Travel Air aircraft built by the Travel Air Company, and after 1929 by that division
of Curtiss-Wright and marketed by the Curtiss-Wright Sales Corporation.
Last revised 9/11/14
This main page for Travel Air aircraft photos and information includes a few featured aircraft and other resources, and has links at the bottom to many more photos.
Travel Air Airplane Brochure
You will enjoy this 1929 Travel Air Company, Division of Curtiss-Wright, brochure from my aviation collection. Click on the small photos to bring up the pages as a pdf. The number in parenthesis after the model is the number of pages in that pdf as you scroll down. They are left to right on the top and then the bottom rows, in the sequence that they appear in the brochure.
1924 Travel Air Model 1, N241, sn 1, "Maiden Wichita"
This is the first Travel Air! It was Model 1, serial number 1. I cropped a close up of the front showing the Curtiss OX-5 engine and the original axle landing gear.
Here is a later shot with a radial engine and later style landing gear. N241 was subsequently restored and returned to its original configuration. It is now owned by the EAA Foundation Museum and is on loan to the Beech Staggerwing Museum where I got some photos in Oct. 2005.
I'm not proud of the lighting on these and regret the brown plastic over the rear cockpit area, but here's what I have.
N241 now has the original type Curtiss OX-5 engine as described here. In this shot we can see the water pump and mag on the rear; and then a closer view of the rocker arm mechanism; another view showing the engine installation; and finally, head on with a good view of the water radiator. The OX-5 is single ignition (one magneto, with one spark plug per cylinder) versus the OXX-6 which is two mags and two spark plugs.
1929 Travel Air 4000 N8413, sn 895
What a classic shot! This old 1929 "Elephant Ear" Travel Air 4000 sprayer is one of many that were used in ag work in the 1940's through 60's. Most likely built with a 220-HP Wright J-5, it has been converted to a 300-HP Lycoming R-680 turning a Hamilton Standard ground adjustable prop, which is most certainly worth more now than the whole airplane was back then. Note the mechanical brakes on those cool 30x5 wheels.
This is the main January photo in Preferred Airparts' 2015 calendar. That's a 450-Stearman duster behind it; 1939 Aeronca 50 or 65 L-series Chief N223?4 under the aileron; and a Cessna 120 or 140 on the right edge.
1926 National Air Tour
Won by Walter Beech in a Travel Air 4000
I've not yet been able to identify Walter Beech's winning #2 but I know it was a Travel Air 4000 with a Wright J-4 engine. (Photo info is: left, and right)
The back of this press photo describes the scene. Here's the roster showing all the entrants and their "ship," and an enlarged view of the resume of results.
