RWD 5 - WikiHQ

The RWD 5 was a Polish touring and sports plane of 1931, a two-seat high-wing monoplane, constructed by the RWD team. It was made famous by its transatlantic flight, being the smallest aircraft to cross the Atlantic. Also, Maj. E. Wyrwicki flew RWD 5 from Romania to besieged Warsaw

In late 1990s, a flying replica of the RWD 5, named RWD 5R, was built in Poland by EEA991 association. It flew first on 26 August 2000, and is powered with 140 hp LOM Praha Avia M-332 engine (registration SP-LOT).

The flight across the Atlantic

thumb|Single-seater record version RWD 5bis SP-AJU

In March 1933 a special single-seater variant was built, called RWD 5bis (registration SP-AJU), powered with a 130 hp Gipsy Major engine. The rear cabin was replaced with an additional 300 L (79 US gal) fuel tank, and the windows were removed. Additional fuel tanks were added in wings, the fuel capacity reached 752 L (199 US gal) in total and the range increased to . Stanisław Skarżyński flew this plane from Warsaw to Rio de Janeiro from 27 April to 24 June 1933, on a path of .

During his travel, on 7 May/8 May, Skarżynski flew the RWD 5bis across the southern Atlantic, from Saint-Louis, Senegal to Maceio in Brazil. The flight took 20 hours 30 minutes (17 hours above the ocean). He crossed , establishing a distance record in the FAI light tourist plane class. The RWD 5bis was at that time the smallest plane that had ever flown across the Atlantic — its empty weight was below 450 kg (1000 lb), loaded 1100 kg (2425 lb). The plane had no radio nor safety equipment, due to weight considerations. It returned to Europe on a ship. After its record-breaking flight, the RWD 5bis was converted to a two-seater variant without additional tanks, and used by Skarżyński. The SP-AJU was seized by the Soviets in Lwów in September 1939, after their invasion of Poland. Polskie konstrukcje lotnicze 1893–1939

|prime units?=met

<!--

General characteristics

-->

|crew=1

|capacity=1 passenger / trainee or second pilot

|length m=7.2

|length note=

|span m=10.5

|span note=

|height m=2.7

|height note=

|wing area sqm=15.5

|wing area note=

|aspect ratio=

|airfoil=

|empty weight kg=445

|empty weight note=

|gross weight kg=760

|gross weight note=

|max takeoff weight kg=

|max takeoff weight note=

|fuel capacity= in two wing tanks

|more general=

<!--

Powerplant

-->

|eng1 number=1

|eng1 name=Cirrus Hermes IIB

|eng1 type=4-cylinder air-cooled in-line piston engines

|eng1 hp=105-115

|eng1 note=

|prop blade number=2

|prop name=fixed-pitch propeller

|prop dia m=

|prop dia note=

<!--

Performance

-->

|max speed kmh=200-210

|max speed note=at sea level

|cruise speed kmh=175-185

|cruise speed note=<br/>

Landing speed:

|stall speed kmh=

|stall speed note=

|never exceed speed kmh=

|never exceed speed note=

|range km=1080-1200

|range note=

|combat range km=

|combat range note=

|ferry range km=

|ferry range note=

|endurance=

|ceiling m=4700-5000

|ceiling note=

|g limits=

|roll rate=

|climb rate ms=4.6

|climb rate note=

|time to altitude= in 4 minutes 20 seconds

|wing loading kg/m2=50.7

|wing loading note=

|fuel consumption kg/km=

|power/mass=

|more performance=

|avionics=

References

RWD-5 aircraft Website by Rafał Krok, retrieved on 2008-07-06.

The flight across the Atlantic

See also

References