Mark Osborne
Global Director of Motorsport
LOT 54
1960 Flying Caduceus Jet-Powered Land Speed Record Car Chassis no. 1525
Sold for US$67,200 inc. premiumLot to be sold without reserve
Lot 54
The First Pure Jet Powered Land Speed Record Car
First to Exceed 300mph
1960 Flying Caduceus Jet-Powered Land Speed Record Car
First to Exceed 300mph
1960 Flying Caduceus Jet-Powered Land Speed Record Car
1960 Flying Caduceus Jet-Powered Land Speed Record Car
Chassis no. 1525
Chassis no. 1525
General Electric J-47-19 Turbojet
Fuel Injection
6,930bhp, 5,200 Pounds Force at 7,950rpm
Four Wheel Independent Suspension
14" Halibrand Disc Brakes, 8-Foot Ribbon Parachute
* Pure Jet Powered Land Speed Record Car
* The First of Its Kind
* Built As a Private Project
* Predecessor of a New FIA Land Speed Record Category
* Base of Progeny Leading Directly to Today's LSR Record Holder, Thrust SSC
THE JETCAR OFFERED
As recounted in an October 1960 Hot Rod Magazine article by Ray Brock, Dr. Ostich gathered a group of friends for a free steak dinner in 1957 and put to them and their hot-rodding skills the idea of building a jet-powered car capable of pushing the Land Speed Record over 500mph. The idea was debated. Resources were assessed and one element appeared as critical: tires.
A 20" outside diameter tire at 500mph rotates at 8,400rpm, a speed that would subject the tire to a centripetal acceleration of about 20,000 Gs. In other words, the tire would be torn asunder. Dr. Ostich needed a solution and approached Firestone which agreed to see if they could come up with a wheel and tire combination that would sustain a linear speed of 500mph without coming apart.
On the assumption that was possible, Dr. Ostich put up the money, gathered his team of part time LSR rodders and set them to work.
Over the next two years with a target of being on The Salt at Bonneville in 1960 they set to work. A General Electric J47-19 turbojet, designed for a set of four on a Convair B-36D strategic bomber that also used six Pratt & Whitney R-4360-53 Wasp Major radial piston engine in pusher configuration was selected. The J47-19 turbojet generated 5,200 pounds force thrust at 7,950rpm. A community of volunteers joined together under Dr. Ostich's leadership and encouragement and the "Flying Caduceus" began to take shape.
Its 4-foot diameter cylindrical structure was built from steel tubing. It was covered in an aluminum skin. The cockpit sat forward and low behind an aluminum nose, a beak might be a better description, flanked by two air intake ducts. The four-wheel independent suspension was made from '60 Chevrolet front suspension components.
Even on the vast, flat, surface of the Bonneville salt flats braking was needed and the Flying Caduceus got four 14" diameter discs brakes with Halibrand calipers. An 8-foot diameter ribbon parachute provided high speed braking but wasn't needed until air resistance quickly retarded the Flying Caduceus from its projected top speed. In the initial configuration there was no crosswind stabilizing fin something added in later attempts. Firestone's tire solution involved 34-inch aluminum wheels which carried lightweight 48-inch diameter tires and were tested in Firestone's own laboratory.
The Flying Caduceus was barely ready for Bonneville in 1960, and a few runs were made uncovering some design and execution shortcomings. Flying Caduceus returned to The Salt in 1962 and in 1963 was clocked at 359.7mph. It never set a Land Speed Record.
But it did set a record for ingenuity, imagination and determination.
A whole fleet of jet-powered cars followed the Flying Caduceus: the Arfons brothers, Craig Breedlove's Spirit of Americas, Gary Gabelich's Blue Flame, Richard Noble's Thrust and Andy Green's Thrust SSC.
They were all legendary, nearly miraculous accomplishments that inspired their competitors to do better, but all were in a direct chain that followed from Dr. Nathan Ostich's 1960 Flying Caduceus, the pioneer of jet-powered Land Speed Record attempts. It proved tire manufacturers like Firestone could build tires that would withstand the incredible forces of 500mph.
Flying Caduceus proved it was possible and that American hot rodders could build such a momentous machine.
It is today in largely original condition still with its Firestone Bonneville tires and is accompanied by a display General Electric J-47-19 turbojet engine.
The Flying Caduceus is one of a kind.
Footnotes
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