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Old 05-27-2018, 08:23 AM
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Thumbs up 1st transatlantic flight completed, May 27, 1919

1st transatlantic flight completed, May 27, 1919
By: Amy Norcross -May 27, 2018
RE: https://www.edn.com/electronics-blog...--May-27--1919

Shortly after the end of World War I, a US Navy NC-4 seaplane and its crew of six made the first successful transatlantic flight from the Naval Air Station at Rockaway on Long Island, NY to Lisbon, Portugal.

Along with the NC-1 and NC-3 flying boats, all designed by the Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company, the NC-4 took off on May 8, 1919. After several stops for refueling, engine repairs, and rest for the crew, it landed in Portugal, on May 27, 1919. The NC-1, damaged landing in rough seas, and the NC-3, challenged by mechanical problems, did not complete the journey.

Photo of NC-4 the first aircraft to fly across the Atlantic Ocean. It completed the trip from New York to Portugal in 19 days, landing in Lisbon Bay on May 27, 1919. Source: U.S. Navy: https://m.eet.com/contenteetimes/ima...tic_flight.jpg

With a maximum speed of about 84 knots, the NC-4 measured just under 68 and a half feet long and almost 24 and a half feet tall, and had a wingspan of 126 feet. Although it was originally built with three engines, flight testing led to the addition of a fourth. These were Liberty L-12 12-cylinder, water-cooled, V-12 engines producing 400 horsepower each. The plane had a service ceiling of 4500 feet and a range of 1470 miles.

The principal pilot for the flight was Navy Lieutenant Walter Hinton. He was joined by pilot Elmer Stone, a Coast Guard lieutenant who had been a test pilot during the war. Also on the crew: Eugene S. Rhoads and James L. Breese, flight engineers; Herbert C. Rodd, radio operator; and A.C. Read, the commander and navigator.

Along the route from New York to Portugal, the plane made stops in Massachusetts, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, and twice in the Azore Islands. Dozens of US Navy ships were assigned to support the aircraft during the flight and were stationed at various points along the route.

After two days in Lisbon, where the crews of all three NC aircraft were celebrated by the Portuguese government and the city of Lisbon, the NC-4 continued on to Plymouth, England.

The glow from the impressive feat was short-lived, however, as two weeks after the NC-4 landed in Lisbon Bay, Royal Air Force pilots John Alcock and Arthur Whitten Brown, in a Vickers Vimy biplane, completed the first nonstop transatlantic flight. They traveled from Newfoundland to Ireland during a flight that lasted about 16 hours.

Within eight years, Charles Lindbergh, flying a single-seat, single-engine purpose-built Ryan monoplane, took off from New York and landed in Paris, marking the first solo nonstop flight across the Atlantic.

The NC-4 was restored by the Smithsonian Institution during the early 1960s and displayed on the national Mall for the flight’s 50th anniversary celebration on May 8, 1969. It remains a part of Smithsonian’s collection, though since 1974 it has been on long-term loan to the National Naval Aviation Museum in Pensacola, FL.

The video below, though a bit lengthy at 14 minutes, provides an interesting look at this impressive achievement in aviation history.
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O Almighty Lord God, who neither slumberest nor sleepest; Protect and assist, we beseech thee, all those who at home or abroad, by land, by sea, or in the air, are serving this country, that they, being armed with thy defence, may be preserved evermore in all perils; and being filled with wisdom and girded with strength, may do their duty to thy honour and glory; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

"IN GOD WE TRUST"
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