General Aviation PJ

PJ

PJ-1 Arcturus off CGAS Miami in 1934
Role	Air-sea rescue aircraft
National origin	United States of America
Manufacturer	General Aviation
First flight	1933
Primary user	United States Coast Guard
Number built	5

The General Aviation PJ was a flying boat produced in the United States in the 1930s as a search-and-rescue aircraft for the Coast Guard. Originally designated FLB (for "Flying Life Boat"), it was a conventional high-wing cantilever monoplane with a flying boat hull and outrigger pontoons mounted on the wings slightly outboard of mid-span. The twin pusher engines were carried in separate nacelles on pylons above the wings. The hull was a monocoque metal structure, and the wing was a wooden structure skinned with plywood. The basic design was based on that of the Fokker F.11, but substantially enlarged (Fokker's American operation was renamed General Aviation after purchase by General Motors in 1930). While not a true amphibian and able to land on dry land, the PJ was equipped with retractable undercarriage that functioned as its own, self-carrying beaching trolley.

Five examples were operated by the US Coast Guard during the 1930s, named Antares, Altair, Acrux, Acamar, and Arcturus (hull numbers FLB-51 through FLB-55). In 1933, Antares underwent a major refit that included a redesign of her engine nacelles, converting these to tractor configuration.

Variants

PJ-1 - original version with pusher engines (five built)
PJ-2 - version with tractor engines (one converted)

Specifications (PJ-1)

PJ-1 Altair unloading a patient in a stretcher

General characteristics

Crew: Four - two pilots, navigator, and radio operator
Length: 53 ft 9 in (16.39 m)
Wingspan: 74 ft 2 in (22.61 m)
Height: 15 ft 6 in (4.73 m)
Wing area: 754 ft² (70.0 m²)
Empty weight: 7,000 lb (3,180 kg)
Gross weight: 11,200 lb (5,090 kg)
Powerplant: 2 × Pratt & Whitney R-1340 Wasp, 420 hp (310 kW) each

Performance

Maximum speed: 130 mph (208 km/h)
Range: 1,100 miles (1,770 km)
Service ceiling: 9,000 ft (2,745 m)

References

U.S. Coast Guard: General Aviation (Fokker) PJ-1/2
Bowers, Peter M. United States Navy Aircraft since 1911. Annapolis, Maryland, USA: Naval Institute Press, 1990, p. 495. ISBN 0-87021-792-5.
Taylor, Michael J. H. (1989). Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation. London: Studio Editions. p. 417.
"For Coast Guard Service". Flight: 844–45. 24 August 1933. Retrieved 2008-04-02.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to General Aviation PJ.

"Flying Lifeboats." Popular Science, December 1937, pp. 56–57, all photos show PJ-1 except for middle aircraft p. 57 an RD-2.

Aircraft produced by Fokker

Company designations
pre-1918

M.1 M.2 M.3 M.4 M.5 M.6 M.7 M.8 M.9 M.10 M.14 M.15 M.16 M.17 M.18 M.19 M.21 M.22

V.1 V.2 V.3 V.4 V.5 V.6 V.7 V.8 V.9 V.10 V.11 V.12 V.13 V.14 V.16 V.17 V.18 V.20 V.21 V.22 V.23 V.24 V.25 V.26 V.27 V.28 V.29 V.30 V.31 V.33 V.34 V.35 V.36 V.37 V.38 V.39 V.40 V.41 V.43 V.45

Austro-Hungarian
military designations

German military
designations

A.I A.II A.III

C.I

D.I D.II D.III D.IV D.V D.VI D.VII D.VIII

Dr.I

E.I E.II E.III E.IV E.V

F.I

K.I

Company designations
post-1918

continuing
German military
designations:

B.I B.II B.IIII B.IV B.V

C.II C.III C.IV C.V C.VI C.VII C.VIII C.IX C.X C.XI C.XIV C.XV

D.IX D.X D.XI D.XII D.XIII D.XIV D.XVI D.XVII D.XXI D.XXIII

DC.I

F.II F.III F.IV F.V F.VI F.VII F.VIII F.IX F.X F.XI F.XII F.XIV F.XVIII F.XX F.XXII F.XXIV F.25 F26 F27 F28 F.29

FG.I FG.II FG.III FG.IV

G.I

S.I S.II S.III S.IV S.IX S-11 S-12 S-13 S-14

T.II T.III T.IV T.V T.VIII T.IX

based on
seating:

Fokker America

United States
military designations

Observation:	AO-1 CO-4 XO-27

Transports:	T-2 C-2 C-5 C-7 C-14 C-15 C-16 C-20 C-31 RA

Bombers:	XLB-2 XB-8 FT-1 FT-2

Attack:	XA-7

Fighters:	PW-5 PW-6 PW-7

Ambulance:	A-2

Trainer:	TW-4

USN/USMC patrol aircraft designations 1923–1962

Patrol

Boeing	XPB PB P2B P3B

Douglas	PD P2D P3D

Grumman	PF

Hall	PH P2H

General Aviation	PJ

Keystone	PK

Martin	PM P2M P3M P4M P5M P6M P7M

Naval Aircraft Factory	PN P2N P3N¹ P4N

Lockheed	PO

Sikorsky	PS P2S

Lockheed	PV P2V P3V

Consolidated	PY P2Y P3Y P4Y-1 P4Y-2 P5Y P6Y

Patrol Bomber

Boeing	PBB PB2B

North American	PBJ

Martin	PBM PB2M

Naval Aircraft Factory	PBN

Lockheed	PBO

Sikorsky	PBS

Canadian Vickers	PBV

Consolidated	PBY PB2Y PB3Y PB4Y-1 PB4Y-2

Patrol Torpedo Bomber

Hall	PTBH

¹ Not assigned

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