Page 25 - Nov18

Rear, oblique view of NC418N shows the non-steerable tailwheel and shock air/oil shock strut, fuel tank caps above the wing roots and conventional Travel Air empennage design.
(Nigel Hitchman, courtesy Eagles Mere Air Museum)
final color coats were sprayed, the last using a 70/30 thinner/color to give the fabric a shiny appearance. Three different color schemes were available: Black fuselage with an orange stripe and orange wing panels; green fuselage with orange wings; blue fuselage with orange wings.
The Type 10’s wings used the popular Gottingen 593 airfoil section that provided lots of lift for slow landings at 55 mph but offered a decent cruise speed of 115 mph. Wingspan was a generous 43 feet 6 inches with a total area of 239 square feet. Height was 8 feet 8 inches and overall length was 27 feet 4.5 inches. Maximum gross weight was set at 3,400 pounds with a payload of 510 and a useful load of 1,145 pounds. The gravity-fed fuel system included a 70-gallon tank in each wing root. The fixed, conventional landing gear featured 30 x 5-inch wheels equipped with 32 x 6-inch tires with Bendix mechanically-operated brakes controlled by pedals in the cockpit. A non-steerable tailwheel was standard (tailskids were still the norm for many airplanes of that era, but the increase in paved runways gradually led to installation of tailwheels).
Two engine choices were offered. The most expensive option was the nine-cylinder Wright Whirlwind J6-9 static, air-cooled radial rated at 300 horsepower. It powered the Type 10 to a maximum speed of 140 mph with a rate of climb exceeding 1,100 feet per minute. Service ceiling was 17,000 feet. The other engine option was the seven-cylinder Wright J6-7 radial that produced 225 horsepower, but performance decreased slightly in every category. Because of its ties with parent company Curtiss-Wright, Travel Air also planned to offer the
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Type 10 powered by a six-cylinder, static, air-cooled radial known as the Curtiss Challenger. Rated at only 185 horsepower, the engine was fitted to a Type 10B for certification but no production airplanes were built with that powerplant because performance suffered unacceptably.2
The standard cabin configuration included four (removable) wicker chairs upholstered to match the interior sidewalls and headliner. Four plate glass windows could be rolled up or down using hand cranks on the sidewalls. The cockpit layout was similar to that of the Type 6000B with dual Deperdussin- type control wheels that activated cable controls for the primary control surfaces. The horizontal stabilizer could be moved
up or down via a trim device to reduce elevator forces during climb, cruise and landing.
The prototype airplane (Type 10B serial No. 1008, licensed 8844) was powered by a Wright J6-9 engine before it was replaced for tests with the Curtiss Challenger. First flown early in 1929 under the command of company chief pilot, Clarence Clark, tests with the Wright J6-7 were also conducted. The U.S. Department of Commerce, Aeronautics Division, granted the Type 10B Approved Type Certificate No. 278 in December 1929. The Type 10B was eventually replaced on the assembly line by the Type 10D, which featured a redesigned front windshield that afforded the pilot and front seat passenger increased outside visibility.
The new Travel Air was introduced to the market in March 1929. Customer interest was weak, not because of any fault of the Type 10, but chiefly because of fears surrounding the growing financial instability on Wall Street. Priced at more than $12,000 for a standard Type 10B with the Wright J6-9 engine or $11,000 if the J6-7 was installed, the airplane should have become an excellent stablemate to the Type 6000B. Existing Travel Air records, however, indicate that only 11 airplanes were built before production was terminated due to a sagging market for new or used airplanes. By June 1930 the company’s finances were in a tailspin. Sales of all Travel Air ships plummeted, as did those of Cessna Aircraft, Stearman Aircraft and many other manufacturers in Wichita as well as across the nation. During 1930 Walter Beech was forced to lay off hundreds of workers, despite major price reductions across the product line, and as the economy sank to new depths of depression, Curtiss- Wright management ordered the factory to be closed and locked.3
By 1931 Curtiss-Wright had transferred all production of Travel Air airplanes from Wichita to its facilities in St. Louis, Missouri. In addition to airplanes the relocation included Walter Beech, who served as a company president and sales manager.
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