Brunner-Winkle Bird

The Brunner-Winkle Bird was a three-seat taxi and joy-riding aircraft produced in the US from 1928 to 1931.

Brunner-Winkle Bird
Bird A of 1929 fitted with Curtiss OX-5 engine preserved at the Historic Aircraft Restoration Museum near St Louis, Missouri
Role air-taxi/joyrider
National origin United States
Manufacturer Brunner-Winkle
Designer Michael Gregor
First flight September 1928
Status some aircraft still flying and on display in museums
Primary user private flyers and barnstorming
Number built ca. 240

Design and operation

The Model A version was powered by the ubiquitous Curtiss OX-5, and featured a welded steel-tube truss fuselage with metal and fabric skinning. The wings, constructed of Spruce and plywood were also covered with metal and fabric skinning. The Model A had a reasonable performance for an OX-5 powered aircraft. The Model A's ease of handling led to its entry into the 1929 Guggenheim Safety Airplane contest, where it was awarded the highest ratings for a standard production aircraft.[1]

The Model A was awarded Group 2 approval no 2-33 in January 1929 for the first nine aircraft serial no. 1000 to 1008. Aircraft serial no. 1009 upwards were manufactured under Air Transport Certificate no. 101.[2][1]

The Model B followed on from the initial Bird design and was fitted with the uncowled Kinner radial engine. Production aircraft were designated BK.[1]

Variants

Data from: aerofiles.com[3]

Bird BK of 1930 with Kinner K-5 engine preserved at the Yanks Air Museum at Chino, California
Model A
original production version with Curtiss OX-5 engine (ca. 80 built)
Model AT
version with Milwaukee Tank engine (2 converted from Model A)
Model B
version with Kinner K-5 engine (1 prototype)
Model BK
production version of Model B (84 built)
Model C
version with Wright J-5 engine (1 built)
Model CC
version with Curtiss R-600 Challenger engine (1 built)
Model CJ
version with Jacobs LA-1 engine (6 built)
Model CK
version with Kinner B-5 engine (50 built)
Model RK
export version of Model CK (1 built)
Model E
4-5 seat version with enclosed cabin and Kinner B-5 engine (1 built)
Model F
version with Packard DR-980 (1 built)

Specifications (Bird Model A)

Data from U.S. civil aircraft series:Vol.2 [2]

General characteristics

  • Crew: 1
  • Capacity: 2 passengers
  • Length: 22 ft 3 in (6.78 m)
  • Wingspan: 34 ft 00 in (10.36 m)
  • Height: 8 ft 8 in (2.64 m)
  • Wing area: 266 sq ft (24.7 m2)
  • Empty weight: 1,315 lb (596 kg)
  • Gross weight: 2,150 lb (975 kg)
  • Powerplant: 1 × Curtiss OX-5 V-8 water-cooled piston engine, 90 hp (67 kW)
  • Propellers: 2-bladed wooden fixed-pitch propeller

Performance

  • Maximum speed: 105 mph (169 km/h, 91 kn)
  • Cruise speed: 88 mph (142 km/h, 76 kn)
  • Range: 450 mi (720 km, 390 nmi)
  • Service ceiling: 3,800 ft (1,200 m)
  • Rate of climb: 520 ft/min (2.6 m/s)

See also

Aircraft of comparable role, configuration and era

(Partial listing, only covers most numerous types)

References

Citations
  1. John, Talmage. "The Brunner Winkle Bird at the Cradle of Aviation Museum". www.cradleofaviation.org. Retrieved 21 September 2018.
  2. Juptner, Joseph J. (1 May 1993). U.S. civil aircraft series:Vol.2. TAB AERO. pp. 9. ISBN 978-0830643677.
  3. "Aircraft Ba-Bl". aerofiles.com. Retrieved 2008-10-19.

Bibliography
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