Stearman C1 Sport Commercial

Stearman Aircraft · United States · first flew 1927 · light aircraft

The Stearman C1 Sport Commercial was a single-engine open-cockpit biplane produced by the newly founded Stearman Aircraft Company in the late 1920s for sporting and personal transport use. It established Lloyd Stearman's reputation for clean, capable designs before the company's later fame with military trainers.

Recognition (WEFT)

W — Wings	Low-mounted, straight
E — Engines	1 × piston, nose-mounted
F — Fuselage	7 m fuselage
T — Tail	Conventional

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Spot it by:

Open-cockpit single-engine biplane
Early Stearman commercial design from Wichita
Wire-braced biplane with conventional tail

Conventional 1920s biplane layout with wire-braced wings, an open cockpit, and an inline or radial engine in the nose; the clean fuselage distinguishes it from more utilitarian contemporaries.

Specifications

The Stearman C1 Sport Commercial has a length of 7 m (23 ft).
It has a wingspan of 10.4 m (34 ft).
Its maximum speed is 193 km/h (120 mph).
Typical crew: 1 pilot + 1 passenger.

Figures are for the representative variant described above; marks differ. See how AircraftIQ sources figures.

History

Lloyd Stearman established his eponymous company in Wichita, Kansas in 1926, and the C1 was among its earliest commercial products. The aircraft was aimed at the growing private aviation market of the late 1920s boom years. Stearman Aircraft was subsequently acquired by United Aircraft and Transport Corporation, eventually merging into Boeing.

Variants

The C1 was built in small numbers with minor engine variations; no major production variants are recorded.

Where you'll see it

Purchased by private owners in the United States; very few examples survived the Depression era.

Related aircraft

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