Atlas H-10

H-10
Role	Civil utility aircraft
Manufacturer	Atlas Aircraft
Designer	Max B. Harlow
First flight	4 October 1945
Number built	1

The Atlas H-10 was the prototype for a four-seat cabin monoplane aircraft, registered N37463, designed by Max Harlow, which was flown in the United States shortly after World War II.

History

The Atlas H-10 had been constructed from the unfinished Harlow PJC-4 sporting monoplane which had been left uncompleted at the outbreak of the conflict. The water heater company Rheem Manufacturing Company briefly invested in the project as the PCC-10 (Pasadena City College Model 10) but did not pursue the business. Pasadena students completed the aircraft, and its first flight was on 4 October 1945 with a 220 hp Lycoming.^[1]

It was a low-wing cantilever monoplane of aluminum semi-monocoque configuration with retractable tailwheel undercarriage and powered by a variety of engines throughout its life. Originally powered by a Lycoming O-435, it was re-engined with two Continental O-300s driving contra-rotating propellers through a common gearbox and registered as the Mono-Twin. In turn, this arrangement was replaced with a Franklin 6AB and finally a Lycoming IO-720, each driving a single propellor. The cabin layout was also modified.

Operational history

Only the single H-10 was completed and flown. In the early 1970s it was based at Long Beach Airport in southern California.

As of 2006, the aircraft was reportedly still in existence in a dismantled state in the hands of a Californian collector.

Variants

The sole Atlas H-10 in 1973 when fitted with a Lycoming IO-720 engine

Harlow PJC-4

Original design

Atlas PCC-10

Test aircraft

Atlas H-10

Redesignated production aircraft

Atlas Mono-Twin

Re-engined prototype with twin radial

Specifications (with Continental engines)

General characteristics

• Crew: one pilot
• Capacity: three passengers
• Length: 28 ft 4 in (8.64 m)
• Wingspan: 35 ft 9 in (10.90 m)
• Powerplant: 2 × Continental O-300, 145 hp (108 kW) each

Performance

• Maximum speed: 170 mph (274 km/h)

References

1. "The Quiet Professor". Air Progress Sport Aircraft: 83.

• Taylor, Michael J. H. (1989). Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation. London: Studio Editions. p. 83.
• aerofiles.com