Northrop C-19 Alpha

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• Crew: one pilot
  
• Capacity: four passengers
  
• Length: 28 ft 5 in (8.66 m)
  
• [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien]: 41 ft 10 in (12.75 m)
  
• Height: 9 ft 0 in (2.74 m)
  
• [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien]: 4,700 lb (2,136 kg)
  
• [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien]: 1 × [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien]-7 Wasp radial, 450 hp (336 kW)
  

• [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien]: 170 mph (272 km/h)
  
• [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien]: 650 miles (1,040 km)
  
• [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien]: 19,000 ft (5,792 m)
  

1. "The Complete Encyclopedia of World Aircraft" Editors: Paul Eden &
   Soph Moeng, (Amber Books Ltd. Bradley's Close, 74-77 White Lion Street,
   London, NI 9PF, 2002, [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien]), 1152 pp.
   
2. "United States Military Aircraft Since 1909" by F. G. Swanborough & Peter M. Bowers (Putnam New York, [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien]) 1964, 596 pp.
   
3. "U.S. Army Aircraft 1908-1946" by [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien], 1946, 64pp.
   

In the summer of 1930, the prototype Northrop Alpha was flown to Wright Field, Dayton, Ohio for evaluation testing by the Air Corps.

The Alpha was a six-place, fast transport plane with essentially the same design as several other aircraft of the early
1930s.

Like the [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] and [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien], the Alpha had an open cockpit about halfway down the fuselage and a small enclosed passenger compartment in the forward fuselage.

Testing had just gotten started when the plane was damaged after engine problems forced the plane to make an emergency landing.

The mechanics at Wright Field fixed the plane and testing continued into the fall when Northrop, eager to make a sale, lent the Air Corps another demonstrator aircraft and urged the Chief of the Air Corps, Gen. James E. Fechet, to use it as
a personal transport.

Northrop also encouraged the Assistant Secretary of War for Aeronautics, Trubee Davison, to do the same.

The plan worked and the Air Corps placed orders for three Northrop Alphas and designated them as YC-19 and Y1C-19 (the planes were identical and the designation difference was due to a different funding source).

The military version of the Alpha differed from the civilian version in a few respects.

The most significant of which was a more spacious four seat interior design in place of the original six seat version.

The first YC-19 was delivered in May 1931, and used as a fast staff transport primarily for Army Generals and Washington, D.C. VIPs (i.e. politicians).

From the summer of 1931 until the spring of 1933, the C-19s, based at Wright and Bolling Fields, shuttled VIPs to various
locations around the country.

After a fatal crash destroyed the last Y1C-19 on March 20, 1933, the remaining planes were removed from VIP
service and sent to regular Air Corps units for use as squadron 'hacks',light cargo and military passenger transports.

The C-19s were kept in service until mid-1939 when both planes were sent to aircraft mechanic schools and used as ground trainers.