Sikorsky S-40

The Sikorsky S-40 was an American amphibious flying boat built by Sikorsky in the early 1930s for Pan American World Airways. It was the largest commercial airliner of its time. A total of three aircraft were built by the Vought-Sikorsky Aircraft Division of the United Aircraft Corporation in Stratford, Connecticut. The three aircraft in the S-40 series were:

• NC80V - Caribbean Clipper
• NC81V - American Clipper
• NC752V - Southern Clipper

Passenger carrying service was inititiated on the November 19, 1931 and was piloted by Charles Lindbergh from Miami, Florida to the Panama Canal Zone with stops at Cienfuegos, Cuba; Kingston, Jamaica; and Barranquilla, Columbia.

Sikorsky designed the S-40 in response to a request from Juan Trippe, president of Pan American Airways, for a larger passenger carrying airplane. The S-40s could carry thirty-eight passengers, a significant increase over the S-38's capacity of eight passengers. Despite its significant capacity increase, the S-40s were of a primitive design. It was nicknamed the "Flying Forest" for its maze of support struts. Only three were built as Sikorsky was designing and building the more modern S-42 as a replacement aircraft.

The three S-40s served without incident during their civilian lives, flying a total of over 10 million miles. They were turned over to the US Navy during WWII and were used as trainers for four-engined flight instruction. All three of the S-40s were eventually retired and scrapped starting in 1943. The S-40 was Pan American's first large flying boat. The American Clipper served as the flagship of Pan Am's clipper fleet and this aircraft model was the first to earn the popular designation of "Clipper" or "Pan Am Clipper".

Specifications (S-40)

General characteristics

• Crew: four
• Capacity: 40 passengers
• Length: 76 feet 8 inches (23.37 m)
• Wingspan: 114 feet 0 inches (34.75 m)
• Height: 23 feet 10 inches (7.26 m)
• Wing area: 1,875 square feet (174.2 m²)
• Empty: 24,748 pounds (11,226 kg)
• Loaded: 34,000 pounds (15,000 kg)
• Maximum takeoff: lb (kg)
• Powerplant: 4x Pratt & Whitney R-1690 radial engines, 575 hp (429 kW) each

Performance

• Maximum speed: 135 miles per hour (217 km/h)
• Range: 875 miles (1,408 km)
• Service ceiling: 13,000 feet (4,000 m)
• Rate of climb: ft/min (m/min)
• Wing loading: 18 lb/ft² (89 kg/m²)
• Power/Mass: 0.07 hp/lb (0.11 kW/kg)

See also

Related lists

• List of seaplanes and flying boats
  

External links

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