Keystone XLB-3

Prototype Light Bomber Biplane

United States | 1927

"The Keystone XLB-3 was a twin-engine prototype form of the earlier Huff-Daland LB-1 model of 1923."

Image from the National Museum of the United States Air Force, Dayton, Ohio USA.

Power & Performance
Those special qualities that separate one aircraft design from another. Performance specifications presented assume optimal operating conditions for the Keystone XLB-3 Prototype Light Bomber Biplane.

2 x Pratt & Whitney R-1340 engines developing 410 horsepower each.
Propulsion

116 mph
186 kph | 100 kts
Max Speed

11,155 ft
3,400 m | 2 miles
Service Ceiling

541 miles
870 km | 470 nm
Operational Range

550 ft/min
168 m/min
Rate-of-Climb

Structure
The nose-to-tail, wingtip-to-wingtip physical qualities of the Keystone XLB-3 Prototype Light Bomber Biplane.

5
(MANNED)
Crew

45.0 ft
13.72 m
O/A Length

67.0 ft
(20.42 m)
O/A Width

16.8 ft
(5.13 m)
O/A Height

6,074 lb
(2,755 kg)
Empty Weight

11,718 lb
(5,315 kg)
MTOW

Armament
Available supported armament and special-mission equipment featured in the design of the Keystone XLB-3 Prototype Light Bomber Biplane .

STANDARD:
2 x .303 Lewis machine guns in nose on trainable mounting
2 x .303 Lewis machine guns in dorsal cockpit position on trainable mounting.
1 x .303 Lewis machine gun in ventral position on trainable mounting.

OPTIONAL:
Up to 2,205 lb of conventional drop bombs.

Variants
Notable series variants as part of the Keystone XLB-3 family line.

XLB-3 - Base Series Designation; original designation when fitted with 2 x Allison VG-1410 air-cooled inverted V12 engines.

XLB-3A - Re-engined with 2 x Pratt & Whitney R-1340 radial piston engines.

Authored By: Staff Writer | Last Edited: 05/26/2016 | Content ©www.MilitaryFactory.com | The following text is exclusive to this site; No A.I. was used in the generation of this content.

As promising as the performance jump from the Martin MB-2 to the Huff-Daland LB-1 series was, Army authorities were not convinced of the merits of a single-engine bomber form. Instead, they elected to pursue a twin-engine variant of the design from Huff-Daland as the "XLB-3". With a twin-engine layout, the crew nacelle was now cleared of complex operating systems which allowed engineers to introduce additional storage and crew operating space - adding a whole new crewmember to the original staff of four. The biplane wing arrangement was retained and each engine drove a two-bladed propeller. All other functions of the aircraft were largely carried over from the preceding design.

The original XLB-3 was outfitted with 2 x Allison VG-1410 (a variant of the "Liberty 12") air-cooled inverted V12 engines of 400 horsepower (each) and it was this prototype form that was handed to the United States Army Air Corps for formal testing in 1927. The crew included two pilots, a bombardier, and two dedicated machine gunners. The defensive gun network included five trainable .303 Lewis machine guns while the offensive bombload carried reached 2,205 lb.

However, performance of the original prototype was less than that of the preceding single-engine LB-1 design which forced a revision of the XLB-3 to become the XLB-3A. This mark was modified through the installation of a pair of Pratt & Whitney R-1340 radial piston engines of 410 horsepower. Beyond that, the design stayed largely faithful to the original offering.

Despite the engine change, the required performance was still lacking and USAAC interest waned as it moved on the related LB-5 instead. The LB-5 found a bit more success in that it was procured in 36 examples from Keystone. Keystone Aircraft Corporation was formed from the purchase of Huff-Daland by Hayden, Stone & Company. Keystone then fell under the Curtiss-Wright brand label from 1929 onwards until its services were terminated in 1932.

Only a single XLB-3 aircraft was ever completed.

Content ©MilitaryFactory.com; No Reproduction Permitted.

Operators
Global customers who have evaluated and/or operated the Keystone XLB-3. Nations are displayed by flag, each linked to their respective national aircraft listing.

Total Production: 1 Units
Contractor(s): Keystone Aircraft Corporation . Huff-Daland Aero Corporation - USA

[ United States ]

1 / 1

Image from the National Museum of the United States Air Force, Dayton, Ohio USA.

Going Further...
The Keystone XLB-3 Prototype Light Bomber Biplane appears in the following collections:

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