Wiki90: 90s Style Encyclopedia on the Web
In this article, the topic of Grumman C-1 Trader will be addressed, which has gained relevance in recent years due to its impact in different areas. Grumman C-1 Trader is a topic that has aroused the interest of experts and scholars, as well as the general public, due to its importance and significance in today's society. Throughout this article, different aspects related to Grumman C-1 Trader will be analyzed, from its origin and history to its influence today. Various points of view and opinions on the matter will be examined, with the aim of providing a comprehensive and complete vision on this topic. In addition, reflections and conclusions will be offered that invite reflection and debate, in order to deepen the understanding of Grumman C-1 Trader and its impact on the contemporary world.
C-1 (TF) Trader | |
---|---|
A C-1A Trader from Naval Air Station, Willow Grove, Pennsylvania in 1987 | |
Role | Carrier onboard delivery |
National origin | United States |
Manufacturer | Grumman |
First flight | 19 January 1955 |
Introduction | 1956 |
Retired | 1988 |
Primary user | United States Navy |
Number built | 87 |
Developed from | Grumman S-2 Tracker |
Developed into | Grumman E-1 Tracer |
The Grumman C-1 Trader (TF prior to 1962) is a carrier onboard delivery (COD) variant of the Grumman S-2 Tracker. It was replaced by a similar version of the Northrop Grumman E-2 Hawkeye, the Grumman C-2 Greyhound.
The C-1 Trader grew out of a need by the United States Navy for a new anti-submarine airplane. In response to this Grumman began development on a prototype twin-engine, high-wing aircraft which it designated the G-89. In 1952 the Navy designated this aircraft the XS2F-1 and flew it for the first time on December 4 that year. During the rest of the 1950s three major variants emerged, the C-1 Trader being one of them. The C-1 (originally the TF-1, for "Trainer", a secondary role) was outfitted to carry nine passengers or 3,500 pounds (1,600 kg) of cargo and first flew in January 1955.
Throughout the 1960s and 1970s the C-1 Trader carried mail and supplies to aircraft carriers on station in the Pacific Ocean during the Vietnam War and also served as a trainer for all-weather carrier operations. Over its production life 87 C-1 Traders were built, of which four were converted into EC-1A Tracer electronic countermeasures aircraft. The last C-1 was retired from USN service in 1988; it was the second-to-last radial-engine aircraft in U.S. military service (The last C-131 wasn't retired until 1990). As of 2010, approximately ten were still airworthy in civil hands, operating as warbirds.[citation needed]
In 1956 the U.S. Marine Corps Test Unit Number 1 (MCTU #1) tested the concept of using the TF-1 variant as a vehicle for inserting reconnaissance teams behind enemy lines. “On 9 July 1956 MCTU Recon Marines became the first to parachute from a TF-1. Less than three weeks later, four recon parachutists launched from the USS Bennington, which was 70 miles at sea, and jumped on a desert drop zone near El Centro California, some 100 miles inland. For the first time in Marine Corps and Naval Aviation history, the technique of introducing recon personnel off a carrier sea base to an inland objective had successfully been tested.”
In August 2010, Brazilian Naval Aviation announced that it would buy and modernize eight C-1 airframes to serve in carrier onboard delivery (COD) and aerial refueling roles for use on its aircraft carrier São Paulo. In 2011 contract was signed with Marsh Aviation to convert four ex-US Navy C-1A Trader airframes into KC-2 Turbo Traders. The first KC-2 prototype flight was expected for November 2017 and the delivery of the first operational aircraft was scheduled for December 2018.[citation needed]
Data from Grumman aircraft since 1929.
General characteristics
Performance
Related development
Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
Media related to Grumman C-1 Trader at Wikimedia Commons