Travel Air Model 1000

High-Performance Two-Seat Biplane

United States | 1925

"The Travel Air Model 1000 biplane - with design contributions stemming from Beech, Cessna, and Stearman - was a high-performance flyer of the Interwar period."

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Power & Performance
Those special qualities that separate one aircraft design from another. Performance specifications presented assume optimal operating conditions for the Travel Air Model 1000 High-Performance Two-Seat Biplane.

1 x Curtiss OX-5 engine developing 90 horsepower driving a two-bladed propeller unit at the nose.
Propulsion

96 mph
155 kph | 84 kts
Max Speed

20,013 ft
6,100 m | 4 miles
Service Ceiling

450 miles
725 km | 391 nm
Operational Range

1,000 ft/min
305 m/min
Rate-of-Climb

Structure
The nose-to-tail, wingtip-to-wingtip physical qualities of the Travel Air Model 1000 High-Performance Two-Seat Biplane.

2
(MANNED)
Crew

23.6 ft
7.19 m
O/A Length

33.0 ft
(10.06 m)
O/A Width

1,301 lb
(590 kg)
Empty Weight

2,050 lb
(930 kg)
MTOW

Variants
Notable series variants as part of the Travel Air Model 1000 family line.

Authored By: Staff Writer | Last Edited: 12/07/2021 | Content ©www.MilitaryFactory.com | The following text is exclusive to this site; No A.I. was used in the generation of this content.

The Travel Air "Model 1000" was a high-performance biplane of the mid-1920s developed for the civilian market. The aircraft was of conventional biplane configuration with over-under mainplane configuration and sat its crew of two in tandem open-air cockpits (the pilot positioned in the rear cockpit). The aircraft utilized a traditional "tail-dragger" wheeled undercarriage which remained fixed in flight (non-retractable). Only a single example of this aircraft was ever built by the company and this sole specimen went on to be preserved at the Beechcraft Heritage Museum in Tullahoma, Tennessee (on loan from Oshkosh's Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA)) where it resides today (2022).

The aircraft was the brainchild of Lloyd Stearman and Walter Beech joined by William Snook and Clyde Cessna. The group formed the core participants of the newly-established "Travel Air Manufacturing Company, Incorporated" under President P. Innes, Jr. in January 1925. In February, the components for the aircraft arrived in Wichita, Kansas for assembly which led to the first "Model A" airframe being completed. This same airframe was then taken apart and transported by flatbed truck to southeast Wichita where it was rebuilt for its first flight.

The endeavor proved a success when, on March 13thm, 1925, the aircraft went into the air for the first time with Irl Beach at the controls. In controlled tests, it managed a top speed of 96.5 miles-per-hour and could climb to 1,000 feet in 1 minute, 6 seconds. Landing speed was 38 mph. Power was from a single Curtiss OX-5 engine developing 90 horsepower and used to drive a two-bladed propeller unit at the nose. Dimensions of the aircraft included a length of 23.5 feet and wingspan of 33 feet. Empty weight was 1,300lb against a gross weight of 2,050lb. The aircraft could range out to 450 miles on internal fuel, of which 35 gallons were carried for the engine.

Walter Beech flew the specimen, which had advanced to become the Model 1000, down to St. Louis to demonstrate the capabilities of the company's new aircraft to one O.E. Scott. Once there, the aircraft impressed its potential buyer enough that Scott purchased the sole example. The Model 1000 design was, itself, evolved to become the "Model B/2000" of 1927 and roughly 600 of this design were produced thereafter. Variants went on to include the "BH/3000" (with Hispano-Suiza V-8 engine) and the "BW/4000/4" (with Wright J-6-7 "Whirlwind" engine). At one point, the company was producing more aircraft than any other competitor, accounting for over 1,000 biplanes alone.

In 1930, the Travel Air Manufacturing Company was purchased by Curtiss-Wright. The Travel Air line ended in 1931 with the "Model 16", a three-seat biplane powered by the Curtiss-Wright CW-16 series engine. Just 23 of this design were completed

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Operators
Global customers who have evaluated and/or operated the Travel Air Model 1000. Nations are displayed by flag, each linked to their respective national aircraft listing.

Total Production: 1 Units
Contractor(s): Travel Air Manufacturing Company, Incorporated - USA