Boeing B 1

B-1

This flying boat of 1919 was the first Boeing airplane designed from the outset for commercial use. Unable to compete in price with surplus World War I airplanes, the B-1 was not a commercial success.

The B-1 was a "pusher-style" flying boat, with its engine at the rear. It could carry a pilot and two passengers, as well as mail or cargo. The hull was laminated wood veneer, and the wing frames were spruce and plywood.

It outlasted six engines in eight years of international airmail runs between Seattle and Victoria, British Columbia. Flown by Eddie Hubbard, the B-1 covered 350,000 miles -- remarkable for the time.
 

First flight: Dec. 27, 1919
Model number: 6
Classification: Civil flying boat
Span: 50 feet 3 inches
Length: 31 feet 3 inches
Gross weight: 3,850 pounds
Top speed: 90 mph
Cruising speed: 80 mph
Range: 400 miles
Ceiling: 13,300 feet
Power: 200-horsepower Hall-Scott L-6 or 400-horsepower Liberty engine
Accommodation: 1 pilot, 2 passengers