Macchi M.33 powered by D-12 engine

It is interesting to note that the Macchi M.33 in the 1925 race was powered by a 1923 Curtiss D-12 engine rated at 507 horsepower. And it was also the last flying boat to compete in the Schneider races.

Silent film of the 1925 Schneider Trophy Race

A silent film of the 1925 Schneider Trophy Race





The 1925 race was flown off Bay Shore Park, Maryland, (near Baltimore). Lt. James Doolittle, USA, flying the Army’s entry, a Curtiss R3C-2, was the winner. The U.S. was represented by both Army and Navy entries. According to The Navy's Schneider Cup Racers by Lieutenant Colonel Robert H. Rankin, U.S. Marine Corps, the Army airplane, was the same landplane (designated R3C-1), which had won the Pulitzer Races a few weeks previous to the Schneider contest. Converted to a sea plane by the removal of its wheeled landing gear and the addition of twin floats, it was flown at an average speed of 232.573 m.p.h. to win the contest. An equal-span biplane with a span of 22 feet and a length of 20 feet, two inches, it was powered by a 619-h.p. Curtiss V-1400 liquid-cooled engine.

The British entry was a Gloster Napier III and Italian was a Macchi M.33 Flying Boat.

Curtiss V 1400 engine of 1925

"The Curtiss V 1400 is similar in type its predecessor the D 12 The V 1400 to meet the requirements for an engine of about 500 horsepower of minimum weight with great reliability The bore is 4.875 inches stroke 6.15 inches compression ratio 5.5 to 1 The engine is rated at 510 horsepower at 2,100 rpm Its weight is 660 pounds or 1.3 pounds per horsepower However the engine is said to deliver 619 horsepower at 2,500 rpm or one horsepower for each 1.07 pounds of weight Even at 1.3 pounds of weight per horsepower it is the lightest engine of its power in successful use at present It is stated that this engine is 75 pounds lighter than its nearest competitor in the 500 horsepower class Both the United States Army and Navy racing planes entered in the Pulitzer and Schneider cup races of 1925 were powered with this engine and new world's speed records were established in both races." Text from the The Purdue Engineer, Volumes 18-22 - Page 4 , AIRCRAFT ENGINES Villiam A Bevan Major Air Service Reserve.

Curtiss R3C-2

The Curtiss R3C-2 flown by U.S. Army Lt. James Doolittle took first place in the Schneider Trophy Race of 1925 with an average speed of 374 km/h (232.17 mph). The plane had a Curtiss V-1400 Engine, a V-type, 12 cylinder, water-cooled engine rated at 665 hp.