Flying on the Edge: The Rise and Fall of the Loening Special

Hey, so I found out about this super cool airplane—the Loening Special Racing Monoplane. It’s like a total gem from back in the day. Picture this: the plane, painted in the sleek colors of the U.S. Navy, gleaming under the sunlight as it roared across the skies during the Pulitzer Trophy Race. It was powered by a 300-horsepower Wright-built Hispano-Suiza engine—a beast of an engine for its time. Imagine the sound of it slicing through the air as it pushed the plane to insane speeds of 155-160 miles per hour. And at the controls? Lieutenant B. G. Bradley from the U.S. Marine Corps, cool as a cucumber. Unfortunately, just a mile from the finish line, disaster struck—a busted water connection forced the plane to drop out. Talk about crushing! It was on track to finish in the top four, easy.

Now, the design of this plane was something else. Picture a deep fuselage tapering gracefully to a knife-edge at the back—almost like an arrow. Up front, the engine sat high in the nose with the cylinder blocks boldly exposed above the cowling. Below it, the radiator had this sleek oval opening, channeling air through like a high-tech wind tunnel. If you’ve seen planes like the Napier-engined D.H.16, you’ll get the vibe.

Then there were the wings—oh man, they were totally unique. Compared to the standard two-seater Loening monoplane, these were trimmed down for maximum speed. The trailing edges? Cut away towards the tips to make them razor-sharp. The ailerons, though small, were engineered for precision, with direct control cables running from the joystick. Just imagine Bradley making those tight maneuvers, the plane responding instantly. Instead of those heavy lifting struts, the wings were supported by streamlined steel tubes—simple, elegant, and built for speed.

Let’s talk about the cockpit. Bradley’s seat was nestled low in the fuselage, just his head poking out into the rushing wind. To make sure he could see everything, they added little windows on the sides under the wings. Picture him leaning slightly, scanning the horizon for his competitors as the world blurred past at incredible speeds.

Even the landing gear was a work of art. It was super low-profile, with two vee structures forming a stable base. The axle was faired, and they used rubber suspension to absorb the shocks of landing. At the back, the tail skid hinged right onto the rudder post, giving it this clean, functional look.

Alright, here’s the geeky part I know you’ll love. This plane had a 30-foot wingspan and was 24 feet long. Fully loaded, it weighed 1,850 pounds. Its weight-to-power ratio? A solid 5.5 pounds per horsepower. And the wing loading was 12.5 pounds per square foot. All those numbers add up to one seriously impressive flying machine.

Even though it didn’t finish the race, the Loening Special Racing Monoplane is such a standout in aviation history. Picture it roaring across the finish line in an alternate reality—it embodies that adventurous spirit of the early 20th century. It’s the kind of story that makes you want to dig deeper into the golden age of aviation. Let me know if you’re as hyped about this as I am!