Sikorsky designed the S-40 in response to a request from Juan Trippe, president of Pan American Airways, for a larger passenger carrying airplane. The S-40 could carry 38 passengers, a significant increase over the S-38's eight passengers. Wind tunnel testing of the S-40 started in October 1928, and models of the hull were tested in April 1929.[1] The aircraft featured a pantry with an electric refrigerator and stove as well as a smoking lounge with book-ended mahogany wood paneling. Six life rafts were carried.[2]
Despite a significant size increase over the preceding S-38, the S-40 design was a conservative iteration of the smaller aircraft;[3]:62 the numerous flying wires and strut braces that were used in the exterior support framework caused significant drag and prompted Charles Lindbergh, retained as a consultant for Pan American, to tell Sikorsky "it would be like flying a forest through the air."[4][5]:57 Only three were built as Sikorsky began designing the more advanced and streamlined S-42 shortly after the S-40 entered service,[3]:62–63 based partly on input from Lindbergh.[5]:57 All three S-40s were built by the Vought-Sikorsky Aircraft Division of the United Aircraft in Stratford, Connecticut.
The first test flight occurred on August 6, 1931.[6][7] The first aircraft was christened American Clipper by Lou Henry Hoover, wife of President Herbert Hoover, on October 12, 1931 at NAS Anacostia;[8] after its christening, American Clipper flew around Washington, D.C.[9]
In 1935, all three aircraft were upgraded and re-designated as the Sikorsky S-40A. Upgrades included replacing the original 575hp (429kW) Pratt & Whitney R-1860 Hornet B engines with smaller displacement but more powerful supercharged 660hp (490kW) R-1690 Hornet T2D1 engines,[10] eliminating the landing gear, and increasing the maximum weight slightly. Another source states the landing gear was removed soon after the type certificate was issued.[11]
Operational history
Passenger carrying service was initiated on November 19, 1931, with a S-40 piloted by Charles Lindbergh and Basil Rowe, flying from Miami, Florida to the Panama Canal Zone with stops at Cienfuegos, Cuba; Kingston, Jamaica, and Barranquilla, Colombia. Igor Sikorsky, the aircraft's designer, was on board as a passenger; during that trip, Sikorsky and Lindbergh began working on concepts that were used in the succeeding S-42.[5]:57
The S-40 was Pan American's first large flying boat. American Clipper served as the flagship of Pan Am's clipper fleet and this aircraft model was the first to earn the popular designation of "Clipper" or "Pan Am Clipper".[12] The three S-40s served without incident during their civilian lives, flying a total of over 10 million miles.
They were retired around 1940 and turned over to the US Navy during World War II, who used them as trainers for four-engined flight instruction. Under Navy service, the aircraft were designated Sikorsky RS-4.[13] All three of the S-40s were eventually scrapped, starting in 1943.
Sikorsky S-40 aircraft of Pan American Airways[14][15][16]
Name
Image
Registration
Delivered
Left service
Notes
Ref.
American Clipper
NC80V
October 12, 1931
Christened by Lou Henry Hoover on October 12, 1931 at NAS Anacostia. Acquired by Navy in April 1942. Damaged beyond repair on April 3, 1943.
Knapp, Lewis G. (2002). "2. Industry at the River". Stratford and the Sea. Charleston, South Carolina: Arcadia Publishing. pp.37–66. ISBN0-7385-2399-2. Retrieved 26 March 2020.
Gandt, Robert L. (1991). "10: The Flying Forest". China Clipper: The Age of the Great Flying Boats. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN978-1-61251-424-6. Retrieved 26 March 2020.
Rankin, Robert H. (September 1935). "The Marvelous History of the Pan American Airways". Popular Aviation. Vol.XVII, no.3. pp.154–156, 200–201. Retrieved 27 March 2020. After securing a license as both a flying boat and an amphibian, the wheel gear was removed from the machine and the "American Clipper", as well as its sister ships "Caribbean Clipper", and the "Southern Clipper", became full-fledged flying boats.
Rankin, Robert H. (December 1937). "The Story of the Amphibian". Popular Aviation. Vol.XXI, no.6. pp.11–14, 70. Retrieved 27 March 2020.
Campbell, Douglas E. (2018). "37854/37855 - Sikorsky RS-4". VPNavy! USN, USMC, USCG and NATS Patrol Aircraft Lost or Damaged During World War II - Listed by Bureau Number. p.321. ISBN978-1-387-88879-5. Retrieved 27 March 2020.
"Sikorsky S-40". Pan Am Clipper Flying Boats. Retrieved 23 March 2020.
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