NOTE: RADIO CONTROL AIRPLANES ARE ON THE BOTTOM HALF OF THE PAGE.
The Beech Staggerwing, with a powerful engine, smooth aerodynamics, and retractable landing gear, was one of the best performing single engine pre-World War II light aircraft.
The name "staggerwing" comes from the bottom wing of the aircraft being staggered forward of the upper wing. Its intent is to increase the pilot's upward visibility while decreasing stall speed.
The Beech Staggerwing was flown by the USAAF, U. S. Navy, and Royal Air Force during World War Two. A total of 342 of the aircraft were ordered by the military during the War. Great Britain received the majority, a total of 105.
Originally, two very high performance Model 17R aircraft were built. They were very much an experienced pilot's aircraft, and not suitable for the general aviation marketplace. The aircraft had a wide speed range of from about 60 mph to just over 200 mph.
The basic structure of the early aircraft was made up mostly of fabric covered welded steel tubing. Its landing gear had a unique feature. The main landing gear were enclosed in streamline fairings, but the wheels could be retracted in flight so that they were completely within the fairings.
The enclosed cabin could hold a pilot and three or four passengers. The 420 hp radial engine was mounted in a unique tunnel cowling.
The Model B17L, first flown in Feb. 1934, featured a new thicker lower wing that allowed the main landing gear to fully retract in to it. A 425 hp. Jacobs L-4 radial engine was also introduced in the model. The combination of fully retractable landing gear, together with a more reliable, lighter, smoother running engine, made the aircraft much easier to fly for novice pilots.
On Sept. 5th 1936 a Beech Staggerwing set a speed record from New York to Los Angeles of 14 hours, 55 minutes with an average speed of 165.35 mph.
On May 29,1937 another speed record was set over 100 Km at 197.7 mph.
Although production ended in 1949, of 785 Beech Staggerwing aircraft that were produced about 100 are still flying.
recreation
one pilot
P&W R985
450 hp
26' 10"
32' 0"
2,540 lbs.
4,250 lbs.
three
165 mph
45 mph
200+ mph
1,600 fpm
22,000 feet
670 miles
11/4/32
Radio Control Airplane
The rc Beech Staggerwing from Top Flite.
Radio Control Airplanes:
In the picture above is the rc Beech Staggerwing ARF for sale from Top Flite. Wingspan
is 72 1/2", length is 62 1/2". It has a glass fuse and built up wood wings.
Required is a 1.60 two or four cycle engine. Weight is around 18 lbs.
In the first picture below is the Hobbico, Flyzone rc Beech Staggerwing RTF for sale that comes ready to fly. It has a 31" wingspan with a 26" length and includes a 280 geared motor, radio, flight battery and charger. Controls are rudder, elevators, and throttle.
From time to time Nitro Planes will have a rc Beech Staggerwing ARF for sale.
Pictured second below is the good looking rc Beech Staggerwing scratch built by Nick Hill. The rc airplane's wingsspan 35". It is powered by a PJS 800E motor.
In the next picture below is Andrew Donnatelli's 48" wingspan Beech Staggerwing rc. Andrew powers his rc airplane with a O. S. .46 FX engine.
Kit Cutters has kits for sale of a number of rc Beech Staggerwing airplanes. Their giant scale rc airplane from Nick Ziroli Plans has a wingspan of 88" and a length of 72". Suggested power is a 3.7 engine. All up weight should be between 30 and 35 lbs.
Kit Cutters has 48", 64", and 96" wingspan rc Beech Staggerwing kits and plans for sale from Cleveland Model Co. plans.
Last from Kit Cutters is a 64" wing span rc Beech Staggerwing from Morgan/Novack plans. It needs engines from .71 to .80 for power.
The bottom picture is of the Global Hobbies rc Beech Staggerwing. The ARF has a 28.5" wing span. For power you can use a variety of motors ranging from Speed 480 - 700 size brushed or brushless.
Precision Cut Kits has a rc Beech Staggerwing kit for sale. It has a wingspan of 88" and is from Ziroli Plans.
Vintage RC Plans has rc Beech Staggerwing plans for sale. The scale rc airplane model builds to a 64" wingspan.
Dumas has a rubber power free flight kit that may be converted to a rc Beech Staggerwing with motor power. It has a 17 1/2" wingspan.
If you are interested in smaller radio control scale model airplanes, check out the rc Beech Staggerwing build thread in RC Groups by Rocket Rob.
You Tube has a video posted by
Busvanman of a 13 foot wingspan giant scale Beech Staggerwing radio control airplane meeting
its demise.
Royal had a rc Beech Staggerwing kit for sale with a 56" wingspan and a length of 45". Engines are from .60 - .90 2C. Although out of business, kits and completed rc airplane models can sometimes be found at RC Groups and
similar sites plus eBay.
RC Groups has a thread started by
Nitrogary1 who is seeking a rc Beech Staggerwing with a wingspan between
70" and 80".
There is a thread from Staggerflyer
in RC Groups about switchine a rc Beech Staggerwing to run on an electric motor.
Chamm37 from RC Groups is looking for rc Beech Staggerwing
plans.
There are postings in RC Groups
from Dale Neidhammer about a rc Beech Staggerwing from Radio Control
Modeler magazine plans.
Ed Casitas has a giant scale rc Beech Staggerwing that he built. It has a 74" wingspan, weighs around 18 lbs. and uses a O.S. 1.60 FX engine for power.
Casey Marinaro made a 36" wingspan rc Beech Staggerwing from Depron. He uses a geared Speed 400 motor for power.
Ben Porterfield built a giant scale rc Beech Staggerwing from his own plans. It is of balsawood and plywood construction with a 106" wingspan and has a weight of around 52 lbs.
For power Ben uses a Evolution 80 GX engine.
Beech Staggerwing
