From a distance, those who are unfamiliar with World War II trainers might mistake an N3N for a Stearman. But take a closer look, and you can easily discern how not to mistake one for the other. The 2020 fly-in at Antique Airfield (IA27) in Blakesburg, Iowa, offered a perfect opportunity to do just that — there were two N3Ns and multiple Stearmans parked side by side.
At first glance, the most visible differences are apparent: The N3N is larger than a Stearman and has four ailerons, stock Stearmans have only two. While both biplanes have balanced rudders, an N3N’s rudder is less rounded than a Stearman’s. On the nose, the N3N’s Wright engine has a front exhaust and the Stearman’s Continental engine has a rear exhaust.
One particular difference that can easily be noted on a fly-by are the gear legs — the N3N has slender legs with cross bracing, while the Stearman has thicker, streamlined legs. There are plenty of other differences, as well, including many that are not readily visible.
Bill Clifford, an instrument rated private pilot who first soloed a Cub in 1965, was at the fly-in and happy to answer questions about the N3N. Bill and Ace Prechtl of Long Island, New York, co-own Serendipity (N44907), a 1940 N3N-3 that Ace restored several decades ago.
“I became partners with Ace about two years ago because he was getting on in years and was thinking of selling it. So I put a deal together so he could remain an owner and fly it, and this way it wouldn’t be leaving the airport. I would have hated to see it go because I spent quite a few hours in this airplane with Ace,” says Bill, adding with a laugh, “the Wright R-760 has 235 horsepower, so this is why we put ‘Stearman on Steroids’ on the nose, because the Stearmans only had 220 horsepower!”
Navy Built
The Navy built rigid airships in the 1930s, and some were used as aerial aircraft carriers.
“But after the wreck of the U.S.S. Macon in 1935, the Navy got out of the dirigible program and decided to use the remaining materials to build aircraft,” says Bill. “So the engineers designed the N3N and the Naval Aircraft Factory in Philadelphia manufactured this entire airplane. It wasn’t built by a private company, it was built by the government.
“If you look inside the fuselage, it looks like a bridge truss because it’s all material left over from the dirigible program. The fuselage is put together with bolts and rivets. The only round tubes you’ll find are the push-pull tubes for the elevator and the pivots on the control sticks in the front and back cockpits. The Navy even built the R-760 engines under license from Wright, and they built the propellers under license from Hamilton Standard. The Navy used the Wright engines on the dirigibles, so they built a lot of them.”
The Navy N3N is thought to be the only World War II primary trainer that was used as a trainer for both land and sea operations. One large float could be installed in place of the main landing gear, along with lower wingtip pontoons.
“The Navy trained students to fly seaplanes in the N3N. They would take off on a catapult off a ship, and then they would be recovered at sea. They would land in the water and taxi close to the ship,” elaborates Bill, “then the aviator had to climb up and grab the ship’s hoist and attach it to the lifting rings on the upper wing. Then they would hoist it up on the ship. So the early Navy flyers learned how to fly both seaplanes and land planes in the N3N.”
All told, nearly 1,000 N3Ns were produced, and numerous naval aviators earned their “Wings of Gold” in them. The N3N-3s were built by the Navy from 1940 to 1942, replacing the earlier N3N-1s. The N3N was notably the last open-cockpit biplane to serve in the U.S. military. It was used until 1959 at the Naval Academy at Annapolis, and officially retired by the Navy in 1961.
The N3N-3 has a wingspan of 34 feet, measures about 25 feet, 6 inches from nose to tail, and has a height of about 11 feet. It has an empty weight of 2,090 pounds and a gross weight of 2,792. Maximum speed is 126 mph, and stall speed is about 50 mph. It holds 3-¾ gallons of oil, 45 gallons of fuel, and has a range of about 470 miles.
The biplane is equipped with a hand-inertia starter, a locking tail wheel, and adjustable rudder pedals. The seat can be lowered or raised.
The N3N is flown solo from the front cockpit, unless a complete set of engine controls are installed in the rear cockpit. There are push-pull controls for the ailerons and elevator and the rudder is cable operated. There are ground adjustable aileron and rudder tabs, and the elevator trim tabs are adjustable in flight. The upper wing is all one piece, and Bill says, “that’s what scares me the most! That long wing with those aluminum spars and ribs — if I break this airplane, how am I going to fix it?”
A couple of other features of the N3N’s construction enhanced its role of primary flight training. The lower wingtip sections were designed, according to Bill, “as breakaways, so if you were in a training exercise and you ground looped the airplane, you could easily replace the tips. It’s very easy to ground loop because the wings are long and low to the ground, so it doesn’t take too many degrees off horizontal to cause a scratch! We do have a spare set of wingtips, just in case we break these. The landing gear is also a breakaway. If you crash into something below the pivot on the gear leg, that will snap these points here at the oleo struts — they can take the compression loads but not a shear load. So the gear is made to break, which would typically absorb some of the impact of the crash. I recently purchased a complete landing gear, just in case.”
Another feature facilitates fuselage inspection and maintenance: Large removable metal panels cover the left side of the fuselage.
“I can take every panel off this airplane in 20 minutes, put them over in the corner of the hangar, and wash them down and then inspect everything in the fuselage, front to back,” says Bill, adding, “I want to help keep it in safe condition. I fly my grandchildren in this airplane.”
Long Island to Blakesburg
Bill and Ace keep their N3N at Bayport Aerodrome Airport (23N), which is under the Class C airspace of Long Island MacArthur Airport (KISP).
“But it’s no hassle to fly in if you’re below 1,500 feet in the outer ring and then below 700 feet when you come into our space. You don’t have to talk to anybody. You can come in any kind of old airplane you want,” explains Bill. “We have two beautiful grass runways — they’re parallel, and only one is open at a time — the town changes it every six months.”
Bill cruised around 80 mph for the duration of the nearly 900-nautical-mile flight to Iowa. The first day, he enjoyed a tailwind that resulted in a groundspeed of 89 mph en route from Bayport to Lowell, Indiana.
“We made a couple of fuel stops that day, and then the second day, we had expected to make it to Blakesburg because it was only about 230 miles,” recounts Bill. “Unfortunately, the weather had other plans for us! So we wound up at Mercer County Airport (C00) after getting away from very low clouds and storms. Garrett Lindell, the man who runs the ag spraying business there, put us up for the night. He moved this million dollar airplane into the back of the hangar and put our N3N in there and closed the door. But he left everything unlocked for us and put us up in the ag pilot quarters up above the big hangar, and he even gave us a pickup truck to go into town. The next day we took off early and made it to Blakesburg. We averaged a fuel burn of about 12.5 gph at 1,750 rpm, cruising at 2,500 feet — that’s a lot better than I thought it was going to be!”
Bill, 77, cheerfully proclaims why he makes the journey to Blakesburg from Long Island: “I’ll tell you, it’s a tough trip in these old airplanes! But it’s nice to come to a place where you can just fly around all day if you feel like it, or have a beer at night and talk with everybody here and see your old friends — that’s what it’s all about!”
“And the N3N is just a wonderful airplane — the controls are all balanced so it handles great, it flies straight and level so nice, and it’s fully aerobatic,” he continues. “It’s an incredible airplane!”
James Douglas says
There are a couple of run out N3N’s for sale right now. I am thinking of buying one for a once in a lifetime low and slow trip around the USA.
The problem is the useful load. I am about 210 and my wife about 230. Not little people. With bags for a long trip I am not sure the N3N can haul us. A Travel Air 4000 has something like a 900 pound load…
What I need to find is some people to talk with, not in writing, that can advise on the control of the N#n at Max loading.
James (JDD@8bells.com)
JEFFREY Houghton says
Probably one of the better written articles on the N3N in recent years. As our family is caretaker of one for over 50 years now. Its in our blood to preserve the type and its history.
Glad to see ACE is still flying to the south of us on Long Island.
-Scott Tennant / Scott T's Ag-Flyin' says
I’ve recently been handed an N3N-3 from my Uncle (serial #1808). It is a P&W 985 duster converted back to the two-holer. A little bit of TLC, top wing recover, engine and accessories overhauled she’ll be good to go. I’m excited to be a part of this aircraft legacy later this Summer.
JEFFREY Houghton says
Scott,
I have a group on FB. ” Navy N3N Owners & Restorers Assn.” Look us up and I’ll get you on.
A Hirzel says
Great article. Anyone looking for an N3N project or flying plane ought to give Bill Hirzel a call. See his projects and contact details at:
https://www.n3naircraft.parts/n3n-project-3
Bob Besal says
“It’s an incredible airplane!” Yes it is! As a former N3N-3 owner, please accept my thanks for sharing this article with us.
Alex+Nelon says
It’s great to read this story about my friends from Bayport.. Bill and Ace welcomed me, a Southern kinda fellow, into their fold and made a home for me while I was based on Long Island bouncing around the world in a corporate jet. I’ll never forget their kindness and their painless pokes after I had a prop strike in my Cub. Bayport Aerodrome is a community of good natured airplane people a bit off the beaten path and it’s definitely worth a visit.