Sujet

Propeller, controllable-pitch, two-blade, Hamilton Standard, metal, Ruth Nichols, 1931. Creator: Hamilton Standard Propellers.

Légende

This controllable-pitch propeller, one of the first produced by Hamilton Standard, represented a major advance in aircraft technology in the early 1930s. It allowed a pilot to adjust the propeller blade's pitch to provide the best performance at different air speeds (similar to changing gears in a car or on a bicycle). On takeoff the pilot chose a lower pitch to make the blade spin faster and provide maximum power. In flight the pilot switched to a higher pitch to make the blade spin slower and conserve fuel. This particular propeller was from a Lockheed Vega airplane owned by the Crosley Radio Corporation and flown by Ruth Nichols. Flying in that airplane in 1931-32, Nichols became the only woman to hold simultaneously the women's international speed, altitude, and distance records for flight. She set the distance record in October 1931 when she flew 1,977 miles between Oakland, California and Louisville, Kentucky. Nichols' records proved the effectiveness of the new controllable-pitch propeller.

Crédit

Photo12/Heritage Images/Heritage Art

Notre référence

HRM21A88_457

Model release

NA

Property release

NA

Licence

Droits gérés

Format disponible

49,9Mo (726,0Ko) / 44,8cm x 27,9cm / 5296 x 3293 (300dpi)

Mots clés

transport transportation technology education country flight color aeroplane aircraft plane airplane location century thirties aviation propeller air Transport United States of America Colour Smithsonian Institution 1930s National Air and Space Museum Educational Institution 20th century air and space museum propellor Lockheed American America USA scientific institution object united states Heritage Art metal airscrew Nichols Ruth NASM PROPULSION-Propellers & Impellers Powel Crosley Crosley Powel Powel Crosley Junior Powel Crosley Jr Lockheed Vega Hamilton Standard Propellers Hamilton Standard Ruth Rowland Nichols Ruth Rowland Ruth Nichols