Fairchild FC-2W2

  • Period: Interwar (1919-1938)
  • Uses: Bush Flying
  • First Flight: June 1926 (FC-1)
  • Display Status: On the Museum Floor.

Unable to find a suitable aircraft for their aerial-survey business, Fairchild designed a tough, simple aircraft of their own, the Model FC-1, which was shortly improved upon by the FC-2 and subsequent versions. Created to operate in remote areas, this aircraft series suited the Canadian environment. The RCAF used Fairchilds chiefly for photographic surveys and communication. Civil use in Canada involved largely freight and passengers in the north, and passengers in the south.

Much of the work to open up Canada᾿s north in the 1920s and 1930s was performed by Fairchild FC-2s, 2Ws, and 2W-2s. FC-2W-2s flew Canada’s first international passenger service between Montreal and New York. In 1928, two Canadian FC-2W-2s were the first to reach the Junkers W.33 Bremen, which had crashed in the Strait of Belle Isle after the first east-to-west trans-Atlantic flight. The Fairchild’s wings fold back for convenient storage, which meant that in the Arctic the airplane could be put undercover with a small snowfence and a tarpaulin.

Museum Example

  • Registration #: G-CART
  • Manufacturer: Fairchild Airplane Mfg Corp., United States
  • Manufacture Date: 1928
  • Construction #: 128
  • Aquisition Date: 1962
  • Provenance: Donation from V. Kauffman, Aero Service Corp.

Manufactured in 1928, FC-2W-2 was employed in survey work until the 1940s. It was sold to an aircraft broker, but was damaged in a crash. The aircraft was donated to the Museum in 1962.

Specifications

Wing Span:
15.2 m (50 ft)
Length:
10.1 m (33 ft 2 in)
Height:
2.9 m (9 ft 6 in)
Weight, Empty:
1,239 kg (2,732 lb)
Weight, Gross:
2,495 kg (5,500 lb)
Cruising Speed:
174 km/h (108 mph)
Max Speed:
216 km/h (134 mph)
Rate of Climb:
267 m (875 ft) /min
Service Ceiling:
4,570 m (15,000 ft)
Range:
1,102 km (685 mi)
Power Plant:
one Pratt & Whitney R-1340 Wasp B, 420 hp, radial engine