Bellanca 31-40

31-40 Senior Pacemaker

CF-DCH Reynolds-Alberta Museum c. 2006, photo by Ruud Leeuw
Role	Civil utility aircraft
Manufacturer	Bellanca, Northwest Industries (under licence)
First flight	1935
Number built	ca. 20 + 13 under licence

A Bellanca Senior Pacemaker "LN-ABO" pictured in Northern Norway late 1930s

The Bellanca 31-40 Senior Pacemaker and its derivatives were a family of a six- and eight-seat utility aircraft built in the United States in the late 1930s. They were the final revision of the original Wright WB-2 design Bellanca had bought in the late 1920s. The model numbers used by Bellanca in this period reflected the wing area (in this case, 310 square feet) and engine horsepower (400 and up in this series), each divided by ten. Like their predecessors, these were high-wing braced monoplanes with conventional tailwheel undercarriage.

A single Senior Skyrocket was bought by the United States Navy in 1938 for use as a utility transport, designated JE-1. Senior Skyrockets were also built under licence by Northwest Industries in Canada following World War II.

In 2007, a single example remains extant - the first Canadian-built aircraft (registration CF-DCH). It is preserved at the Reynolds-Alberta Museum.

Variants

31-40 Senior Pacemaker - Wright Cyclone engine, 400 hp (298 kW)
31-42 Senior Pacemaker - Fitted with a redesigned tail surface, accommodation for one pilot and five passengers, powered by a 550-hp (410-kW) Pratt & Whitney Wasp S3H1 radial piston engine.
31-50 Senior Skyrocket - Pratt & Whitney Hornet engine, 550 hp (410 kW)
- L-11 - One 31-50 impressed into service by the United States Army Air Forces in Alaska in 1942.
31-55 Senior Skyrocket
- JE-1 - Senior Skyrocket version for US Navy with 570 hp (425 kW) engine
- de Luxe Senior Skyrocket - 31-55 with improved instrumentation and superior interior and exterior finishes, powered by a 525-hp (391-kW) Pratt & Whitney Wasp radial piston engine.
- Model 31-55A - Built under licence in Canada by Northwest Industries.

Operators

United States

Norway

Widerøes Flyveselskap

Specifications (31-55 Senior Skyrocket)

General characteristics

Crew: one pilot
Capacity: seven passengers
Length: 27 ft 9 in (8.5 m m)
Wingspan: 50 ft 6 in (15.3 m)
Height: 8 ft 6 in (2.5 m)
Wing area: 310 ft² (28.8 m²)
Empty weight: 3,940 lb (1,787 kg)
Powerplant: 1 × Pratt & Whitney Hornet radial, 550 hp (410 kW)

Performance

Maximum speed: 180 mph (290 km/h)
Range: 900 miles (1,450 km)

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bellanca.

Taylor, Michael J. H. (1989). Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation. London: Studio Editions. pp. 149–50.
aerofiles.com

Bellanca

Aircraft

Letter/letter-number designation	CD CE CF WB-2 CH-200 CH-300 CH-400 J-300

Numerical designation	14-7 14-9 14-10 14-12 14-13 14-14 14-19 17-30 17-20 19-25 28-70 28-90 28-92 28-110 31-40 31-42 31-50 31-55 66-70 66-75 77-140 77-320

Name	Airbus Aircruiser Aries Bomber Champion Citabria Cruisair Cruisemaster Decathlon Junior Pacemaker Scout Senior Pacemaker Senior Skyrocket Skyrocket Skyrocket II Standard Tandem Experimental Sesquiplane (TES) Viking

Military Designation	C-27 X-855e XSE XSOE YO-50

Companies

People

USN/USMC transport designations 1931–1962

Atlantic Aircraft	RA

Budd	RB

Curtiss	RC R2C⁴ R3C⁴ R4C R5C

Douglas	RD R2D R3D R4D R5D R6D

Bellanca	RE

Kinner	RK

Kreider-Reisner	RK² R2K

Martin	RM

Lockheed	RO R2O R3O R4O R5O R6O R7O-1/-2 to "V"

Stinson	RQ R2Q² R3Q

Fairchild	RQ R2Q R3Q² R4Q

Ford	RR

Sikorsky	RS

Northrop	RT

Lockheed	from "O" R6V R7V-1/-2 R8V

Convair	RY R2Y R3Y R4Y

¹ Not assigned • ² Assigned to a different manufacturer's type • ³ Sequence restarted • ⁴ Assigned to a different class of aircraft

USN/USMC utility aircraft designations 1935–1955

Utility

Fokker	JA

Noorduyn	JA

Beechcraft	JB

Curtiss-Wright	JC

Douglas	JD

Bellanca	JE

Grumman	JF J2F J3F J4F

Stearman-Hammond	JH

Fairchild	JK J2K

Columbia	JL

Martin	JM

Lockheed	JO

Fairchild	JQ J2Q

Ford	JR

Waco	JW J2W

Utility transport

Beechcraft	JRB

Cessna	JRC

Grumman	JRF JR2F

Nash-Kelvinator	JRK

Martin	JRM JR2M

Sikorsky	JRS JR2S

USAAF/USAF liaison aircraft

L-1 L-2 L-3 L-4 L-5 L-6 L-7 L-8 L-9 L-10 L-11 L-12 L-13 L-14 L-15 L-16 L-17 L-18 L-19 L-20 L-21 L-22 L-23 L-24 L-25 L-26 L-27 L-28

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