Cape Cod (aircraft)
| Cape Cod | |
|---|---|
| Other name(s) | The American Legion |
| Type | Modified Bellanca CH-300 |
| Registration | NR761W |
| Owners and operators | John Polando and Russell Boardman |
| Fate | Crashed in 1948 |
The Cape Cod (Registration: NR761W) was a single engine six-seat utility aircraft that was flown by Russell Boardman and John Polando from New York City to Istanbul in 1931.
History
Early history
The plane was purchased as a Bellanca CH-300, and was originally named The American Legion. Following a fire which destroyed the aircraft in October of 1930, the aircraft was sent back to Bellanca for a repair cost of $25 thousand (equivalent to $354 thousand in today's dollars)[1]. After it was repaired, it was renamed Cape Cod, after the peninsula in Massachusetts where John Polando and Russell Boardman trained for their overseas flight.[2] The plane was then reclassified as a Bellanca Special J-300.
Record attempt
The record attempt took place between July 28th and 30th, 1931. John Polando and Russell Boardman took off from Floyd Bennett Field, flying over Newfoundland and dropping the New York Times at lighthouses in the province. Along the way, they also flew over Ireland, Paris, and Munich. They also circled the Swiss Alps at night to avoid crashing into them. While it was originally planned for them to fly to Moscow, it was determined that Istanbul would be easier, because it would allow for them to still break the record.[3]
The distance of 5,011.8 miles (8,065.7 km), over a total of forty nine hours and twenty minutes helped to establish a distance record, which was the first known non-stop flight whose distance surpassed either English (5,000 mi) or metric (8,000 km) mark.[2][4][5][6]
The plane itself was shipped back on the SS Exochorda.[3]
Later history and conservation
The aircraft was later sold to people from Cleveland, Ohio. With the addition of a new motor, and renamed The Clevelander, the plane eventually crashed into the side of a mountain in Mexico, in 1948.
Specifications (Bellanca CH-300)
General characteristics
- Crew: one pilot
- Capacity: 5 passengers
- Length: 27 ft 9 in (8.5 m)
- Wingspan: 46 ft 4 in (14.1 m)
- Height: 8 ft 4 in (2.5 m)
- Empty weight: 2,275 lb (1,032 kg)
- Gross weight: 4,072 lb (1,847 kg)
Performance
- Range: 675 miles (1,086 km)
References
- ↑ "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. Retrieved November 10, 2015.
- 1 2 Kline, Stuard (17 May 2001). "John Polando". www.earlyaviators.com. Retrieved 18 April 2016.
- 1 2 Roscoe, Lee (5 August 2011). "When ‘Cape Cod’ flew to Istanbul". The Barnstable Patriot. Retrieved 21 April 2016.
- ↑ "'Cape Cod's' Success Climaxes 5 Years [of] Bellanca Records". The Sunday Morning Star, Wilmington, DE. August 2, 1931. Retrieved September 4, 2013.
- ↑ Polando, Johnnie (2000). Wings Over Istanbul: The Life and Flights of a Pioneer Aviator. Portsmouth, NH: P.E. Randall Publisher. ISBN 0914339842.
- ↑ Frattasio, Marc (2013). NAS Squantum: The First Naval Air Reserve Base. Lulu.com. ISBN 9781304662491. Retrieved 18 April 2016.