Boeing F2B-1 Navy Fighter Biplane 1927 Photo, Boeing Stamp, Sea Hawks Type, 8x10 For Sale

Boeing F2B-1 Navy Fighter Biplane 1927 Photo
Boeing Stamp, Sea Hawks Type, 8x10
Carrier hooks, Wasp radial, the 'Suicide Trio' typeDESCRIPTIONOriginal Boeing photograph of a U.S. Navy Boeing F2B-1 single-seat carrier fighter, dated September 28, 1927 by the negative number and date lettered into the image (F2B-1, 1627-B, 9-28-27). The view is a low, close three-quarter look at the airplane on grass beside a wooded lakeshore in the Pacific Northwest: the nine-cylinder Pratt & Whitney Wasp radial with its cylinders exposed, the tubular landing gear struts, and the axle bar between the wheels fitted with the hooks used to catch the arresting wires on a carrier deck.The Navy serial on the rudder is partly hidden by a wing strut. The visible characters fit A-7424, the first of the 32 production F2B-1s (serials A-7424 to A-7455). Boeing's own handwritten caption on the back reads "Boeing design #69-B, U.S. Navy F2B-1 fighter," with "model 69-B" in pencil. The date puts this photograph months before the first production F2B-1s reached the Navy in early 1928.The F2B-1 never saw combat, but it earned a place in Navy flying history. Production F2B-1s flew with Navy squadrons aboard USS Saratoga, and the type was flown by the Three Sea Hawks, a Navy trio led by Lt. Daniel W. Tomlinson IV with Lt. (jg) William V. Davis Jr. and Lt. (jg) Aaron P. Storrs III. Crowds nicknamed them the Suicide Trio. The standard F2B-1 engine quit when the airplane was inverted, so Tomlinson modified the carburetors, on advice from Jimmy Doolittle, to allow upside-down flight. The team performed publicly in 1928, ending at the National Air Races at Mines Field in Los Angeles that September. This print shows the type they flew. Nothing on it ties this particular airframe to the team.The back carries a red Boeing credit stamp reading Please Credit Boeing Aircraft Company, Seattle, Washington, Designers and Builders of the B-29 Superfortress, B-17 Flying Fortress, Stratocruiser, Stratoliner, Clipper and PT-17 Kaydet. That wording dates the stamp to the post-war years (the Stratocruiser first flew in 1947), so this print was issued from Boeing's files well after the 1927 negative was made. The image is clear and sharp, with a soft sky and strong detail in the engine and hooks. Images are scanned at 600 dpi.Every effort is made at fact checking and provenance, including background research through news and historical archives. If any listing is incorrect in any way and you are not satisfied with the item, please contact me and I will make it right. Orders placed before Noon CDT ship the same day by USPS Ground Advantage with tracking, so you know exactly when it will arrive. Returns are accepted on all items over $25. Every shipment goes out in rigid, professional packaging, sealed and protected with acid-free protectors. Shipping is free and already built into the price, so the BIN price is exactly what you pay, with no surprise shipping costs at checkout.CONDITIONOriginal black and white photograph, approximately 8 x 10 inches, in good vintage condition with honest age wear. The image is sharp. Light dust specks, a few hairline surface scratches and faint processing spots show in the sky area. The white margins carry grease pencil crop and scaling marks, including a 70% notation along the top edge and small crop ticks at the sides, showing the print was marked for reproduction. Light handling wear at the edges and corners. The reverse has the red Boeing credit stamp, blue ink and pencil notations, and a tan stain at the top edge with a pinpoint of paper loss. Please review all scans, which show the front and reverse in detail.