Lockheed Model 12 Electra Junior

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The Lockheed 12 Electra Junior was an eight place, six passenger all-metal transport designed for use by smaller airlines and private owners. Developed as a scaled-down version of the Lockheed 10 Electra, the prototype made its first flight on June 27, 1936, piloted by Marshall Headle.

British Airways ordered two Electra Juniors in 1939. Although ostensibly acquired for civilian purposes, these aircraft were modified for aerial photography and used by Sidney Cotton to track Axis military activity on the eve of World War II.

A modified Electra Junior was used by the NACA as a testbed for "hotwing" deicing technology.

Three modifications of the basic 12-A were produced by Lockheed:

• 212 light attack/trainer with gun turret atop aft fuselage
• 12-B with Wright Whirlwind engines
• Tricycle gear version of 12-A (non-retractible)

A total of 130 Electra Juniors were built. At the time of Pearl Harbor this aircraft had outsold the competing Beech 18 by 2-1, and Lockheed had over two dozen unfilled orders. In order to concentrate on more vital and advanced wartime aircraft, Lockheed turned the unfilled orders over to Beechcraft, who eventually built many thousands of their model 18.

[edit] On screen

An Electra Junior appeared in the film Casablanca. Wartime security precautions prevented shooting at an airport at night, so a cardboard cutout stood in for a real airplane in many shots.

Two Electra Juniors appeared as stand-ins for a model 10-E Electra in the 1976 TV movie Amelia Earhart.

[edit] Specifications (12A Electra Junior)

[edit] General characteristics

• Crew: two pilots
• Capacity: 6 passengers
• Length: 36 ft 4 in (11.07 m)
• Wingspan: 49 ft 6 in (15.09 m)
• Height: 9 ft 9 in (2.97 m)
• Wing area: 352 ft² (32.7 m²)
• Empty: 5,765 lb (2,615 kg)
• Loaded: 8,650 lb (3,924 kg)
• Maximum takeoff: lb ( kg)
• Powerplant: (12-A) 2× Pratt & Whitney R-985-48 radials, 450 hp (336 kW) each
• (12-B) 2× Wright R-975 radials, 440 hp (330 kW) each

[edit] Performance

• Maximum speed: 225 mph (362 km/h)
• Range: 800 miles (1,287 km)
• Service ceiling: 22,900 ft (6,980 m)
• Rate of climb: 1,140 ft/min (427 m/min)
• Wing loading: 25 lb/ft² (120 kg/m²)
• Power/mass: 0.10 hp/lb (0.17 kW/kg)

[edit] Operators

[edit] Civilian

• British Airways (a front for the espionage of Sidney Cotton)
• NACA
• Santa Maria Airlines

[edit] Military

• Canada (RCAF)
• Indonesia
• Netherlands East Indies
• South Africa (SAAF)
• United Kingdom (RAF)
• United States (US Army Air Corps, US Army Air Force, US Marine Corps, US Navy)

[edit] Related content

Related development:

• Lockheed Electra
• Lockheed Super Electra

Comparable aircraft:

• Beech 18

Designation sequence:

• L-5 - L-7 - L-8 - L-8A - L-9 - L-10 - L-12 - L-14 - L-15 - L-18 - L-20

Related lists:

• List of Lockheed aircraft