Samiksha Jaiswal (Editor)

Buhl Verville CA 3 Airster

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Top speed
  
200 km/h

Length
  
7.42 m

Wingspan
  
11 m

Manufacturer
  
Buhl Aircraft Company

Buhl-Verville CA-3 Airster httpsuploadwikimediaorgwikipediacommonsthu

Designers
  
Alfred V. Verville, Etienne Dormoy

The Buhl-Verville CA-3 Airster (also known as the J4 Airster, after its engine), was a utility aircraft built in the United States in 1926, notable as the first aircraft to receive a type certificate in the US, ·  · (i.e. A.T.C. No. 1) issued by the Aeronautics Branch of the Department of Commerce on March 29, 1927. It was a conventional single-bay biplane with equal-span unstaggered wings and accommodation for the pilot and passengers in tandem open cockpits. Marketed for a variety of roles including crop-dusting, aerial photography, and freight carriage, only a handful were built, some with water-cooled engines as the CW-3, and others with air-cooled engines as the CA-3 . One CA-3 placed second in the 1926 Ford National Reliability Air Tour.

Contents

1926 Ford Air Tour, piloted by Louis Meister, and another (designated the CA-3A) placed third in the 1927 Air Derby, piloted by Nick Mamer. One CW-3 and one CA-3 each were evaluated by the United States Army as trainers, but neither were purchased.

CA

  • CA-3 Airster (1926) aka J4 Airster or B-V Airster
  • 200 hp Wright J-4 (a.k.a. J-4 Whirlwind)
  • Folding wings
  • awarded the first ATC ever issued, March 1927 (ATC 1, 2-6)
  • one modified under ATC 2-6 as 2p with 220 hp Wright J-5 as a trainer for Army trials
  • CA-3A Airster (1926)
  • 225 hp Wright J-5
  • 3 built
  • cost: $9,300
  • CA-3B Airster (1926)
  • one built

    • CW

  • CW-3 OX5 Airster (1925)
  • 90hp Curtiss OX-5
  • useful load: 770 lbs
  • range: 475 miles
  • Folding wings
  • three built
  • CW-3 Wright Trainer (1926)
  • 220 hp Wright J-5
  • useful load: 885 lbs
  • range: 450 miles
  • one built for unsuccessful military trainer trials

    • Specifications (CA-3)

    General characteristics

  • Crew: One pilot
  • Capacity: 2 passengers
  • Length: 24 ft 4 in (7.42 m)
  • Wingspan: 35 ft 8 in (10.87 m)

    • Performance

  • Maximum speed: 125 mph (200 km/h)
  • Range: 440 miles (710 km)
  • max useful load: 885 lbs

    • References

    Buhl-Verville CA-3 Airster Wikipedia
    (Text) CC BY-SA