View source for Curtiss P-6 Hawk

{{short description|Fighter aircraft in use by the US Army Air Corps 1929-1937}}
<!-- This article is a part of [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Aircraft]]. Please see [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Aircraft/page content]] for recommended layout. -->
{{Infobox aircraft
  |name = P-6 Hawk
  |image = File:Curtiss P-6E Hawk 071107-F-1234S-004.jpg
  |caption = Curtiss P-6E Hawk at the [[National Museum of the U.S. Air Force]]
  |type = Fighter
  |national_origin= United States
  |manufacturer = [[Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company]]
  |designer = 
  |first_flight =
  |introduction = 1927
  |retired = 
  |status =
  |primary_user = [[United States Army Air Corps]]
  |more_users = 
  |produced = 1929
  |number_built = 70 including modified P-1s
  |unit cost = US$13,000
  |developed_from = [[Curtiss P-1 Hawk]]
  |variants = 
}}

The '''Curtiss P-6 Hawk''' is an American single-engine biplane fighter introduced into service in the late 1920s with the [[United States Army Air Corps]] and operated until the late 1930s prior to the outbreak of [[World War II]].

==Design and development==
The [[Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company]] (which became the [[Curtiss-Wright|Curtis-Wright Corporation]] (15 July 1929) supplied the USAAC with P-6s beginning in 1929.

==Operational history==
[[File:Curtiss P-6 Hawk.jpg|thumb|Curtiss P-6E Hawk of the 17th Pursuit Squadron]]

A fast and highly maneuverable aircraft for its time, the XP-6 prototype took second place in the 1927 U.S. National Air Races, and the XP-6A with wing surface [[radiator (engine cooling)|radiator]]s took first place, at 201&nbsp;mph (323&nbsp;km/h). The P-6 was flown in a variety of paint schemes depending on the squadron, the most famous being the "Snow Owl" [[Nose art|markings]] of the [[17th Weapons Squadron|17th Pursuit Squadron]] based at [[Selfridge Field]] near [[Detroit, Michigan]].

The P-6Es served between 1932 and 1937 with the 1st Pursuit Group (17th and 94th PS) at Selfridge, and with the 8th Pursuit Group (33rd PS) at Langley Field, Virginia. Numerous accidents claimed at least 27 of the 46 aircraft delivered. As the P-6Es became obsolete, instead of receiving depot overhauls, they were allowed to wear out in service and were scrapped or sold. At least one survived into 1942 in [[United States Army Air Forces]] service.<ref>Baugher, Joe. [http://www.joebaugher.com/usaf_fighters/p6.html "Curtiss P-6 Hawk."] ''American Military Aircraft.''  Retrieved: 1 October 2011.</ref>

In 1932, Capt. Ruben C. Moffat flew a P-6 converted with a supercharged Conqueror engine on a record-breaking flight. He flew from Dayton, Ohio to Washington, D.C. at a speed of approximately 266&nbsp;mph, at an altitude of 25,000&nbsp;ft.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=g_EDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA591 "Huge Supercharger Drives Plane to New Record."] ''Popular Mechanics,'' April 1932, p. 591.</ref>

==Variants==
[[File:Ray Wagner Collection Image (16624852082).jpg|thumb|Curtiss P-6A Hawk, with deeper fuselage and new oleo-pneumatic landing gear]]
[[File:Curtiss XP-17.jpg|thumb|The XP-17]]

;XP-6: '''Model 34P''', modified from a [[Curtiss P-1 Hawk|P-1]] with a [[Curtiss V-1570]]-17 Conqueror [[Piston engine|engine]]
;XP-6A: '''Model 34K''', same as XP-6 but with untapered wings and wing radiators to reduce drag
;P-6A: 18 ordered by the U.S. Army, nine were fitted with Prestone- rather than water-cooled [[V-1570]] engines
;XP-6B: [[P-1 Hawk|P-1]] converted to take the [[V-1670]] engine
;P-6C: cancelled
;XP-6D: XP-6B converted to take a [[Turbocharger|turbocharged]] V-1570-C
;P-6D: P-6As, (six of the seven surviving), re-engined in 1932 with turbocharged V-1570-C installed in 1932
;XP-6E: '''Model 35''', also designated '''Y1P-22''', ordered in July 1931 as P-6E prototype 
;P-6E: 46 delivered in 1931–1932, equipped the 17th and 33rd Pursuit Squadrons
;XP-6F: Modified XP-6E with a [[supercharger]] and an enclosed cockpit
;XP-6G: P-6E with a V-1570F
[[File:Curtiss P-6S Cuban Hawk Ray Wagner Collection Image (16397542259).jpg|thumb|Curtiss P-6S Cuban Hawk]]
;XP-6H: P-6E with 4 × .30&nbsp;in (7.62&nbsp;mm) machine guns mounted in the wings
;P-6S: '''Hawk I''', three sold to Cuba with the 450&nbsp;hp (336&nbsp;kW) [[Pratt & Whitney R-1340|Pratt & Whitney R-1340 Wasp]] radial, and one sold to Japan as the '''Japan Hawk''' with the V-1570 inverted Vee piston engine
;P-11: Three ordered with the [[Curtiss H-1640]] Chieftain engine of 600&nbsp;hp (447&nbsp;kW), two were completed with the V-1570 and redesignated ''P-6D''
;XP-17: P-1 used as a testbed for the experimental [[Wright V-1470]] air-cooled inverted vee
;[[Curtiss YP-20|YP-20]]: P-11 converted with a [[Wright Cyclone]] radial
[[File:Curtiss XP-23 32-278 Ray Wagner Collection Image (16573634405).jpg|thumb|Curtiss XP-23]]
;XP-21: Two conversions of the [[P-1 Hawk|XP-3A]] used to test the 300&nbsp;hp (224&nbsp;kW) [[Pratt & Whitney R-985|Pratt & Whitney R-985 Wasp Junior]] radial, one became the '''XP-21A''' when modified with the R-975, and the other was converted to the [[P-1 Hawk|P-1F]] standard 
;[[XP-22 Hawk|XP-22]]: Temporary designation for a P-6A used to test new radiator installations for the V-1570-23 and converted back to a ''P-6A''
;XP-23: '''Model 63''', unfinished P-6E with light alloy [[monocoque]] fuselage, improved tail, and a turbocharged G1V-1570C with a geared propeller and the turbocharger removed. Later redesignated '''YP-23'''

==Operators==
;{{China as ROC}}
*[[Republic of China Air Force]] operated 50 ''Hawk II''.<ref>{{cite web|last=Gustavsson|first=Håkan|title=Curtiss Hawks in the Chinese Air Force|url=http://surfcity.kund.dalnet.se/hawk_china.htm|work=Biplane Fighter Aces from the Second World War|access-date=30 January 2013}}</ref>
;{{CUB}}
*[[Cuban Air Force]] received three P-6S fighters with the 450&nbsp;hp (336&nbsp;kW) Wasp radial engine.
;{{JPN}}
*Japan bought one P-6S, possibly updated with a Conqueror engine.
;{{flag|Dutch East Indies}}
*[[Royal Netherlands East Indies Army Air Force]] received eight examples of a P-6D with the Conqueror engine in 1930, another six were license-built by [[Aviolanda]] in 1931 and sent to Dutch East Indies as well. Three P-6 were lost before war: two in midair collision on 27 February 1936 and one probably after crash-landing 5 February 1935.
;{{flag|USA|1912}}
*[[United States Army Air Corps]]
;{{BOL}}
* [[Bolivian Air Force]] used the P-6S during the [[Chaco War]]. On 22 December 1932 a P-6 Hawk from Fortín Vitriones attacked Paraguayan gunboat [[ARP Tacuary]] which was anchored at Bahía Negra near ({{Coord|20.23|S|58.16694|W|}})

==Surviving aircraft==
[[File:Curtiss P-6E Hawk USAF.jpg|thumb|Curtiss P-6E Hawk at the National Museum of the United States Air Force]]

A single P-6E survives. The aircraft was donated to the [[Smithsonian Institution|Smithsonian]] [[National Air and Space Museum]] by Mr. Edward S. Perkins of [[Anniston, Alabama]] and restored by the School of Aeronautics at [[Purdue University]]. It is on indefinite loan and display at the [[National Museum of the United States Air Force]] at [[Wright-Patterson AFB]] near [[Dayton, Ohio]]. Originally s/n 32-261 and assigned to the 33rd Pursuit Squadron, it was dropped from records at Tampa Field, Florida, in September 1939. It was restored and marked as 32-240 of 17th Pursuit Squadron, missing on a flight over [[Lake Erie]] on 24 September 1932.<ref>{{cite web|title=Curtiss P-6E Hawk|url=https://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/Visit/Museum-Exhibits/Fact-Sheets/Display/Article/195997/curtiss-p-6e-hawk/|website=National Museum of the US Air Force|access-date=21 May 2018}}</ref>{{Failed verification|date=May 2018}}

==Specifications (P-6E)==
{{Aircraft specs
|ref=Curtiss Aircraft 1907–1947<ref name=Bowers>{{cite book |last1=Bowers |first1=Peter M. |title=Curtiss aircraft, 1907-1947 |date=1979 |publisher=Putnam |location=London |isbn=0370100298 |pages=253–266}}</ref>
|prime units?=imp
<!--
        General characteristics
-->
|crew=1
|length ft=22
|length in=7
|length note=
|span ft=31
|span in=6
|span note=
|height ft=8
|height in=11
|height note=
|wing area sqft=252
|wing area note=
|aspect ratio=<!-- sailplanes -->
|airfoil=Clark Y<ref name="Selig">{{cite web |last1=Lednicer |first1=David |title=The Incomplete Guide to Airfoil Usage |url=https://m-selig.ae.illinois.edu/ads/aircraft.html |website=m-selig.ae.illinois.edu |access-date=16 April 2019}}</ref>
|empty weight lb=2715
|empty weight note=
|gross weight lb=3436
|gross weight note=
|max takeoff weight lb=
|max takeoff weight note=
|fuel capacity=
|more general=
<!--
        Powerplant
-->
|eng1 number=1
|eng1 name=[[Curtiss V-1750C Conqueror]]
|eng1 type=V-12 liquid-cooled piston engine
|eng1 hp=700

|prop blade number=3
|prop name=propeller
|prop dia ft=<!-- propeller aircraft -->
|prop dia in=<!-- propeller aircraft -->
|prop dia note=
<!--
        Performance
-->
|max speed mph=193
|max speed note=
|cruise speed mph=165
|cruise speed note=
|stall speed mph=
|stall speed note=
|never exceed speed mph=
|never exceed speed note=
|range miles=244
|range note=
|combat range miles=
|combat range note=
|ferry range miles=
|ferry range note=
|endurance=<!-- if range unknown -->
|ceiling ft=23900
|ceiling note=
|g limits=<!-- aerobatic -->
|roll rate=<!-- aerobatic -->
|climb rate ftmin=2480
|climb rate note=
|time to altitude=
|wing loading lb/sqft=
|wing loading note=
|fuel consumption lb/mi=
|power/mass=
|thrust/weight=

|more performance=
<!--
        Armament
-->
|guns=  2 × {{cvt|0.30|in}} machine-guns

|avionics=
}}

==See also==
{{aircontent
|related=
*[[Sauser P6E]], a homebuilt 82% replica also known as the P6E-QC.
|similar aircraft=
|lists=
* [[List of military aircraft of the United States]]
* [[List of fighter aircraft]]
}}

==References==

===Notes===
{{Reflist}}

===Bibliography===
* Bowers, Peter M. "The Great Fighter Fly-Offs: Curtiss vs. Boeing". ''Wings'', Volume 31, Number 1, February 2001. 
* Eden, Paul and Soph Moeng, eds. ''The Complete Encyclopedia of World Aircraft''. London: Amber Books Ltd., 2002, {{ISBN|0-7607-3432-1}}.
*{{cite magazine|last=Hagedorn|first=Dan|title=Curtiss Types in Latin America|magazine=[[Air Enthusiast]]|date=March–May 1992|issue=45 |pages=61–77 |issn=0143-5450}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Curtiss P-6 Hawk}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20071118182832/http://www.af.mil/history/aircraft.asp?dec=&pid=123006531 Air Force Link]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070501083656/http://aeroweb.brooklyn.cuny.edu/specs/curtiss/p-6e.htm Aviation Enthusiast Corner]
* [https://archive.today/20130415064637/http://www.marchfield.org/p6.htm March Field Air Museum]
* https://web.archive.org/web/20160304035010/http://www.outerzone.co.uk/plan_files_05/5695/Curtiss_Hawk_16in_Comet_1935.pdf
* [http://www.outerzone.co.uk/plan_details.asp?ID=5695 Curtiss P-6E model plan]

{{Curtiss aircraft}}
{{USAF fighters}}
{{Wright Field project numbers}}

[[Category:Curtiss aircraft|P-06]]
[[Category:Single-engined tractor aircraft]]
[[Category:1920s United States fighter aircraft|Curtiss P-06]]
[[Category:Biplanes]]
[[Category:Aircraft first flown in 1927]]
[[Category:Aircraft with fixed conventional landing gear]]