The Guggenheim Safe Aircraft Competition was a competition held in the United States in 1929 to promote the design of safer airplanes.Jenkins 2002 Officially, it aimed "to achieve a real advance in the safety of flying through improvement in the aerodynamic characteristics of heavier-than-air craft, without sacrificing the good, practical qualities of the present-day aircraft."The Daniel Guggenheim International Safe Aircraft Competition: Final Report 1930, p.7

The Daniel Guggenheim Fund for the Promotion of Aeronautics offered a prize of US$100,000 for the most outstanding aircraft design, plus five prizes of $10,000 for safety innovations. The competition was announced on April 20, 1927 to run between September 1, 1927 until October 31, 1929 unless the judges deemed that the competition objectives had been met earlier.

Criteria The aircraft were to be judged against the following criteria: Use a reliable powerplant Be structurally sound Carry of load per of engine power Have adequate visibility for the pilot and observer Demonstrate good stability Be able to recover from abnormal flight conditions Remain maneuverable, controllable, and safe if the engine failed during a steep climb Have a maximum speed of at least , a minimum speed of at most , and a minimum gliding speed of at most Be able to take off within and land within Be able to clear a obstacle within of take-off and of landing

Judges The judging panel comprised:The Daniel Guggenheim International Safe Aircraft Competition: Final Report 1930, p.5 Orville Wright, Chairman Admiral Richard E. Byrd, aviator and explorer F. Trubee Davison, Assistant Secretary of War for Air Dr. George W. Lewis, aeronautical engineer William P. MacCracken, Jr. U.S. Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Aeronautics Edward Pearson Warner, early aviation pioneer

Entries The organizers originally anticipated over 100 entries,Gavin 1927, P34 but by the closing date only twenty-seven applications were received. These were mostly from American manufacturers, but also five from the UK and one from Italy. Of these, only fifteen applicants presented an aircraft before the closing date of the competition. Although the judges had expected to evaluate designs throughout the competition period, the first aircraft was not presented until August 1929, and almost all aircraft arrived in the last month before the competition closed. This, combined with poor weather at the testing location (Mitchel Field), and the barely-ready state of many of the aircraft caused significant challenges for the judging process. One entry, the Dare Safety Plane suffered a structural failure in flight before arriving at the competition, killing its test pilot and its designer.

The entries received were:Jenkins 2002, except as noted

Entrant Nation Aircraft Result Heraclio Alfaro USA Alfaro X-13 Disqualified; insufficient speed Bourdon Aircraft Company USA Bourdon B.4 Kitty HawkThe Daniel Guggenheim International Safe Aircraft Competition: Final Report 1930, p.55 DisqualifiedThe Daniel Guggenheim International Safe Aircraft Competition: Final Report 1930, p.14 Società Italiana Ernesto Breda Italy Breda Ba.18 Did not startThe Daniel Guggenheim International Safe Aircraft Competition: Final Report 1930, pp.6,14. Manufacturer is listed as an entrant, but does not appear in table of flight test results. Brunner-Winkle Aircraft Corporation USA Brunner-Winkle BirdThe Daniel Guggenheim International Safe Aircraft Competition: Final Report 1930, p.57 Disqualified Vincent Burnelli USA Burnelli GX-3Gunston 1993, p.63 Withdrew Cierva Autogiro Company UK Weymann-LePère C.18 Did not start; built for Cierva's entry, but transferred to Pitcairn for their entry instead (see below).Brooks 1988, p.90–91 Command-Aire USA Command-Aire 3C3The Daniel Guggenheim International Safe Aircraft Competition: Final Report 1930, p.61 Disqualified Cosmic Aircraft Corporation USA Did not start Cunningham-Hall Aircraft Corporation USA Cunningham-Hall Model X-90(N)The Daniel Guggenheim International Safe Aircraft Competition: Final Report 1930, p.63 Disqualified Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company USA Curtiss Tanager Winner Dare Airplane Company USA Dare Safety Plane Did not start; fatal crash July 17, 1929 de Havilland UK - Did not start; canceled entry before August 3, citing too much work from British government contracts."Safety Contest Entries Reach Total of Sixteen" 1929, p.273 Fleet Aircraft USA Fleet Model 2The Daniel Guggenheim International Safe Aircraft Competition: Final Report 1930, pp.67,69 Disqualified Ford-Leigh Safety Wing USA modified Brunner-Winkle Bird Disqualified Gates Aircraft Corporation USA Stampe et Vertongen RSV.26/100 "mono-biplane""The International Safe Aircraft Competition" 1929, p.848 Withdrew Gloster UK Did not start Charles Ward Hall USA Did not start Handley Page UK Handley Page Gugnunc Disqualified; failed glide test requirement J. S. McDonnell Jr and Associates USA McDonnell DoodlebugBodell 2025 Crashed Mercury Aircraft/Schroeder-Wentworth USA Schroeder-Wentworth Monoplane Crashed Moth Aircraft Corporation USA de Havilland Moth fitted with Handley Page automatic leading-edge slots Withdrew Pitcairn-Cierva Autogiro Company of America USA Pitcairn PCA-1Brooks 1988, p.91 Did not start; not ready in time. Pitcairn arranged to enter the Weymann-LePère C.18 imported as Cierva's entry, but this was not ready either. Rocheville Aircraft Corporation USA Did not start Taylor Bros Aircraft Corporation USA Taylor C-2The Daniel Guggenheim International Safe Aircraft Competition: Final Report 1930, p.25 Disqualified Vickers UK - Did not start; canceled entry before August 3, citing too much work from British government contracts. Whittelsey Manufacturing Company USA Whittelsey Avian fitted with Handley Page automatic leading-edge slots Did not start John H. Wiggins Company USA DNS=Did not start

Results Flight tests were completed on January 1, 1930. The Curtiss Tanager and Handley Page Gugnunc were the only two aircraft to complete the entire testing program.The Daniel Guggenheim International Safe Aircraft Competition: Final Report 1930, p.8 The Gugnunc was unable to meet the glide test requirements, leaving the Tanager as the only fully qualified entry and therefore the winner. Of the other thirteen aircraft that presented for testing, three withdrew, two were damaged during testing and could not complete the program, and eight others were disqualified. The result was announced on January 6, 1930.

However, the win led to legal action by Handley Page, because the company accused Curtiss of using their patented automatic wing slot design on the Tanager without permission. In a separate action, A. J. Leigh accused Handley Page of copying his "Safety Wing" design. These matters were never resolved in court.

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