Aircrafttotal Encyclopedia


Mechanics work on a VE-7
Role	Fighter and trainer
Manufacturer	Lewis & Vought Corporation
Designer	Chance M. Vought
First flight	1917
Introduction	1922
Retired	1928
Primary users	United States Navy United States Army Air Service
Produced	1918-1928
Number built	128

The Vought VE-7 "Bluebird" was an early biplane of the United States. First flying in 1917, it was designed as a two-seat trainer for the United States Army, then adopted by the United States Navy as its first fighter aircraft. In 1922, a VE-7 became the first airplane to take off from an American aircraft carrier

The Lewis & Vought Corporation was formed just months after the U.S. entered World War I, with the intention of servicing war needs. The company's trainer was patterned after successful European designs; for instance, the engine was a Wright Hispano Suiza of the type used by the French Spads. In practice, the VE-7's performance was much better than usual for a trainer, and the Army ordered 1,000 of an improved design called the VE-8. However, the contract was cancelled due to the end of the war.

Operational history

The VE-7s equipped the Navy's first two fighter squadrons VF-1 and VF-2. A VE-7 flown by Lieutenant Virgil C. Griffin made history on October 17, 1922, when it took off from the deck of the newly commissioned carrier Langley. The VE-7s were the Navy's frontline fighters for several years, with three still assigned to the Langley in 1927; all were retired the following year.

Variants

LTV-Chance-Vought

LTV-Chance-Vought
Vought VE-7 Bluebird

General Info

Crew: two Length: 24 ft 5.375 in (7.45 m) Wingspan: 34 ft 4 in (10.47 m) Height: 8 ft 7.5 in (2.63 m) Wing area: 284.5 sq ft (26.43 m²) Empty weight: 1,392 lb (631 kg) Gross weight: 1,937 lb (879 kg)

Powerplant

Powerplant: 1 × Wright-Hispano E-3 liquid cooled V-8, 180 hp (134 kW) Propellers: 2-bladed, 8 ft 8 in (2.64 m) diameter wooden fixed pitch propeller

Performance

Maximum speed: 171 km/h
Range: (467 km, 250 nmi)
Service ceiling: (4,600 m)
Rate of climb: 738 ft/min (3.75 m/s)

Armament

Guns: (VE-7S) 1 x .30 in (7.62 mm) Vickers machine gun machine gun synchronized to fire through the propeller

Special Links LTV-Chance-Vought

Links to Youtube & Others

Among those taking to the air for the first time in a Wright machine was a young New Yorker with a keen mechanical mind that had outpaced engineering courses he took in college. In August 1912 he received certificate number 156 from the Aero Club of America, signing it with a flourish. Over the ensuing years some 15,000 aircraft and missiles would bear his name, Chance M. Vought.

LTV-Chance-Vought
Vought VE-7 Bluebird

Built by the Vought Aircraft Heritage Foundation, this aircraft is a replica of the VE-7 "Bluebird," so named because of its colorful paint scheme.

Youtube Link

Like many naval designs of the era, they could be fitted with wheels or floats to enable operations from water, land, or carrier flight deck.

LTV-Chance-Vought
Vought VE-7 Bluebird
Manufactured 1918-1928 Introduction date 1922
First flight 1917