Boeing 314
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| Boeing 314 Clipper | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Image:Boeing314.jpg | |||
| Role | Civil air transport | ||
| Crew | 10 | ||
| First Flight | June 7, 1938 | ||
| Manufacturer | Boeing | ||
| Dimensions | |||
| Length | 106 ft | 32.3 m | |
| Wingspan | 152 ft | 46.3 m | |
| Weights | |||
| Gross | 84,000 lb | 38,100 kg | |
| Capacity | 74 passengers | ||
| Powerplant | |||
| Engines | Four Wright Twin Cyclone radial piston engines | ||
| Power | 6,400 hp | 4,772 kW | |
| Performance | |||
| Cruising speed | 184 mph | 296 km/h | |
| Maximum speed | 199 mph | 320 | |
| Range | 3,500 miles | 5,600 km | |
| Service ceiling | 19,600 ft | 5,975 m | |
The Boeing 314 Clipper was a long-range flying boat produced by Boeing from 1938 to 1941. It was one of the largest aircraft of the era. Twelve were built for Pan American World Airways (three of which were diverted to BOAC under the Lend-Lease Act), which used their fleet for flights across the Atlantic Ocean and Pacific Ocean.
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Design
The Boeing 314 was a response to Pan American's request for an unprecedented long range flying boat to augment its Martin M-130 aircraft on the trans-Pacific routes. In their design, Boeing engineers used the wing from their XB-15 bomber which gave the clipper a huge 149-foot wing span. Unlike the 1,000 horsepower Pratt and Whitney engines on the XB-15, Boeing chose to use the more powerful Wright Twin Cyclone which developed 1,500 horsepower (boosted to 1,600 in the final six aircraft).
One of the most distinguishing features of the 314 is its triple tail, which Boeing designed after finding that single and double tails did not afford the aircraft enough stability to fly safely.
Internally, the 314 used a series of heavy ribs and spars to create a robust fuselage. This sturdy structure negated the need for external drag-inducing struts to brace the wings, something other flying boats of the day could not boast.
To fly the long ranges needed for tran-Pacific service, the 314 carried 4,246 gallons of gasoline. This was expanded by a further 1,200 gallons added in the last six aircraft built. Additionally, 300 gallons of oil were carried to lubricate the radial engines.
Pan Am's Clippers were built for luxury, a necessity given the long duration of transoceanic flights. The seats could be converted into 40 bunks for overnight travel. The aircraft had a lounge/dining area and galleys were staffed with chefs from four-star hotels. Men and women were provided with separate dressing rooms. Although the transatlantic flights were only operated for three months in 1939, their standard of luxury has arguably not been matched by heavier-than-air transport since then: they were a form of travel for the super-rich, at $675 return from New York to Southampton (about $7,000 USD in year 2000 dollars ).
Service History
The first 314, Honolulu Clipper, entered regular service on the San Francisco to Hong Kong route in January, 1939. It is interesting to note that even flying, a one way trip on this route still took over six days to complete.
Commercial passenger service lasted just less than three years, ending when the United States entered World War II on December 7, 1941.
The Clipper fleet was pressed into service during World War II, and the aircraft were used for ferrying personnel and equipment to the European and Pacific fronts. In 1943, President Franklin D. Roosevelt traveled to the Casablanca Conference in a Boeing 314. Winston Churchill also flew on the aircraft several times, adding to its fame during the war era.
At the out-break of the war in the Pacific, the Pacific Clipper was enroute to New Zealand. Rather than risk flying back to Honolulu and being shot down by Japanese aircraft, it was decided to fly west to New York. Starting on December 8, 1941 at Auckland, New Zealand, the Pacific Clipper covered over 8,500 miles via such exotic locales Surabaya, Karachi, Bahrein, Khartoum and Leopoldville. The Pacific Clipper landed at Pan American's LaGuardia Field seaplane base at 7:12 on the morning of January 6, 1942.
After the war several Clippers were returned to Pan American, but the type had been made obsolete by new long-range land planes such as the Douglas DC-4 and Lockheed Constellation, and by the wartime construction of a network of landing strips that gave access to nearly the entire world. The 314 was removed from scheduled service in 1946 and grounded permanently in 1950. Of the twelve aircraft built, three were lost to accidents. Only one of these losses resulted in deaths with 24 perishing in an accident in Lisbon, Portugal, February 22, 1943.
Except for some bits of scrap metal housed in museums, nothing remains of the 12 Boeing 314 aircraft.
The Boeing 314 in Popular Culture
The Boeing 314 "Pan Am Clipper" has been featured in several novels including Night Over Water, written by British author Ken Follett. The Winds of War and it's sequel War and Remembrance, written by Herman Wouk. The Proteus Operation written by James P. Hogan. The film Raiders of the Lost Ark featured a Short Solent Mark III flying boat modified by matte effects to resemble a Boeing 314 Pan Am Clipper. [1]
Boeing 314 Aircraft Operated by Pan American World Airways
| Number | Type | Name | Date | Info |
| NC18601 | Boeing 314 | Honolulu Clipper | 1939-1945 | Sunk by US Navy |
| NC18602 | Boeing 314 | California Clipper | 1939-1950 | Later renamed Pacific Clipper Sold to World Airways. Scrapped 1950. |
| NC18603 | Boeing 314 | Yankee Clipper | 1939-1943 | Started Transatlantic mail service. Crashed February 22, 1943 in Lisbon, Portugal. |
| NC18604 | Boeing 314 | Atlantic Clipper | 1939-1946 | Salvaged for parts. |
| NC18605 | Boeing 314 | Dixie Clipper | 1939-1950 | Started transatlantic passenger service. Sold to World Airways. Scrapped 1950. |
| NC18606 | Boeing 314 | American Clipper | 1939-1946 | Sold to World Airways. Scrapped 1950. |
| NC18609 | Boeing 314A | Pacific Clipper | 1941-1946 | Sold to Universal Airlines. Damaged by storm and salvaged for parts. |
| NC18611 | Boeing 314A | Anzac Clipper | 1941-1951 | Sold to Universal Airlines 1946, American International Airways 1947, World Airways 1948. Sold privately 1951, destroyed at Baltimore, Maryland 1951. |
| NC18612 | Boeing 314A | Cape Town Clipper | 1941-1946 | Sold to: U.S. Navy - 1942, Sold to: American International Airways - 1947, Sunk at sea by the U.S. Coast Guard on October 14, 1947 |
References
- FlyingClippers.com
- Wings to the Orient, Pan-Am Clipper Planes 1935-1945. Author: Stan Cohen. Publisher: Pictorial Histories.
- The Long Way Home. Author: Ed Dover. Publisher: Paladwr Press
External links
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