Page 31 - March19

Front view of the C2M. The rod/torque tube aileron control systems was retained
and was later used on production aircraft built in Wichita, Kansas.
(Wichita State University Libraries and Archives, Department of Special Collections)
eclipsed by the advanced Wright
J5 that quickly became the engine
of choice for a large number of
military and commercial airplanes
(magnetos were mounted on the
radial’s accessory section at the rear
of the powerplant, shielding both
units from potential contamination).
The famous Ryan monoplane Spirit
of St. Louis, flown by Charles A.
Lindbergh from New York to Paris
in May 1927, was powered by a J5
rated at 220 horsepower. During
Lindbergh’s 33.5 hours flight over
the deadly North Atlantic Ocean,
it never missed a beat.
As for the C2M, the only salient
changes incorporated into the
new biplane’s airframe were a
metal cover for the front mail pit
and reinforcement of the front
windshield to withstand random
impacts of mail being loaded into
the mail pit. On April 6, 1926,
Walter T. Varney, owner of Varney
Air Lines, began operating Contract
airmail (C.A.M.) Route 5 that
stretched between Elko, Nevada,
and Pasco, Washington, with one
stop in Boise, Idaho. The Varney
Air Lines fleet, based at Boise,
consisted of six New Swallow
MARCH 2019 MARCH 2019 KING AIR MAGAZINE •
KING AIR MAGAZINE •
­ 29
­ 29