Verville VCP-1
| VCP-1 | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Role | USAAS Pursuit prototype |
| Manufacturer | Engineering Division |
| Designer | Alfred V. Verville |
| First flight | 11 June 1920 |
| Number built | 2 |
| Variants | Verville-Packard R-1 Racer |
The Verville VCP was an American single-engined biplane fighter aircraft of the 1920s. A single example of the VCP-1 was built by the United States Army Air Service's Engineering Division, which was later rebuilt into a successful racing aircraft, while a second, modified fighter was built as the PW-1.
In 1918, Virginius E. Clark, in charge of the Plane Design section of the U.S. Army Air Service's Engineering Division and Alfred V. Verville, who had recently joined the Engineering Division from private industry, started design of a single-seat fighter (known as "pursuit" aircraft to the U.S. Army), the VCP-1 (Verville-Clark Pursuit).
Drawing from the experience of the French and their SPAD S.XIII, the desire was to make a sleeker and more maneuverable fighter. The VCP-1 was powered by a Wright-built 300 hp (220 kW) Hispano-Suiza 8 V-8 engine and had tapered single-bay biplane wings. The fuselage was a monocoque structure constructed of plywood, while the wings were of wood and fabric construction. The engine was cooled with an unusual annular radiator.
Two were built, but only one was flown, making its maiden flight on June 11, 1920. The aircraft demonstrated good performance, reaching 156 mph (251 km/h), but the radical annular radiator was unsuccessful, having to be replaced to a more conventional unit. Because of its performance, it was decided to modify the VCP-1 to a racing aircraft, replacing the Wright-Hispano engine with a 660 hp (490 kW) Packard 1A-2025 V12 engine, becoming the VCP-R (later again rebuilt as the Verville R-1 Racer).
In 1920, work commenced on two new fighter aircraft based on the VCP-1, featuring an easier to build fabric covered steel-tube fuselage instead of the plywood monocoque of the VCP-1. The aircraft retained the tapered wings of the VCP-1 and was powered by a 350 hp (260 kW) Packard 1A-1237 engine, cooled by a tunnel-style radiator located under the engine.
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