1 photo from Wikimedia Commons · credits & licences
- 1. Curtiss NC-1 3 October 1918- initial three engine configuration: Courtesy of the U.S. Navy· Public domain
what is it?
The Curtiss NC (Curtiss Navy Curtiss, nicknamed "Nancy boat" or "Nancy") is a flying boat built by Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company and used by the United States Navy from 1918 through the early 1920s. Ten of these aircraft were built, the most famous of which is the NC-4, the first airplane to make a transatlantic flight. The NC-4 is preserved in the National Museum of Naval Aviation, at NAS Pensacola, Florida.
How to recognise it: 4 piston engines with propellers · 38.4 m wingspan
base stats
Bars compare against all aircraft: 3,500 km/h, 20,000 km, 850 seats; size and number built on a log scale up to 640 t (An-225) and 45,000 built (Cessna 172).
fun facts
- First flew 108 years ago, in 1918.
- Wingspan of 38.4 m: about 9 cars parked nose to tail.
- Fully loaded it can weigh as much as 2 African elephants (~6 t each).
piston: A car-like piston engine turning a propeller: simple and cheap, the classic small plane.
spec sheet
- first flight
- 1918-10-04
- number built
- 10
- role
- long-range patrol
- origin
- 🇺🇸 United States
- makers
- Curtiss, Naval Aircraft Factory
- engines
- 4× Liberty L-12A
- crew
- 5
- length
- 20.8 m
- wingspan
- 38.4 m
- height
- 7.4 m
- max take-off weight
- 12.4 t
- top speed
- 137 km/h
- range
- —
- ceiling
- 1,372 m
Specs are for the version in the Wikipedia article's specification section. Blank means the sources don't say.
Sources: Wikidata Q460266, Wikipedia: Curtiss NC (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-24.