Engineering:Waco 10

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Short description: American biplane
Waco 10
Farell2 WACO model 10.jpg
Waco 10 giving joy rides.
Role light passenger transport
Manufacturer Advance Aircraft
Waco Aircraft Company
Designer Charles Meyers
First flight 1927
Introduction 1927
Produced 1927–1933
Waco 10 (or GXE) in the Canada Aviation Museum.

The Waco 10/GXE/Waco O series was a range of three-seat open-cockpit biplanes built by the Advance Aircraft Company, later the Waco Aircraft Company.

Design and development

The Waco 10 was a larger span development of the Waco 9, both single-engined three-seat single-bay biplanes constructed around steel-tube frames. The wing covering was fabric, and both upper and lower planes carried ailerons, which were strut linked. The two passengers sat side by side in a cockpit under the upper wing and ahead of the pilot, who had a separate cockpit. It had a split-axle fixed undercarriage and a tailwheel. The main undercarriage was fitted with hydraulic shock absorbers, unusual at the time on a light aircraft. The fin could be trimmed on the ground to offset engine torque, and the tailplane could be trimmed in flight. Initially it was powered by a Curtiss OX-5 water-cooled 90° V-8 engine producing 90 hp (67 kW).

Its first flight was in 1927. It was numerically the most important type to be built by Waco, with at least 1,623 built over a period of 7 years from 1927 to 1933 and was fitted with a very large variety of engines of radial and V configuration.

Operational history

The Waco 10 turned out to have excellent handling, and there was a ready supply of war-surplus Curtiss engines. It was widely used for the popularisation of aeronautics through barnstorming and joyrides, and was also much used as a trainer and by small operators for charter flights.

Variants

In 1928, after the Waco 10 had entered production, Waco changed its designation system so that the basic model 10, powered by a 90 hp (67 kW) Curtiss OX-5 engine became the GXE.

1930 Waco ATO Taperwing at the Historic Aircraft Restoration Museum near St Louis
1929 Waco ATO Taperwing of Vintage Wings of Canada.
1929 Waco CTO at Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort South Carolina

Later aircraft used three-letter designations, the first denoting the engine (except for the two mailplanes), the second denoting the wing installed, S or T meaning Straight or Tapered wing, and the final O indicating it was a derivative of the 10. An -A suffix indicated an armed variant intended for export.

Early
Designation
Post-1928
Designation
Marketing
Designation
Engine Power
10 GXE 90 Curtiss OX-5 90 hp (67 kW)
10-W ASO 220-T Wright J-5 220 hp (160 kW)
10-T ATO Wright J-5 220 hp (160 kW)
BSO/BSO-A BS-165 Wright J-6-5 165 hp (123 kW)
CSO C-225 Wright J-6-7 225 hp (168 kW)
CTO Wright J-6-7 225 hp (168 kW)
10-H DSO Hispano-Suiza 8A or E 150–180 hp (110–130 kW)
HSO Packard DR-980 Diesel 225 hp (168 kW)
HTO Packard DR-980 Diesel 225 hp (168 kW)
JTO Wright J-6-9 300 hp (220 kW)
JYM Mailplane Wright J-6-9 300 hp (220 kW)
JWM Mailplane Wright J-6-9 330 hp (250 kW)
KSO Kinner K-5 100 hp (75 kW)
OSO Kinner C-5 210 hp (160 kW)
PSO Jacobs radials 140–170 hp (100–130 kW)
QSO Continental A70 165 hp (123 kW)
RSO Warner Scarab 110 hp (82 kW)
240-A Continental W-670 240 hp (180 kW)
300-A 300 hp radial 300 hp (220 kW)

Apart from the water-cooled V-8 Curtiss and Hispano-Suiza engines, all of the rest were air-cooled radials.

Other engines were fitted experimentally, without unique designations, including the Rausie, Ryan-Siemens, and 115 hp (86 kW) Milwaukee Tank engine. This last engine was an air-cooled version of the Curtiss OX-5, and was intended as an aircraft engine.

The JYM and JWM were mailplane derivatives with a 14" fuselage stretch.

In the 1990s the unrelated The WACO Aircraft Company in Forks, Washington offered a homebuilt kit version of the ATO model.[1]

The WACO 240-A was a straight-wing fighter, built for export, powered by 240 hp (180 kW) Wright engine. At least six were bought by the Cantonese Chinese aviation services. They were armed with twin .30 Browning machine guns and had racks for five 25 lb (11 kg) or two 100 lb (45 kg) bombs.[2]

There was also an export model WACO Pursuit 300T-A, with 300 hp (220 kW) Wright or Wasp Jr engine.[2]

Surviving aircraft

Year Model Serial # Registration Location References
1927 GXE 781 N312DC Gatlinburg–Pigeon Forge Airport, Tennessee
1928 GXE 1388 N6675K Historic Aircraft Restoration Museum, Maryland Heights, Missouri [3]
1928 GXE 1464 NC4899 Ohio History Connection [4]
1928 GXE 1521 C-GAFD Canada Aviation and Space Museum, Ottawa, Ontario [5]
1928 GXE 1554 NC6974 Eagles Mere Air Museum at Eagles Mere, Pennsylvania [6]
1928 GXE 1644/3065 CF-AOI Reynolds-Alberta Museum, Wetaskiwin, Alberta [7]
1928 GXE 1810 N6513 Western Antique Aeroplane & Automobile Museum [8]
1928 ATO A-4 NC5814 EAA AirVenture Museum, Oshkosh, Wisconsin [9][10]
1928 ATO A-20 N6714 Western Antique Aeroplane & Automobile Museum [11]
1929 ATO A-103 NC906H Historic Aircraft Restoration Museum, Maryland Heights, Missouri [3]
1929 DSO 3006 N605N Western Antique Aeroplane & Automobile Museum [12]
1929 CSO 1657 N7662 Western Antique Aeroplane & Automobile Museum [13]
1929 CTO AT-3005 N516M Western Antique Aeroplane & Automobile Museum [14]
1930 ATO D-3128 NC663N Historic Aircraft Restoration Museum, Maryland Heights, Missouri [15]
1930 CSO 3140 N671N Historic Aircraft Restoration Museum, Maryland Heights, Missouri [3]
1932 CTO A-3596 NC280W Historic Aircraft Restoration Museum, Maryland Heights, Missouri [3]

Specifications (Waco GXE)

Data from Aerofiles[16]

General characteristics

  • Crew: 1
  • Capacity: 2 passengers
  • Length: 23 ft 6 in (7.16 m)
  • Wingspan: 30 ft 7 in (9.32 m)
  • Height: 9 ft 0 in (2.74 m)
  • Airfoil: Aeromarine 2A[17]
  • Empty weight: 1,199 lb (544 kg)
  • Gross weight: 2,025 lb (919 kg)
  • Powerplant: 1 × Curtiss OX-5 V-8 water-cooled piston engine, 90 hp (67 kW)
  • Propellers: 2-bladed fixed-pitch propeller

Performance

  • Maximum speed: 97 mph (156 km/h, 84 kn)
  • Cruise speed: 84 mph (135 km/h, 73 kn)
  • Stall speed: 37 mph (60 km/h, 32 kn)
  • Range: 380 mi (610 km, 330 nmi)
  • Rate of climb: 500 ft/min (2.5 m/s)

See also

Aircraft of comparable role, configuration and era

(Partial listing, only covers most numerous types)

Related lists

References

  1. Purdy, Don (15 July 1998). AeroCrafter homebuilt aircraft sourcebook. (5th ed.). Benicia, Calif.: BAI Communications. p. 288. ISBN 0963640941. 
  2. 2.0 2.1 Forman, Harrison (September 1934). "American warplanes in China". Popular Aviation (Forman, Harrison. American warplanes in China, "Popular aviation" September 1934, pp.151-152): 151–152. https://books.google.com/books?id=i5WxOMws32YC&q=waco+240+china&pg=PA151. 
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 "Historic Aircraft Restoration Museum". Fairchild24.com. http://fairchild24.com/museum.htm. 
  4. "Where is it now. Collections from the Former Ohio History of Flight Museum". Ohio History Connection. https://www.ohiohistory.org/learn/collections/history/history-blog/2015/august-2015/history-of-flight-museum. 
  5. "Waco 10 (GXE) – Canada Aviation and Space Museum". Aviation.technomuses.ca. http://www.aviation.technomuses.ca/collections/artifacts/aircraft/Waco10/. 
  6. "1928 Waco GXE Eagles Mere Air Museum". eaglesmereairmuseum.org/index.shtml. http://www.eaglesmereairmuseum.org/wacogxe.shtml. 
  7. Skaarup, Harold A. (2001). Canadian Warbird Survivors - A Handbook on where to find them. Nebraska: Writers Club Press. ISBN 978-059520668-1. 
  8. "WACO GXE - Western Antique Aeroplane & Automobile Museum". Waaamuseum.org. http://www.waaamuseum.org/collections/airplanes/247-WACO-GXE. 
  9. "Waco 10/ATO". Airventuremuseum.org. http://www.airventuremuseum.org/collection/aircraft/Waco%2010_ATO.asp. 
  10. "Master Aircraft List". Airventuremuseum.org. http://www.airventuremuseum.org/collection/aircraft/2__%20Master%20Aircraft%20List%20__.asp. 
  11. "WACO ATO "Taperwing" - Western Antique Aeroplane & Automobile Museum". Waaamuseum.org. http://www.waaamuseum.org/collections/airplanes/257-WACO-ATO-Taperwing. 
  12. "WACO DSO - Western Antique Aeroplane & Automobile Museum". Waaamuseum.org. http://www.waaamuseum.org/collections/airplanes/246-WACO-DSO. 
  13. "WACO CSO - Western Antique Aeroplane & Automobile Museum". Waaamuseum.org. http://www.waaamuseum.org/collections/airplanes/244-WACO-CSO. 
  14. "WACO CTO "Taper Wing" - Western Antique Aeroplane & Automobile Museum". Waaamuseum.org. http://www.waaamuseum.org/collections/airplanes/245-WACO-CTO-%E2%80%9CTaper%20Wing%E2%80%9D. 
  15. "Museum Hangar 1, John Cournoyer's Wonderful Wacos". http://www.historicaircraftrestorationmuseum.org/museumhangar1.html. 
  16. Aerofiles (April 2009). "Waco". http://aerofiles.com/_waco.html. 
  17. Lednicer, David. "The Incomplete Guide to Airfoil Usage". https://m-selig.ae.illinois.edu/ads/aircraft.html. 

Further reading