5 photos from Wikimedia Commons · credits & licences
- 1. Pan American Airways Sikorsky S-42 "Pan American Clipper" in flight over the under-construction San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge: United Technologies Corporation· Public domain
- 2. Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation ad Model S-42 Clipper Flying Boat 1937: Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation· Public domain
- 3. Sikorsky S-42 Brasilian Clipper: Anonymous Unknown author· Public domain
- 4. Sikorsky S-42 PAA taking off in 1930s: U.S. Navy· Public domain
- 5. Sikorsky S-42 NC16734: National Library of Australia, Original Photographer Unknown· Public domain
what is it?
The Sikorsky S-42 was a commercial flying boat designed and built by Sikorsky Aircraft to meet requirements for a long-range flying boat laid out by Pan American World Airways (Pan Am) in 1931. The design featured wing flaps, variable-pitch propellers, and a full-length hull that supported the tail directly. The prototype first flew on 29 March 1934, and set ten world records for payload-to-height.
How to recognise it: 4 piston engines with propellers · 34.8 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 92 years ago, in 1934.
- Top speed is 2.3× a car on the Dutch motorway (130 km/h).
- Wingspan of 34.8 m: about 8 cars parked nose to tail.
- Fully loaded it can weigh as much as 3 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
- 1934
- introduced
- 1934
- status
- retired
- number built
- 10
- role
- flying boat airliner
- origin
- 🇺🇸 United States
- makers
- Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation
- engines
- 4× Pratt & Whitney R-1690 Hornet
- passengers
- 32
- length
- 20.6 m
- wingspan
- 34.8 m
- height
- 6.6 m
- max take-off weight
- 17.2 t
- top speed
- 293 km/h
- cruise speed
- 257 km/h
- range
- —
- ceiling
- 4,787 m
- landing gear
- flying boat
Specs are for the version in the Wikipedia article's specification section. Blank means the sources don't say.
Sources: Wikidata Q1887138, Wikipedia: Sikorsky S-42 (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-24.