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The Lockheed Vega was one of the most famous record breaking airplanes of the early 1930s. This big, high-wing, single-engine monoplane was designed by John Northrop and Gerrard Vultee, two aviation pioneers who later established their own aircraft companies.

Although the Vega first flew in July of 1927, it was during the early 1930s that the plane established its reputation for rugged reliability and airworthiness. It was designed originally as a transport aircraft, and although it carried only four to six passengers and a crew of two, it saw extensive service with several airlines, among them TWA and Braniff.

But it was as a record-maker and record-breaker that the Vega is best remembered. Interestingly, not one but two pioneering women fliers helped bring the Vega much of its early fame.

New York socialite Ruth Nichols took off in a Vega on June 22, 1931, in an attempt to become the first woman to fly the Atlantic solo. Her destination, like Lindbergh's, was Paris, but her luck ran out when she missed a landing at St.John, New Brunswick, Canada, crashed and was seriously injured.

A year later, however, another woman pilot, Amelia Earhart, succeeded where Ruth Nichols had failed. On May 20, 1932, Miss Earhart flew solo and nonstop from Harborgrace, Newfoundland to Culmore, Northern Ireland. And she too was flying a Lockheed Vega.

 

Amelia Earhart

Perhaps no name is as symbolic of aerospace achievement as Amelia Earhart. When you say female aviator, the first name that comes to mind is Amelia Earhart! Born in Atchison, Kansas, July 24, 1897, she attended Hyde Park High School in Chicago, Ogontz School for Girls in Rydal, Pa., and Columbia University in New York to prepare for a career in Medicine and Social Science. She served during World War I as a military nurse in Canada where she developed an interest in flying. She pursued this interest in California, receiving her pilot's license in 1922. Though she continued her association with aviation by entering numerous flying meets, she spent several years as a teacher and social worker at Dennison House, in Boston.

Amelia Earhart gained considerable fame June 17-18, 1928, as the first woman to cross the Atlantic by air. She felt this fame somewhat unjustified as she had only been a “passenger” on a Fokker trimotor piloted by Wilman Stutz and Louis Gordon from Trepassy Bay, Newfoundland, to Burry Port, Wales. In 1929 Earhart co-founded the “Ninety-Nines,” an international organization of women pilots, which continues today to promote opportunities for women in aviation, and served from 1930 to 1932 as its first president.

Amelia Earhart was one of the first women in aviation to juggle a public and private life. Her 1931 marriage to publisher George Putnam did not prevent her from setting an autogyro altitude record. the following year she reaccomplished the Atlantic flight which brought her fame, this time as a solo pilot flying from Harbor Grace, Newfoundland, to Londonderry, Ireland, a first for a woman. At a time when women were extremely rare in technical and scientific areas, Amelia Earhart distinguished herself by setting records which bettered men's records as well as women's.

She became active in the movement that encouraged the development of commercial aviation. Amelia Earhart took an active role in efforts to open the field of aviation to women and end male dominance in this exciting new field. She served as an officer of the Luddington line, which provided one of the first regular passenger services between New York and Washington, D.C. In January 1935, she outdid her Atlantic solo by making a solo flight from Hawaii to California, a much longer distance than the Canada-England flight. She became the first pilot to successfully fly that route. Her numerous accomplishments earned her the Distinguished Flying Cross, the first women so designated by the United States Congress.

Always pushing the envelope, Amelia Earhart set out in June 1937 to circumnavigate the world. Accompanied by Fred Noonan, her navigator, Amelia Earhart flew her twin engine Lockheed Electra into one of the greatest unsolved mysteries of the 20th century. On the most difficult leg of the trip, Earhart and Noonan vanished near Howland Island in the Pacific. Intense searching by both the American and Japanese forces found no trace of Amelia Earhart, Fred Noonan, or their plane and fueled speculation as to the reason for such a dangerous flight. many argued that the flight was a reconnaissance flight to gather data on Japan prior to the United States entry into World War II. Many others, especially in the aviation community, held fast that Amelia Earhart was driven by her passion for flying.

Though few facts are known about the July 2, 1937 disappearance in the central Pacific near the International Date Line, one thing is certain: Amelia Earhart had made a unique and timeless contribution to aviation and to women in aviation which will go unparalleled for decades to come.

References: Collier's Encyclopedia, 1991; The New Encyclopedia Britannica, 15th edition, 1991; World Book, 1990; and Compton's Encyclopedia, University of Chicago, 1989. From Leadership: 2000 And Beyond, Vol. II, pgs. 11-24 and 11-25, Civil Air Patrol, Maxwell AFB, Alabama.

 

 

The Vega 5A

The Vega was a six-passenger monoplane built by the Lockheed company starting in 1927. It became famous for its use by a number of record breaking pilots who were attracted to the rugged and very long-ranged design. Amelia Earhart became the first woman to fly the Atlantic single handed in one, and Wiley Post flew his around the world twice.

 

Design & Development

Designed by John Northrop and Gerrard Vultee, both of whom would later form their own companies, the plane was originally intended to serve with Lockheed's own airline routes. They set out to build a four-seat plane that was not only rugged, but the fastest plane as well. Utilizing the latest designs in monocoque fuselages, cantilever wings and the best engine available, the Vega delivered on the speed promises.

The fuselage was monocoque, but built from sheets of plywood skinned over wooden ribs. The plane was built in two halves in large presses, and then glued together. With the fuselage constructed in this fashion, the wing spar had to be kept clear, so they decided to make a single spar cantilever mounted on the very top of the plane. The only part of the aircraft that wasn't particularly streamlined was the landing gear although production versions wore sleek "spats." For power they chose the Wright Whirlwind, which delivered 225 horsepower (168 kW).

 

In Service

The first Vega 1, named the Golden Eagle, flew from Lockheed's Los Angeles plant on 4 July 1927. It could cruise at a then-fast 120 mph (193 km/h), and had a top speed of 135 mph (217 km/h). However. the four-passenger (plus one pilot) load was considered too small for airline use. A number of private owners placed orders for the design however, and by the end of 1928 they had produced 68 of this original design. In the 1928 National Air Races in Cleveland, Vegas won every speed award.

Looking to improve the design, Lockheed delivered the Vega 5 in 1929. Adding the Pratt & Whitney R-1340 Wasp engine of 450 hp (336 kW) improved weights enough to allow two more seats to be added. A new NACA cowling increased cruise speed to 155 mph (249 km/h) and top speed to 165 mph (266 km/h). However, even the new six-seat configuration proved to be too small, and the 5 was purchased primarily for private aviation and executive transport. Sixty-four Vega 5s were built. In 1931, the US Air Corps bought two Vega 5s; one designated C-12 and one as the C-17. The C-17 differed by having an extra set of fuel tanks in the wings.

 

Survivors

Both Wiley Post's Winnie Mae and Amelia Earhart's Vegas ^[1]are on display in the National Air and Space Museum. Four others are believed to exist, at least one of which is still in flying condition.

 

Specifications

General characteristics

• Crew: 1
• Length: 27 ft 6 in (8.38 m)
• Wingspan: 41 ft in (12.49 m)
• Height: 8 ft 6 in (2.59 m)
• Wing area: 259 ft (25.548 m)
• Empty weight: 2,565 lb (1,163 kg)
• Loaded weight: 4,500 lb (2,041 kg)
• Max takeoff weight: lb (kg)
• Powerplant: 1× Pratt & Whitney Wasp R1340C , hp (kW)

Performance

• Maximum speed: 185 mph (298 km/h)
• Cruise speed: 165 mph (265 km/h)
• Range: 725 mi (1,165 km)
• Service ceiling: 15,000 ft (4,570 m)
• Rate of climb: 1,300 ft/min (396 m/s)
• Wing loading: lb/ft² (kg/m²)
• Power/mass: hp/lb (kW/kg)

 

References

1. ^ Lockheed 5B Vega Note: Amelia Earhart's Vega 5B, a company demonstrator was c/n 22 NC7952.

• Boyne, Walter J. Beyond the Horizons: The Lockheed Story. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1998. ISBN 0-312-19237-1.
• Francillon, René J. Lockheed Aircraft since 1913. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press, 1987. ISBN 0-85177-835-6.

 

 

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