Lockheed Model 14 Super Electra

The Lockheed Model 14 Super Electra was a civil cargo and passenger aircraft built by the Lockheed Aircraft Corporation during the late 1930s. The design was a scaled-up version of the original Electra; the design team was lead by Don Palmer. The first Model 14 flew on July 29, 1937, piloted by Marshall Headle. Lockheed built a total of 114 Model 14s; another 119 were built under license in Japan.

The Model 14 entered commercial service with Northwest Airlines in October 1937. Aircraft were exported for use by Aer Lingus of Ireland, BOAC of Britain, Union Airways and National Airways Corporation (NAC) of New Zealand.

Howard Hughes flew a Super Electra (NX18973) on a global circumnavigation flight. With four crewmates (Harry Connor, copilot and navigator; Tom Thurlow, navigator; Richard Stoddart, radio operator; and Ed Lund, flight engineer), the plane took off from Floyd Bennett Field in New York on July 10, 1938. The flight, which circled the narrower northern latitudes, passed through Paris, Moscow, Omsk, Yakutsk, Fairbanks, Alaska, and Minneapolis, before returning to New York on July 14. The total distance was 14,672 mi (23,612 km).

The Model 14 was the basis for development of the Lockheed Hudson maritime reconnaissance and light bomber aircraft operated by the Royal Air Force, USAAF, United States Navy and many others during the Second World War.

Specifications (Model 14-WF62 Super Electra)

General characteristics

• Crew: two pilots
• Capacity: 12 passengers
• Length: 44 ft 4 in (13.52 m)
• Wingspan: 65 ft 6 in (19.97 m)
• Height: 11 ft 5 in (3.48 m)
• Wing area: 551 ft² (51.2 m²)
• Empty: 10,750 lb (4,886 kg)
• Loaded: 15,650 lb (7,114 kg)
• Maximum takeoff: 17,500 lb (7,955 kg)
• Powerplant: 2x Wright SGR-1820-F62 radial engines, 760 hp (567 kW) each

Performance

• Maximum speed: 250 mph (402 km/h)
• Range: 2,125 miles (3,420 km)
• Service ceiling: 24,500 ft (7,649 m)
• Rate of climb: ft/min ( m/min)
• Wing loading: 28 lb/ft² (139 kg/m²)
• Power/Mass: 0.10 hp/lb (0.16 kW/kg)