Ryan NYP Bare Fuselage Structure and Wright Whirlwind Engine Installation (1927)

Technical engineering photograph by H.A. Erickson showing the bare Spirit fuselage frame, fuel tank, and Wright Whirlwind engine. — Ryan NYP Bare Fuselage Structure and Wright Whirlwind Engine Installation (1927) · Donald A. Hall Estate Collection

An exceptional archival gelatin silver engineering photograph (negative plate #3030) taken during the construction of the Ryan NYP at Dutch Flats, photographed and retouched by H.A. Erickson. With outer fabric and cowlings removed, the image details the internal welded steel-tube Warren truss, the main 425-gallon fuselage fuel tank, forward 25-gallon oil tank, engine mount, the uncowled Wright J-5C Whirlwind 9-cylinder radial motor, and the exposed rubber shock-cord bungees on the landing gear strut, providing an indispensable structural record of the aircraft's internal design.