These three photos illustrate three different ways a budding naval aviator could maneuver his Naval Air Factory N3N when it wasn’t flying. 1. Just drive it right up to the beach. 2. Have a crane do the lifting. 3. Attach wheels.

Tucked away in the background aboard the battleship USS Maryland is a Vought VE-9 (BuNo 6462), one of early naval aviation’s often-overlooked aircraft. Popularly known as the “Bluebird”, it was a slightly improved version of Vought’s VE-7, an incredibly historical machine that acquired several important “firsts” for the US Navy, one of them being the Navy’s first fighter.

The occasion for the main photo is the arrival of Secretary of State Charles Evans Hughes (the austere, bearded gentleman, center). On the right is the skipper of the Maryland, Captain D.F. Sellers (later, Commander-in-Chief, United States Fleet). Hughes was aboard the battleship for a trip to Rio de Janeiro, August-September, 1922. Earlier that same year, Secretary Hughes led the American Delegation at the Washington Naval Conference, where he successfully argued for reducing the number of battleships (a somewhat ironic position given his choice of transport seen here). Nonetheless, the Navy still had enough battle boats on hand to provide Secretary Hughes a ride to Rio.

Here is something that may give one a moment’s reflection:

As the Maryland sailed southward, she kept busy launching her planes in order to fetch mail, scout, etc. While all that aerial activity was going on, interestingly enough, the first takeoff from a US aircraft carrier had yet to occur. That historic achievement (October 17, 1922)  was another of the “firsts” for Vought and their VE-7.

In the 1920s, Martin and Curtiss competed to supply the US Navy with torpedo bombers. They fielded two very similar designs: the Martin’s T3/4M and the Curtiss CS (seen here left and right, respectively). It was a tough choice, as the rival aircraft were similar in both appearance and performance. In the end, the Navy threw some business to both manufacturers, but it was Martin that won a bigger contract. It was a wise choice: the T4M (despite its bulky looks) became a highly effective machine and was the primary strike aircraft of the US Navy for nearly a decade.

A chilly day in January, 1922, finds the CT-1 ready for flight. The pilot looks like a bankrobber driving a getaway car.

The CT-1 carried an impressive load including a gun turret behind the pilot.

Like other aircraft of that period, the Curtiss CT-1 of the early 1920s had a short life (1921-23) and an even shorter production run (one example built). That single aircraft is seen here in 1922 while undergoing tests for the US Navy. 

Middle of Nowhere, 1931. The BuNos for these planes are 8826 & 8827.

With a couple thousand miles of open cockpit flying behind them, the Arizona’s aviators have good reason to grin (or frown).

Davis-Monthan Field registry.

When these Vought O3U-1s of the battleship USS Arizona arrived at the “Fly Field” airport in 1931, there was good reason to take their photo. Namely, the place then called Fly Field (now known as Marine Corps Air Station Yuma) is located in the state of Arizona. The reason for the visit was that these aircraft were factory-fresh from Vought’s plant in Connecticut and were flying cross-country to join the USS Arizona at its homeport in California. Looking at the pilots, one can see by their weather-beaten faces that they have indeed been doing their share of open cockpit aviating. Once the planes complete their journey, their wheels will be replaced by floats, and markings will be applied to the fuselages denoting these planes were now officially part of Arizona’s observation squadron.

Naturally, no local photographer could resist taking a picture of a plane that bore his state’s name and this was especially true in Arizona, where the state’s 1931 population was about 1/19th of what it is today. In other words, seeing the name “Arizona” on anything was a big deal back in the day.

The logbook entry is from another Arizona airport, Davis-Monthan Field. The depicted page shows that these same airplanes had arrived at Davis-Monthan a few days earlier. The page is from a book that can be viewed online at dmairfield.org.

Fact: “Fly Field” was not just an appropriate name for an airport, it was an eponymous one as well – Colonel Benjamin Franklin Fly.

Inspection time once again. 

No guesses on the type of aircraft peeking into the photo at the lower right, but one can say with certainty that the vessel it rests upon is the USS Lexington. Sister ship Saratoga is in the background. 

Pretty sepia-toned photo from the collection of a sailor who served aboard USS Lexington, 1937-39.

Perched on their catapult atop the No. 3 turret of the USS Pennsylvania, a pair of Vought O3U-3s of Observation Squadron Two (VO-2) stand by to carry out another assignment. The O2U/O3U Corsair was the standard observation aircraft for the USN for about ten years (1927-1937) – a most notable achievement in an era when the life expectancy of almost every design type was measured in only a few years. Pennsylvania was the flagship of the U.S. Fleet during the interwar years, reflected in the immaculate condition of the ship and its aircraft.

Seen from the shore in about 1939, a NAS Seattle-based PBY gently rides the water of Washington State’s Puget Sound.

Bombing Three (VB-3) – the “High Hatters” put on a good show for the camera in early 1939.

Some eighty years ago, the Consolidated P2Ys of Patrol Squadron 19 were a familiar sight skimming across the waters of Lake Washington, along whose shore was located Naval Air Station Seattle. The P2Y was an ungainly looking contraption but looks belie the fact it was a very sturdy and reliable performer. 

Postscript…

Many of the officers and men in this photo were local reservists. A ribbon on the men’s cap states they are part of “Patrol Squadrons, USN” (one man is from the USS Teal, a seaplane tender assigned to the base). 

First flown in 1925, the XPB-1 with its all-metal hull seemed promising enough, but was plagued by difficulties with its liquid-cooled engines.

Despite the engine problems, the rugged XPB-1 was retained for testing purposes by the navy who eventually replaced the original motors with radials. Still, there was only one built.

Under the tropical skies of the Olongapo Seadrome on Subic Bay, men of Patrol Squadron 101 stand before one of their PBY-4 aircraft. When this photo was taken in late 1941, war clouds were gathering over the western Pacific. In response, VP-101 has hastily camouflaged their aircraft; this is easily seen on the OS2U Kingfisher on the right. Soon, the squadron would be at war. Very few of the men pictured will avoid death or capture in the coming weeks and months.