnited States Army Air Corps United States Marine CorpsSpecifications O 2H EditData from McDonnell Douglas aircraft since 1920 Volume I 8 General characteristicsCrew 2 Length 30 ft 0 in 9 14 m Wingspan 40 ft 10 in 12 45 m Height 10 ft 0 in 3 05 m Wing area 362 sq ft 33 6 m2 Airfoil Clark Y 9 Empty weight 2 857 lb 1 296 kg Gross weight 4 484 lb 2 034 kg Max takeoff weight 4 550 lb 2 064 kg Fuel capacity 110 US gal 92 imp gal 420 l in a single fuselage tank ahead of and below the pilot s cockpit Powerplant 1 Liberty V 1650 1 V 12 liquid cooled piston engine 435 hp 324 kW Propellers 2 bladed metal propellerPerformance Maximum speed 134 5 mph 216 5 km h 116 9 kn at sea level Cruise speed 110 mph 180 km h 96 kn Range 512 mi 824 km 445 nmi Service ceiling 16 900 ft 5 200 m Rate of climb 1 075 ft min 5 46 m s Wing loading 12 4 lb sq ft 61 kg m2 Power mass 0 0971 hp lb 0 1596 kW kg Armament 2 30 in 7 62 mm Browning machine guns one fixed forward firing and one flexible 400 lb 181 kg of disposable stores carried under the lower wingReferences Edit a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s Eden Paul Moeng Soph 2002 The Complete Encyclopedia of World Aircraft London Amber Books ISBN 978 0 7607 3432 2 a b c d e f g h Swanborough F G Bowers Peter M 1964 United States Military Aircraft Since 1909 New York Putnam ISBN 0 85177 816 X Shanghai 1937 Where World War II Began Retrieved 2020 11 20 Martyr Peng Ren bian air mnd gov tw Retrieved 2020 11 19 On 26th August 1937 2Lt Peng Ren bian flew a Douglas O2MC from Hangzhou Zhejiang Province to Shanghai to raid Japanese forces and accomplished the mission over the target area While flying back he was suddenly attacked by multiple hostile aircraft and killed in the skies over Lin an of Zhejiang He was given a posthumous promotion to the rank of first lieutenant and was survived by his parents and wife Gustavsson Hakans Hakans Aviation page Sino Japanese Air War 1937 Biplane Fighter Aces China Retrieved 2020 11 20 14 October 1937 at 16 00 18 Chinese aircraft three Martin 139WCs two Heinkel He111s five Douglas O 2MCs three Hawk IIIs and five Northrop Gammas took off from Nanking to attack Shanghai airfields and warehouses five Japanese bombers escorted by five fighters arrived about five minutes after the Chinese attack force took off barely escaping the raid by the Japanese planes bombed the vacant airfield without inflicting much damage Starting at 21 00 one aircraft was sent every hour for night bombing runs on Japanese targets in Shanghai until 03 00 on 15 October 1937 Francillon Rene McDonnell Douglas Aircraft since 1920 Putnam 1979 p 89 Home Video of flying K model around 6 min Francillon Rene J 1988 McDonnell Douglas aircraft since 1920 Volume I London Naval Institute Press pp 62 81 ISBN 0870214284 Lednicer David The Incomplete Guide to Airfoil Usage m selig ae illinois edu Retrieved 16 April 2019 External links Edit Media related to Douglas O 2 at Wikimedia Commons Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Douglas O 2 amp oldid 1075604441, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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