Some know the Stearman Model 75 as “The Pilot Maker.”

It earned that honorific because more men and women in World War II’s “Greatest Generation” learned to fly in Stearmans than any other series of aircraft built.

Stearmans assigned to the U.S. Army Air Corps also were known at “The Kaydet.” Stearmans sent to the U.S. Navy had a less-revered nickname: “The Yellow Peril.”

The Stearman division of Boeing Aircraft Co., located in Wichita, KS, built 8,428 of the Model 75 biplanes, plus enough spare parts to assemble another 2,000, between 1935 until February 1945.

Here is more information about the Model 75 series of Stearmans:
>> Crew: two, student and instructor
>> Length (prop to tail): 24-feet-9-inches
>> Upper wingspan: 32-feet-2-inches
>> Lower wingspan: 31-feet-two-inches
>> Upper and Lower wing chord: 5 feet
>> Wing area: 298 square feet
>> Horizontal stabilizer (elevator) width: 12-feet-six-inches
>> Vertical stabilizer (rudder) height: 5-feet-1/4-inches
>> Landing gear tread (tire centerline to tire centerline): 6-feet-four 1⁄4 inches
>> Prop diameter: 8-feet-six-inches
>> Empty weight: 1,931 pounds
>> Maximum takeoff weight: 2,636 pounds
>> Maximum speed: 135 mph
>> Cruise speed: 96 mph
>> Fuel capacity: 46 gallons
>> Fuel burn rate: 12 gallons per hour
>> Oil capacity: 4.4 gallons
>> Engines used (7-cylinder, air-cooled, radial):
Continental R-670, 220 horsepower
Lycoming R-680, 225 horsepower
Jacobs R-755, 240 horsepower
>> Paint Schemes
:
Planes came from the Wichita factory painted silver
Army colors: Blue fuselage, yellow wings
Navy colors: Yellow fuselage, yellow wings
Other military paint markings were the base commander’s choice
Today, many owners opt for a paint scheme of their own choice

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