Douglas O-38

Template:Infobox Aircraft The Douglas O-38 was an observation airplane used by the United States Army Air Corps.

Between 1931 and 1934, Douglas built 156 O-38s for the Air Corps, eight of which were O-38Fs. Some were still in service at the time of the Pearl Harbor Attack in 1941.

Variants

O-38: derivative of the O-25 but with the 525-hp (391-kW) Pratt & Whitney R-1690-3 radial engine and Townend ring cowling; the National Guard received all 44 production aircraft

O-38A: single unarmed O-38 staff liaison machine for the National Guard

O-38B: derivative of the O-38 with the R-1690-5 engine; total production was 63, comprising 30 for USAAC observation squadrons and 33 for the National Guard

O-38C: single aircraft similar to the O-38B for use by US Coast Guard

O-38E: model with a wider and deeper fuselage on the lines of the private-venture O-38S, with a sliding canopy over the cockpits and the powerplant of one 625-hp (466-kW) R-1690-3 radial engine driving a metal propeller; could be operated on twin Edo floats; the National Guard took delivery of 37 such aircraft

O-38F: eight unarmed staff liaison aircraft delivered to the National Guard in 1933 with the powerplant of one R-1690-9 engine and a revised, fully enclosed canopy

O-38P Almost identical to the E/F series. Six planes delivered to Perú in February 1933, fitted with Edo floats; Three took part in the conflict against Colombia and took part in air combats against Colombian Curtiss F-11C Hawks, one being lost as consequence of damage received during those clashes. Survivors were converted to wheels and served as trainers until 1940.

O-38S: private-venture development of the O-38 with a wider and deeper fuselage, crew canopy and smooth-cowled 575-hp, (429-kW) Wright R-1820-E Cyclone radial engine; in effect was the prototype of the O-38E

A-6: proposed use of the O-38 as a radio-controlled target drone (cancelled)

Survivors

• The sole surviving example of an O-38 is on display at the National Museum of the United States Air Force at Wright-Patterson AFB near Dayton, Ohio. For several decades it was believed that no examples of this aircraft survived, until the wreckage of one was located in Alaska in the mid-1970's. This aircraft had gone down as a result of mechanical failure in the 1940's and made a soft landing in the Alaskan woods. Both crewmen survived the landing unhurt and walked to safety, but the aircraft's location was considered too remote for it to be salvaged. The wreckage was eventually rediscovered thirty years later during an aerial survey of the area, and the plane's type was soon identified. The staff of the Air Force Museum recognized it as the last surviving example, and quickly assembled a team to examine the aircraft for possible retrieval and restoration. Upon arriving at the crash site they found the aircraft surprisingly well preserved, with only the two seats and the tail wheel curiously missing. The team was even able to light their campfires using the aircraft's remaining fuel. Plans were soon made to remove the aircraft by helicopter, and transport it back to Dayton, Ohio. Meanwhile, the missing seats were found in the shack of a local frontiersman where they were being used as chairs. The missing tail wheel? He thought he might build a wheelbarrow someday. The extensive restoration by the museum's staff took several years, and many structural pieces had to be reverse engineered from original plans and damaged parts. The finished aircraft with its original engine was completed and placed on display in 1978. It now displayed hanging in the museum's Interwar Years Gallery.

Specifications (0-38B)

Data from "United States Military Aircraft Since 1909" by F. G. Swanborough & Peter M. Bowers (Putnam New York, ISBN 085177816X) 1964, 596 pp.

General characteristics

• Crew: two

Performance Armament

• 2 × .30-cal (7.62 mm) machine guns, one fixed forward-firing and one flexible plus 4 × 100 lb bombs

References

• The complete Encyclopedia of World Aircraft cover Editors: Paul Eden & Soph Moeng, (Amber Books Ltd. Bradley's Close, 74-77 White Lion Street, London, NI 9PF, 2002, ISBN 0-7607-3432-1), 1152 pp.