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The development of the Wright J-5 Whirlwind began in the early 1920s with the Lawrance Aero-Engine Corporation, a company founded in 1917 by Charles L. Lawrance (1882–1950). Lawrance produced a highly reliable and durable air-cooled, nine-cylinder, radial engine for the U.S. Navy called the J-1. Unable to meet production demands, the Navy encouraged the Wright Aeronautical Corporation to absorb Lawrance’s company. After steadily refining his engine for Wright Aeronautical, in 1924, Lawrance became president of the company and introduced the improved J-4 model, the first of the “J” series to be named “Whirlwind.” Further improvements included a breakthrough cylinder design by English engineer Samuel D. Heron (1891-1963), which comprised separating the cylinders with more space, and substantially widening the cylinder cooling fins. The rocker arms and pushrods were also enclosed, a first for radial engines built in the U.S. at this time. This created a more durable engine that ran cool and lean for long durations before needing lubrication and maintenance. Introduced in 1925, the new engine was named the J-5 Whirlwind and quickly revolutionized the aviation industry. Charles A. Lindbergh’s (1902–74) Ryan NYP Spirit of St. Louis was specifically designed around the J-5 engine and established the J-5’s reputation for long-distance reliability. Shortly after, Whirlwinds were used on the 2,400-mile, record-setting nonstop flight from Oakland, California, to Hawai’i by U.S. Army Air Corps pilots Lester J. Maitland (1899–1990) and Albert Hegenberger (1895–1983) in the Fokker C-2 tri-motor Bird of Paradise. The next year, the J-5-equipped Fokker F.VIIb/3m Southern Cross was piloted by Charles Kingsford Smith (1897–1935) and Charles Ulm (1898–1984) on a 7,200-mile, three-stage, transpacific route from Oakland, California, to Brisbane, Australia. “Going the Distance: Endurance Aircraft Engines and Propellers of the 1910s and 20s” is on display, pre-security in the Aviation Museum and Library and online at: https://bit.ly/EnduranceEngines
This image was posted on December 05, 2023.
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