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these aircraft to outfit his airline, but the 1920 recession deprived Lawson of the investment funds to meet payroll and other development expenses. The first and only Lawson
Midnight Liner was completed on December 9, 1920. Bad weather, however, delayed its maiden flight. As Lawson's financial situation worsened, he decided to fly his new airliner from a space near the factory, rather than make a costly ground transport move to Hamilton Field (now
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built the Lawson
Midnight Liner for use on the night service between Chicago and New York. The Midnight Liner was larger with three 400-hp Liberty engines – one on each wing and another in the nose. The airliner sported sleeping berths and a shower. It was his objective to produce large number of
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Lawson had a 100-passenger, double-deck version on the drafting board, but the Lawson
Midnight Liner was the last. The company folded in 1922, and the assets were auctioned off. The Lawson Air Liners are renowned due to their size (for the time) and the ambition of their flamboyant promoter.
148:). The prepared strip was only about 300 feet long. Lawson finally gave the order to attempt flight on May 8, 1921. The aircraft did not clear an elm tree and crashed on takeoff. The pilots were unhurt but the airliner was never repaired.
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Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The largest of the series, it was designed for long-distance flights. It was completed in 1920 but never flew, crashing on its initial takeoff.
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Interior photograph of the Lawson L-4 showing washroom facilities and sleeping berths
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325:"Milwaukee-Made Lawson Air Liner Pioneers Transportation Delux".
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The
Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft (Part Work 1982–1985)
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Lawson L-4 3-view drawing from Les Ailes
February 9, 1922
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110 mph (177 km/h, 96 kn) (estimated)
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Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era
36:The Lawson L-4 "Midnight Air Liner" circa 1921
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247:V-12 piston engine , 420 hp (313 kW) each
302:. ASME Milwaukee Chapter. Archived from
107:biplane airliners designed and built by
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361:. Humanity publishing company. 1930.
225:2,028 sq ft (188.4 m)
213:111 ft 5 in (33.96 m)
207:54 ft 2 in (16.51 m)
359:Lawson – Aircraft Industry Builder
219:17 ft 6 in (5.33 m)
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350:200 Mile Trip in First Airliner
16:1920s American biplane airliner
237:18,645 lb (8,457 kg)
44:Three-engined biplane airliner
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393:1920s United States airliners
231:9,759 lb (4,427 kg)
103:was the last in a series of
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135:completed his 2000-mile
127:Lawson Midnight Airliner
111:under the livery of the
347:Alfred, Lawson (1928).
198:General characteristics
178:Lawson Airplane Company
141:Lawson Airplane Company
113:Lawson Airplane Company
74:Lawson Airplane Company
56:Lawson Airplane Company
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119:Design and development
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380:at Wikimedia Commons
327:The Milwaukee Journal
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300:"LAWSON "AIR LINER""
184:Specifications (L-4)
342:. Orbis Publishing.
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306:on 22 January 2009
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376:Media related to
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329:. Dec 26, 1920.
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253:Performance
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387:Categories
378:Lawson L-4
286:References
278:Lawson L-2
223:Wing area:
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101:Lawson L-4
65:Not flown
398:Trimotors
211:Wingspan:
157:Operators
408:Biplanes
267:See also
217:Height:
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131:After
105:Lawson
41:Role
312:2012
243:3 ×
99:The
22:L-4
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