With the advent of all-metal construction, the 1930's were indeed a golden age of flight. Never behind the curve was the Spartan Aircraft Co. of Tulsa, Oklahoma. In 1932, just in time for maximum profitability, they spang their Spatacular airliner on the U.S. public with an appropriate media blitz:
The new single-engine 14 passenger airliner was on the absolute cutting-edge of state-of-the-art aeronautical design. The aircraft was of all-metal construction at a time when most airplanes were wood and fabric affairs not far removed from kites.
The new airliner was powered by one enormous Menasco Motors Megaladon engine. Each of the Megaladon's 9 cylinders was as large as a burly man's torso and were considered engineering marvels in their own right.
By far, the most stunning feature of the Spartan airliner was its incredibly streamlined, spatted landing gear which made many swoon and thus gave the new transport its storied name: the Spatacular.
The cantilever dual spar wing was also an engineering wonder of the age and gave the Spatacular a record-breaking low-speed roll rate which was considered by all savvy airline executives to be a key feature of great necessity in the passenger business.
Capital Airlines, based at the Allegheny County airport just outside of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania became the Spatacular's first customer and they eventually ordered 33 of the new transports. 32 of them flew the Pittsburgh to Washington, D.C. route and the 33rd was reserved solely for the Pittsburgh to Latrobe run.
Unfortunately, a Civil Aeronautics Board rule mandating twin-engines on passenger aircraft would force the Spartan Spatacular to be retired far sooner than it should have and none remained in commercial service by 1938. The aircraft's sole claim to fame was flying an emergency Primanti's sandwich to U.S.W.A Chairman of Industrial Management Derision and native Pittsburgher Lou "the Bib" Bibitini during negotiations to head off a steel strike in the summer of 1934.
This event was prominently featured in newsreels of the time and still shots of the Spartan Spatacular are used to flummox self-proclaimed aircraft experts on the internet today.
While the Spatacular met an ignominious end, few ends are more ignominious than that faced by the Spartan company as a whole. Spartan built their last aircraft in 1940 and converted to the manufacture of camping trailers.
The 1970's oil crisis was the death knell for much of the U.S. recreational vehicle industry and so Spartan changed gears again and went into the port-o-potty business. Their "Royal Mansion" became the standard on construction job-sites world-wide until Spartan was flushed from the market in 1986 and went into receivership.
Still, one can't help but marvel at the beauty of the long-gone Spartan Spatacular and wonder at what might have been.
Brian da Basher
