Travel Air Type R (Mystery Ship)

High-Performance Racing Monoplane

United States | 1929

"The Travel Air Mystery Ship classified five racers built by the company during the Interwar years - the design proving a record-setter."

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Authored By: Staff Writer | Last Edited: 06/22/2022 | Content ©www.MilitaryFactory.com | The following text is exclusive to this site; No A.I. was used in the generation of this content.

Travel Air constructed the Type R "Mystery Ship" as a private venture led by Herbert Rawdon and Walter Burnham. The design revolved around a high-performance civilian market air racer t a time when military types consistently held the advantage in the air races popularized throughout the 1920s and 1930s. The aircraft would take on the "unlimited class" and its design was fleshed out in the latter part of 1928. The finalized airframe, detailed and ultimately approved by Walter Beech, emerged in May of 1929. Two prototypes were approved and five total aircraft were eventually completed.

Due to the highly secretive nature of the aircraft, local press coined the term "Mystery Ship" to describe the venture.

The resulting aircraft was a sleek low-wing monoplane offering, exuding clean lines and an aerodynamically-refined appearance. Protrusions were kept to a minimum while its general configuration was highly-traditional for the time. The engine was fitted to the nose in the usual way while the pilot at in a single-seat, open-air cockpit just aft. His position was such that he sat low as possible in the cockpit. The fuselage tapered towards the tail to which a small-area, rounded vertical plane was fitted. Rounded horizontal planes of equal area were mounted to either side of the fuselage at the tail. The mainplanes were low-mounted, straight appendages with rounded tips and seated ahead of midships for proper balance. Bracing and high-strength cables reinforced the mainplanes at either side of the fuselage. A "tail-dragger" undercarriage was fitted that included a wheeled tail leg while the main legs (fixed, non-retracting) were spatted to continue the aerodynamically-refined approach.

The two initial aircraft differed mainly in their selection of engine with the first being completed with a Wright air-cooled unit and the second fitting the D-6 "Chevrolair" 6-cylinder inline - in each case, the engines were to drive a two-bladed propeller at the nose in "puller" fashion. The Chevrolair model (NR-613K, second air frame) was built by Arthur Chevrolet Aviation Motors (Indianapolis, IN).

Structurally, the aircraft was given a length of 20.1 feet and wingspan of 29.1 feet. Gross weight reached 1,950lb. Performance-wise, the design could reach speeds of 235 miles-per-hour. The Wright R-975 engine produced 420 horsepower running at 2,350 rpm.

The Mystery Ship went on to win the 1929 Thompson Cup at the National Air Races, a 30-mile, closed-circuit in which the aircraft averaged speed of 194.96 miles-per-hour. In 1931, the Wright-engined airframe (NR614K) was nearly lost in a fire but restored to save it from the scrapman's torch, now residing at the Beechcraft Heritage Museum in Tullahoma, Tennessee.

The second aircraft in the series, NR613K with the Chevrolair engine, claimed the 1929 National Air Races and then reverted back to an air-cooled radial powerplant. It was featured in film productions thereafter for its time in the air. NR482N was the third airframe but lost to a crash. NR1313 was the fourth example and went on to be a record-setter in long range competitions - now preserved at the Museum of Science and Industry at Chicago's lake front. The last airframe, NR11717, was a special-order version for the Italian government. It was used as the framework for the new Italian Air Force fighter, the Breda Ba.27 (detailed elsewhere on this site).

Famed flyer Jimmy Doolittle was one of the notable names to have flown Mystery Ships.

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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 Type R High-Performance Racing Monoplane.

1 x Wright J-6-9 air-cooled radial piston engine developing between 300 and 425 horsepower driving a two-bladed propeller unit at the nose.
Propulsion

245 mph
395 kph | 213 kts
Max Speed

29,528 ft
9,000 m | 6 miles
Service Ceiling

466 miles
750 km | 405 nm
Operational Range

2,200 ft/min
671 m/min
Rate-of-Climb

Structure
The nose-to-tail, wingtip-to-wingtip physical qualities of the Travel Air Type R High-Performance Racing Monoplane.

1
(MANNED)
Crew

20.2 ft
6.15 m
O/A Length

27.7 ft
(8.45 m)
O/A Width

11.2 ft
(3.40 m)
O/A Height

1,213 lb
(550 kg)
Empty Weight

1,949 lb
(884 kg)
MTOW

Variants
Notable series variants as part of the Travel Air Type R (Mystery Ship) family line.

Type R "Mystery Ship" - Base Series Name; five examples completed.

Operators
Global customers who have evaluated and/or operated the Travel Air Type R (Mystery Ship). Nations are displayed by flag, each linked to their respective national aircraft listing.

Total Production: 5 Units
Contractor(s): Travel Air / Arthur Chevrolet Aviation Motors Corporation - USA

[ Italy (trialed); United States ]

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Going Further...
The Travel Air Type R (Mystery Ship) High-Performance Racing Monoplane appears in the following collections:

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