Description
The Gee Bee Model R Super Sportster was a special purpose racing aircraft made by Granville Brothers Aircraft. The aircraft had a very peculiar design, Granville reasoned that a teardrop-shaped fuselage would have lower drag than a straight-tapered one, so the fuselage was wider than the engine at its widest point (at the wing attachment point). The cockpit was located very far aft, just in front of the vertical stabilizer, in order to give the racing pilot better vision while making crowded pylon turns.
The R-1 won the 1932 Thompson Trophy race, piloted by Jimmy Doolittle. Doolittle also set a new world landplane speed record of 296 mph in the Shell Speed Dash. The distinction of a landplane record was noteworthy because, at that time, specialized speed seaplanes outran landplanes. Doolittle has been quoted as saying, "She is the sweetest ship I've ever flown. She is perfect in every respect and the motor is just as good as it was a week ago. It never missed a beat and has lots of stuff in it yet. I think this proves that the Granville brothers up in Springfield build the very best speed ships in America today."
This handcrafted model is painstakingly built from Philippine mahogany by our skilled craftsmen with a wealth of detail and makes a great gift for any veteran, aviation enthusiast or history buff.
- 1/20 Scale Model
- 15 Inch Wingspan
- 10.63 Inch Length
- Material Mahogany Wood