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Bellanca C-27A 'Airbus'

Description
  Manufacturer:Bellanca
  Base model:C-27
  Designation:C-27
  Version:A
  Nickname:Airbus
  Designation System:U.S. Air Force
  Designation Period:1925-1962
  Basic role:Transport

Specifications
Not Yet Available

Operators (Past and Present)
USAF 24th Wing Howard AFB/Albrook AFS PAN

Known serial numbers
33-018 / 33-027, 90-0170 / 90-0179, 91-0103 / 91-0107


 

Recent comments by our visitors
 Denny
 , IN


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05/17/2008 @ 23:41 [ref: 20926]
 crewman
 , TX
Worked on this plane for over 3 yrs. I miss the plane and the flying in the C-27A.
01/12/2007 @ 20:59 [ref: 15174]
 Sean Harris
 , WA
Looking to purchase P/N 747744-1 Barrel assy. for the 63E60 propeller. Any information would be appreciated.
253-981-6029
07/18/2005 @ 17:49 [ref: 10784]
 Michael Bludworth
 Houston, TX
Just wanted to point out that the photos shown at the bottom of this article are NOT of the Bellanca, but of the "current" C-27.
01/05/2005 @ 10:14 [ref: 9057]
 Brennan
 Bitburg, Rheinland-Pfalz, OTH
This fine aircraft was also used by Clutch Cargo, the hero of a low budget American television cartoon series first broadcast in 1959. You can see a RealPlayer clip from a Clutch Cargo cartoon featuring the aircraft here:

http://www.toontracker.com/clutchcargo/clutchcar.ram

For those who don't remember Clutch, his was the cartoon that featured minimal animation (mostly stills moved in front of the camera, or vice versa) with footage of actual human lips superimposed over the still drawings providing the animation for speaking. While actual Clutch Cargo episodes are rarely seen anymore, you can see more clips of this cartoon in Quentin Tarantino's "Pulp Fiction."
07/10/2004 @ 22:17 [ref: 7801]
 R Harris
 Wichita, KS
The Bellanca C-27 was an outgrowth of the Bellanca Airbus, which -- in turn -- was an outgrowth of the record-setting long-distance, heavy-hauling Bellanca 'Flying-W' (so named for the 'W' shape created by its wing struts, which went down from each side of the fuselage to the landing wheels, then up to the outer wing.)

The basic Flying-W/Airbus/C-27 design was unusually efficient for the times, and was the plane of choice for long-distance flyers (Charles Lindbergh wanted one for his famed NewYork-to-Paris flight, but gave up on the idea when Bellanca's president, Chas. Levine, insisted on going along for the ride. Later, with Clarence Chamberlin flying, Levine topped Lindberg's non-stop distance, riding as the first trans-Atlantic passenger on a famed New-York-to-Berlin non-stop flight).

The Airbus design was an important airliner (actually out-hauling the Ford TriMotor and Fokker TriMotor, at a fraction of their operating costs), until single-engine airliners were effectively outlawed in the U.S. around 1924 -- wiping out the market for the big Bellanca in the U.S. It remained popular in other countries, and continued in U.S. military use for some years; some remained in regular heavy use as bush planes in Canada and Alaska until the 1970's.

Al Mooney (who'd begun his famous airplane-designing career for Alexander Aircraft in Denver/ColoradoSprings, then moved on to others, was Bellanca's chief engineer for commercial aircraft, briefly -- and oversaw the process of turning the Airbus into the C-27, and winning a military contract for some of them. (see: 'The Al Mooney Story: They all fly through the same air', by Gordon Baxter)

The photos others have submitted of the "C-27" below are NOT the 1920's/1930's-era BELLANCA C-27, but rather a MODERN cargo aircraft. For actual pix of the Bellanca C-27, and more info, see the following web pages:

U.S. Air Force Museum:
http://www.wpafb.af.mil/museum/research/cargo/c2/c27.htm

Ken's Av Photog:
http://www.shanaberger.com/bellanca_aircruiser.htm

The Bellanca Airbus/Aircruiser/C-27 Home Page:
http://www.bellanca-championclub.com/menander/
07/06/2004 @ 03:49 [ref: 7757]
 Jay Schiff
 Pinehurst, NJ
The Airbus was a high winged monoplane BUT it had lifting surfaces which doubled as landing gear struts forming streached out "V"s from each wing down to the wheels and up to fasten to the fuseage.
It was built by the Bellanca family wich was related to the actor,Julio Lacata of Atlantic City.
06/22/2003 @ 17:34 [ref: 6528]
 C Reich
 Moore, OK
The C-27A designation was also used on the 1933 Belanca C-27A Serials 33-018 to 027 These aircraft were all written off the inventory by 1940
04/16/2003 @ 20:35 [ref: 6419]
 -
 , OTH
C-27A Spartan=Alenia(FIAT)G-222'Panda'
03/27/2001 @ 15:35 [ref: 1917]

 

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