- Grumman FF
infobox Aircraft
name =FF / SF "Fifi"
type =Naval fighter
manufacturer =Grumman
caption =
designer =Leroy Grumman
first flight =29 December 1931
introduced =June 1933
retired =1940
primary user =United States Navy
more users =Spanish Republican Air Force Royal Canadian Air Force
produced = 1932-1934
number built = 120
unit cost =
developed from=
variants with their own articles =Grumman F2F The Grumman G-5 design was an American biplane
fighter aircraft operated by theUnited States Navy during the 1930s, designated FF-1.Eden and Moeng 2002, p. 762.] It was the first Navy aircraft with retractable landing gear.Winchester 2002, p. 21.]Design and development
The FF-1 was
Grumman ’s first aircraft design for the US Navy. The prototype XFF-1 (serial number A8878) was built to a contract placed on22 April 1931 , first flying on29 December of that year.Cacutt 1989, p. 155-162.] Swanborough and Bowers 1976, p. 195.] A two-seat design, with an enclosed cockpit, fuselage of all-metal construction, and wings covered largely with fabric. The XFF-1 was powered initially by a 616 hp (459 kW)Wright R-1820 -E Cycloneradial engine , it achieved 195 mph (314 km/h) during service trials, and when the original engine was exchanged for a 750 hp (560 kW)Wright R-1820 -F Cyclone the XFF-1 reached a top speed of 201 mph (323 km/h), faster than any US Navy fighter in service at the time.A production order was placed for 27 two-seat FF-1 (G-5) on
19 December 1932 . Meanwhile Grumman had completed a second prototype (serial number A8940) to a two-seat scout configuration as the XSF-1 (G-6). Subsequently 33 production SF-1s were ordered based on the two-seat configuration. They differed from the FF-1 principally in having revised internal equipment and in being powered by R-1820-84 Cyclones instead of the R-1820-78 model installed in the fighter version. One XSF-2 was also completed, this having aPratt & Whitney R-1830 Wasp engine in place of the Cyclone.Operational history
FF-1s were delivered to Fighter Squadron VF-5B of the USS Lexington beginning in June of 1933. In service the FF-1 became familiarly known as the "Fifi". Delivery of SF-1s started in
30 March 1934 , and they also served aboard the "Lexington", with Scout Squadron VS-3B.Both the FF-1 and SF-1 were withdrawn from first-line US Navy squadrons by the end of 1936 and reallocated to reserve units, most of the FF-1s still being in service late in 1940. Later, 22 surviving FF-1s were modified with dual controls, redesignated FF-2 and used for instructional duties.Green and Swanborough 1988, p. 259.] The Canadian Car & Foundry Co acquired a manufacturing licence for the FF-1, of which it completed a total of 57, some of them assembled from US-built components. Although initially rejected as a fighter by the
Royal Canadian Air Force as outdated and too slow, with the advent of war, the last 15 of the CC&F production batch were accepted as the Goblin I. The aircraft type served with the RCAF from17 September 1940 until21 April 1942 . "A" Flight of No. 118 RCAF Sqn was equipped with Goblins at Rockcliffe inOttawa , and subsequently became No. 118 (Fighter) Sqn., later stationed atDartmouth, Nova Scotia where the Goblins for a time constituted the sole fighter force on the east coast. [ [http://www.rcaf.com/aircraft/fighters/goblin/index.php Grumman Goblin] ]Prior to this RCAF use, a single example was delivered to
Nicaragua , and, allegedly, one toJapan ; the remaining 40 were ostensibly purchased by the Turkish government but were in fact received by theSpanish Republican Air Force in 1937. Eight survived the civil war. [Fitzsimons 1967/1969, p. 932.]Operators
*:
Royal Canadian Air Force
* :Imperial Japanese Navy , one Canadian-built example under designation AXG
*
*Spanish Republican Air Force
*:United States Navy Variants
;XFF-1: single prototype, serial number A8878;FF-1: 27 built, two-seat U.S. Navy carrier-borne fighter;FF-2: 25 of the original FF-1 fighters converted by the
Naval Aircraft Factory with dual controls to serve as fighter trainers;XSF-1: second prototype, serial number A8940;SF-1: 33 built, two-seat U.S. Navy carrier-borne scout;XSF-2: one aircraft, an SF-1 airframe with the 650 hp (485 kW)Pratt & Whitney R-1535 -72 Twin Wasp Junior engine driving aHamilton Standard propeller;G23 Goblin: 57 FF-1s built under licence by the Canadian Car & Foundry Company;XSBF-1: the XSF-2 airframe modified with a triangular frame beneath the engine mounting to carry one 500 lb (227 kg) or two 100 lb (45 kg bombs, flown18 February 1936 pecifications (FF-1)
Aircraft specification
plane or copter?=plane
jet or prop?=prop
ref="The Complete Encyclopedia of World Aircraft"
crew= 1
span main= 34 ft 6 in
span alt= 10.52 m
length main= 24 ft 6 in
length alt= 7.47 m
height main= 11 ft 1 in
height alt= 3.38 m
area main= 310 ft2
area alt= 28.8 m2
empty weight main= 3,098 lb
empty weight alt= 1,405 kg
loaded weight main=
loaded weight alt=
max takeoff weight main= 4,677 lb
max takeoff weight alt=2,121 kg
engine (prop)=Wright R-1820 -78 Cyclone
type of prop=radial engine
number of props= 1
power main= 700 hp
power alt= 520 kW
max speed main= 207 mph at 4,000 ft
max speed alt= 333 km/h
ceiling main= 22,100 ft
ceiling alt= 6,735 m
range main= 685 mi
range alt= 1,100 km
climb rate main= 1,667 ft/min
climb rate alt= 508 m/min
loading main=
loading alt=
power/mass main=
power/mass alt=
armament=
*2× 0.30 in (7.62 mm)M1919 Browning machine gun s
*1× 100 lb (45 kg) bombReferences
Notes
Bibliography
* Cacutt, Len, ed. "Grumman Single-Seat Biplane Fighters." "Great Aircraft of the World". London: Marshall Cavendish, 1989. ISBN 1-85435-250-4.
* Fitzsimons, Bernard, ed. "The Illustrated Encyclopedia of the 20th Century Weapons and Warfare". New York: Purnell & Sons Ltd., 1967/1969, ISBN 0-83936-175-0.
* Green, William and Swanborough, Gordon. "The Complete Book of Fighters". New York: Barnes & Noble Inc., 1988, ISBN 0-07607-0904-1.
* Swanborough, Gordon and Bowers, Peter M."United States Navy Aircraft Since 1911". Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute Press, 1976. ISBN 0-87021-968-5.
* Winchester, Jim. "Fighters of the 20th Century". Shrewsbury, UK: Airlife Publishing Ltd., 2002. ISBN 1-84037-388-1.External links
* [http://www.rcaf.com/aircraft/fighters/goblin/index.php Grumman Goblin]
* [http://aeroweb.brooklyn.cuny.edu/specs/grumman/ff-1.htm Grumman FF-1 'Fifi']ee also
aircontent
related=
*Grumman F2F
similar aircraft=
lists=
*List of US Naval aircraft
see also=
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